IMD Supervisory Board
The IMD Supervisory Board is presided over by the Chairman of the Foundation Board. The Foundation Board appoints the Supervisory Board from among its members to support, challenge and supervise IMD’s operations.
The Supervisory Board has overall responsibility for IMD’s vision, strategy and management to support its success in the marketplace. It is responsible, along with the Foundation Board, for governance at IMD, as well as ensuring the organization remains relevant to the evolving needs of the global corporate community.
The IMD Supervisory Board consists of at least three members and is presided over by the Chairman of the Foundation Board.

Michel Demaré is Chairman of the Foundation and Supervisory Boards of IMD and member of the Audit Committee (AFRC). He is a member of the Supervisory Boards of Vodafone Group PLC, Astra Zeneca PLC, Deputy Chairman…

Michel Demaré is Chairman of the Foundation and Supervisory Boards of IMD and member of the Audit Committee (AFRC). He is a member of the Supervisory Boards of Vodafone Group PLC, Astra Zeneca PLC, Deputy Chairman of Louis-Dreyfus Company Holdings B.V. and Chairman of Nomoko AG. He also serves on the Advisory Board of the Institute of Banking and Finance at the University of Zurich.
He was the Chairman of Syngenta AG from 2013 until the Company was sold to ChemChina in 2017, and was Vice Chairman of UBS Group AG from 2009 until 2019. He was also the Chairman of SwissHoldings from 2013 to 2015. Prior to his supervisory career, he was Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President of ABB from 2005 to February 2013, serving in addition as the company’s President of Global Markets between late 2008 and March 2011. He also served as ABB’s acting Chief Executive Officer during most of 2008. Previously he had been Chief Financial Officer Europe for Baxter International Inc. He joined Baxter in 2002 after 18 years at the Dow Chemical Company, where he held various treasury and division CFO positions in Europe (including Switzerland) and the USA.
Michel holds a License in Applied Economics from the Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL) and an MBA from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL) in Belgium.

Vice Chairperson of IMD Foundation and Supervisory Boards.
Hanne de Mora is the Co-Founder of a-connect, which she created in 2002. With eight offices and more than 2,200 certified independent professionals, a-connect…

Vice Chairperson of IMD Foundation and Supervisory Boards.
Hanne de Mora is the Co-Founder of a-connect, which she created in 2002. With eight offices and more than 2,200 certified independent professionals, a-connect helps companies execute critical projects by leveraging its network of specialists. Based in Zurich, Hanne takes an active role in client service, with a specific focus on advising senior leaders on strategy and corporate governance.
Hanne is a Non-Executive Director at Nestlé (member of the Sustainability Committee), a Member of the Board of Directors of AB Volvo, and is also the Chairperson of Microcaps AG. In the past, she has been a Member of the Board of Directors of Sandvik, where she held the audit committee chair, and MetsoOutotec Oy. She has also served as a non-executive director of Telenor, Tomra and Valora. Prior to a-connect, Hanne was a partner at McKinsey & Company based in Switzerland. She started her career as a credit analyst with Den Norske Creditbank in Luxemburg, and subsequently held brand management and controller roles at Procter & Gamble.
Hanne holds an MBA from IESE, Barcelona, and a Bachelor’s degree in Business from HEC, Lausanne
Supervisory Board members

Gilbert Achermann is the Chairperson of Straumann, the global leader in implant dentistry, and a Board member of Julius Bär, the private bank, Ypsomed, a selfcare solutions company, and Vifor, a pharma company. In…

Gilbert Achermann is the Chairperson of Straumann, the global leader in implant dentistry, and a Board member of Julius Bär, the private bank, Ypsomed, a selfcare solutions company, and Vifor, a pharma company. In addition he is a jury member of Venture Kick and member of the Board of the Swiss MedTech association.
Prior to becoming Chairperson, Gilbert served as CFO and CEO at Straumann. His previous positions include Chairperson and Co-CEO of the Vitra Group, a family-owned furniture and shopfitting company. Prior to that he held positions as the Chairperson of Siegfried, a listed pharma service company, and Vice Chairperson of the Moser Group, a privately owned luxury watch company. He began his career at UBS in investment banking.
Gilbert holds an EMBA from IMD and joined IMD in July 2016 as Executive-in-Residence.

As the only female Group CEO of a major UAE-headquartered bank and publicly listed corporation within the UAE, Hana is recognized for being a change leader and for her forward-thinking vision with a focus on embedding a…

As the only female Group CEO of a major UAE-headquartered bank and publicly listed corporation within the UAE, Hana is recognized for being a change leader and for her forward-thinking vision with a focus on embedding a culture of innovation and diversity and inclusion in her leadership.
A seasoned C-suite executive with more than 20 years of experience in banking and financial services, Hana previously served as Deputy Group CEO and Head of Personal Banking at FAB, responsible for leading the transformation of FAB’s consumer bank, instilling a customer and digital-first mindset.
A graduate of George Washington University in the US, Hana is currently Chair of the Global Council on the Sustainable Development Goals, with a key interest in Development Goal 7: Affordable and Clean Energy. She is also a member of MasterCard Advisory and has served as an independent director in Emirates Integrated Telecommunication Company (Du) and Vice Chairperson of the Emirates Institute for Banking and Financial Services.
Her most recent accolade includes her nomination in Forbes Middle East, being ranked third as featured in the Middle East’s Power Business’ Women 2021 list.

Norwegian Liselott Kilaas has over 20 years of international top management experience, resulting in a proven track record in strategic and operational performance development across a broad spectrum of businesses.…

Norwegian Liselott Kilaas has over 20 years of international top management experience, resulting in a proven track record in strategic and operational performance development across a broad spectrum of businesses. During the last 10 years she worked in the healthcare sector and was the CEO of Aleris 2013–2017.
Liselott has extensive Non‐Executive Board and Committee experience from 2004, ranging from central banking, investment funds, telecom, technology, branded consumer goods, healthcare, medical technology, aluminum, media to shipping. Her first two board assignments were with the Central Bank of Norway (also responsible for the Norwegian Sovereign Fund), a position she held for 12 years, and Telenor, a position she held for 10 years.
Liselott is currently working with companies that are listed, private equity owned, and governmental owned. She is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Norsk Hydro ASA, Orkla ASA, Ambea AB, Peab AB, Nobina AB, Norwegian Sovereign Fund, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Coala Life, Implantica AG, Avonova AB.
Education
1983 M.Sc. Mathematical Statistics, University of Oslo, Norway
1987 Master’s of Business Administration, IMD, Lausanne, Switzerland

O’Brien has enjoyed a global career with roles in China, Sydney, Paris, London, and Zurich. He retired from global management consulting and executive search firm Egon Zehnder in 2018 after 30 years, including six…

O’Brien has enjoyed a global career with roles in China, Sydney, Paris, London, and Zurich. He retired from global management consulting and executive search firm Egon Zehnder in 2018 after 30 years, including six years as Chief Executive Officer and the last eight years as Chairperson.
Prior to this, he held various management positions in Red Rock Leisure, a family-owned group of companies in Australia, and worked as an associate with McKinsey. His current boards include Ardagh Metal Packaging SA in the US, Ardagh Group SA, and the Advisory Board of Conduit Funds Management in Sydney.
O’Brien holds an MBA from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of New South Wales. He also has a diploma in theology and philosophy from Saint Columban’s College in Sydney, which included two years’ study and community work in Mindanao, the Philippines.
He has been a member of the supervisory board at IMD since 2008.

Woods Staton is the Executive Chairperson of Arcos Dorados (NYSE: ARCO), the world’s largest independent McDonald’s franchisee. Arcos Dorados operates or franchises more than 2,200 restaurants, with over 100,…

Woods Staton is the Executive Chairperson of Arcos Dorados (NYSE: ARCO), the world’s largest independent McDonald’s franchisee. Arcos Dorados operates or franchises more than 2,200 restaurants, with over 100,000 employees and greater than US$3bn in revenue, across 20 countries and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean. Often recognized as one of the best companies to work for in Latin America, every year Arcos Dorados generates first-time, formal employment opportunities for tens of thousands of young people in the region.
Born in Medellín, Colombia, Woods’ business life has focused on consumer goods in Latin America. His grandfather founded Panamco, which became the largest Coca/Cola bottler in the world with operations in seven Latin American countries. After many years in the family business, Woods branched out, starting his own entrepreneurial career as McDonald’s joint venture partner in Argentina. He later served as President of McDonald’s South Latin America Division. He founded Arcos Dorados in 2007, when he led a consortium of investors in the purchase of McDonald’s Corporation’s operations in Latin America. In April 2011, Arcos Dorados executed a successful IPO on the New York Stock Exchange.
Woods is actively involved in several non-profit organizations. He is co-founder of Endeavor Argentina, promoting entrepreneurship, as well as a founding partner of Ashoka Argentina, a global organization committed to investing in innovative solutions through social entrepreneurship. He is a member of the Chairman’s International Advisory Council of the Council of the Americas and currently serves as the Chair for the Latin American Program’s Advisory Board at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, a think tank in Washington D.C.
Woods holds an MBA from IMD.
Contact Us
For any question you have, please fill out the following form.
At IMD we care about your privacy. We do not sell, rent, or otherwise make available to third parties any personal information for marketing purposes. Read complete privacy policy.