Panalpina elects Google's Sandra Emme to board of directors

Panalpina plans to elect Google’s Sandra Emme to its board at its May AGM, bringing the percentage of women directors up to 25%.

Ms Emme will succeed Chris Muntwyler, if elected. Since 2011, Ms Emme, 46 and a German national, has held various management positions at Google Switzerland.

Since 2014 she has been the industry head for luxury and finance in global business development and a member of the Google management board.

“We are convinced that Sandra Emme is an excellent candidate and would represent an ideal addition to our board of directors. Thanks to her broad entrepreneurial IT track record in Europe, Asia and the US, as well as her experience as an advisor in strategic digital transformation, she will be an important asset for the company,” said Peter Ulber, chairman of Panalpina.

Mr Muntwyler has been a member of the board since 2010 and also served on the company’s compensation and nomination committee. All the other current board members will stand for re-election for another one-year term.

Women hold less than 18% of the board seats at Fortune 1000 companies – in Switzerland it is thought to be about 8%. A PWC Transportation report showed that companies with the most women board directors outperformed those with the least by 16% in return on sales, and by 26% in return on invested capital.