Massimo Selmo, currently head of global sourcing, has been named the first-ever chief procurement officer by the board of directors at Zurich-based Barry Callebaut. He also became a member of the executive committee. In another executive move, Masha Vis-Mertens, vice president operations and supply chain EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa), was named chief human resources officer and a member of the executive committee. She succeeds Isabelle Esser, who will pursue a career outside of Barry Callebaut.

Selmo has worked at Barry Callebaut for 25 years, including 23 as head of global sourcing. He has contributed to the company’s goal of making sustainable chocolate the norm by 2025. In the fiscal year 2019-2020, 61% of Barry Callebaut’s non-cocoa ingredients were sourced sustainably. Selmo previously worked at KPMG. He received a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Bocconi University in Milan, Italy.

Vis-Mertens joined Barry Callebaut in 2012 as global corporate account manager operations and supply chain and then became global corporate account director in 2014. She was named vice president of human resources EMEA in 2017 and then vice president of operations and supply chain EMEA in 2019. Vis-Mertens previously worked for Cargill. She received a bachelor’s degree in French and Russian and a master’s degree in European studies from the University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands. She also received an executive master’s degree from the University of Louvain-la-Neuve in Belgium.

“I warmly welcome Masha and Massimo to the executive committee of Barry Callebaut,” says Peter Boone, chief executive officer. “Their longstanding and highly successful track record at Barry Callebaut, in combination with their diverse experience, will ensure a smooth transition, as well as continuity in the implementation of our growth strategy combined with fresh insights into its execution.”