Nestlé leadership change – overview
- Nestlé names Antonia Wanner chief communications and sustainability officer from September
- Wanner brings three decades experience across legal procurement, sales, and sustainability
- Role combines communications and sustainability to strengthen stakeholder trust and alignment
- Appointment signals strategic focus on execution, credibility, and long term value creation
- Move reflects Nestlé prioritising integrated messaging amid rising scrutiny of sustainability claims
Nestlé has named Antonia Wanner as chief communications and sustainability officer, and member of the Group Executive Board, effective 1 September 2026.
She’s currently serving as chief sustainability officer.
Who is Antonia Wanner?
Wanner joined Nestlé as in-house lawyer in 1996, and has since held senior leadership positions in procurement, sales and sustainability.
She holds a PhD in Law, and has completed executive education at IMD in Lausanne and the University of Cambridge.
“Antonia will make corporate communications an even stronger driver of business impact, closely aligned with our strategic priorities and focused on disciplined execution,” says Philipp Navratil, CEO of Nestlé. “Bringing corporate communications and sustainability closer together will strengthen credible stakeholder engagement and support long-term value creation.”
Wanner replaces Lisa Gibby, who has “decided to return to the US” after six years at Nestlé‘s headquarters in Vevey, Switzerland.
“I thank her for her leadership and important contributions,” says Navratil.
Strategic integration of sustainability and communications
Nestlé’s latest move signals a more integrated approach to reputation, responsibility and growth.
By bringing communications and sustainability under a single, experienced leader with deep institutional knowledge, the company is positioning these functions as central to business strategy rather than support roles.
Wanner’s appointment suggests Nestlé aims to sharpen the link between its sustainability commitments and how they are communicated to stakeholders, potentially strengthening trust and accountability at a time of heightened scrutiny.
For competitors, Nestlé’s strategy raises the bar on how tightly sustainability, communications and strategy are linked.
