New broom at the top: Lusser in, Hirzel out as Danaher triggers new era at Abcam

Markus Lusser becomes President at the life science research tools supplier – replacing Alan Hirzel who was CEO since 2014 and previously headed marketing at the company.

Abcam said the role was essentially the same and, as President, Lusser would lead Abcam through the next phase of its journey. The change in terminology comes as Abcam transitions to an operating company within Danaher as a result of the takeover.

The title of CEO is reserved for Danaher’s CEO Rainer Blair, with each independent operating company being led by its respective President.

Abcam said Hirzel had not yet announced what he plans to do next.

A seasoned Danaher executive, Lusser joins Abcam at a pivotal moment as the company transitions into the Danaher Life Sciences portfolio. Danaher says his extensive commercial and digital experience across the life sciences and medical device industries will help build on Abcam's momentum to deliver innovative solutions that meet the needs of customers and drive the industry forward.

Lusser joined Danaher in 2011 and most recently served as Vice-President and Chief Customer Officer for the Life Sciences Innovations Group helping shape and execute Danaher’s cross-OpCo strategy to drive disproportionate growth and share gain in the biologics market segment.

Prior to that, he was President of Leica Microsystems (LMS) where he successfully drove innovation, commercial execution, and associate engagement to deliver accelerated organic growth, enhanced profitability and cash flow.

He led LMS's successful digital transformation efforts, including innovations such as ARveo, the world's first Surgical Imaging Platform offering Augmented Reality for brain surgery. Prior to joining Danaher, he was responsible for large global commercial organisations, including 20 years at Siemens Healthineers.

Lusser said: “I am excited to join Abcam and work alongside such talented and diverse teams to solve complex challenges and help our customers progress faster, together. As President of Abcam, my mission is to continue to build a culture that puts the customer at the heart of everything we do, anchored in the quality of our products, close collaboration with our partners, and a focus on innovation within the industry.”

In addition to Lusser’s appointment, Abcam recently named Knud Mueller as Chief Financial Officer. Mueller brings more than 15 years of Danaher experience to the business.

He recently returned to Danaher as CFO at Leica Microsystems and Danaher Europe CFO. Prior to that, he held a variety of finance leadership roles with operating companies across the Danaher portfolio, including Leica Biosystems, Leica Microsystems, Beckman Coulter Diagnostics and Life Sciences Innovations Group (LSIG).

Headquartered in Cambridge since 1998, Abcam has a substantial global footprint which includes nine sites operating in over 130 countries. It has more than 1,750 associates and serves 750,000 researchers worldwide.