BASF appoint new head of leather and textile chemicals
13 July 2011BASF have appointed François Desné as Senior Vice-President of the Performance Chemicals division and global head of the business unit BASF Leather and Textile Chemicals. He succeeds Dr Reinhard Leppkes who had been leading the business unit since 2007.
François Desné (39) started his career with BASF in 2003 as Business Development Manager, Corporate Planning and Controlling, BASF Coatings, Muenster, Germany. He later moved on to hold management positions in the coatings business of BASF in the Asia Pacific region. Prior to joining BASF, he held operational responsibilities at a large French chemical company.
François Desné holds a MSc in physics from the University of Paris VII, a MBA in Finance and Strategy from the Wharton School and a MA in international studies and Mandarin Chinese from the Lauder Institute, University of Pennsylvania.