Bill Anderson

Bill Anderson became CEO of Bayer AG in June 2023, inheriting arguably the most challenging corporate turnaround assignment in European business. Bayer's $63 billion acquisition of Monsanto in 2018 — intended to create a global agricultural sciences leader — is widely considered the worst corporate deal in German history. The acquisition brought with it over 100,000 lawsuits alleging that Monsanto's Roundup herbicide (glyphosate) causes cancer, resulting in over $16 billion in settlements and ongoing litigation. Bayer's stock price declined by approximately 75% from its pre-acquisition highs. Anderson, who came from Roche's pharmaceuticals division, faces a multi-dimensional challenge: resolving the remaining Roundup litigation, managing patent expirations on major pharmaceutical products (Eylea, Xarelto), restructuring the company's operations (Anderson introduced a radical "Dynamic Shared Ownership" management model eliminating most middle management), and evaluating whether Bayer should break itself up into separate pharma, crop science, and consumer health companies. His key decisions involve litigation resolution strategy, the potential breakup into separate entities, pharmaceutical pipeline development, cost restructuring, and restoring investor confidence.