Ahlstrom has appointed Mary Puddepha as chief people officer and a member of the executive management team, effective from June 1, 2023. Puddepha will succeed Tarja Takko, EVP People & Culture, who is leaving Ahlstrom to pursue new opportunities outside the company, as previously announced.

In her role, Puddepha will lead Ahlstrom’s cultural transformation to help the company achieve its growth ambitions and vision of becoming the leading sustainable specialty materials company. She will relocate from the US and be based in the Netherlands, the company said in a press release.

Puddepha, a US and UK national, has a strong track record in leading business focused people strategies and teams for multinational organizations. She will join Ahlstrom from Syngenta, where she has worked since 2016, latest as head of HR, Global Seeds. Prior to joining Syngenta, she has held HR positions at SABMiller, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and IBM Global Business Services.

“I’m delighted to join Ahlstrom and for the opportunity to lead the development of the company’s people and culture strategy and continue the cultural transformation journey to enable Ahlstrom’s sustainable growth agenda. Success is all about people and how we work together. I’m looking forward to joining a company with a strong and inspiring purpose and with the possibility to contribute to building a more sustainable world with solutions that purify and protect,” said Puddepha.

“I’m confident that Puddepha’s outstanding experience in leading business focused on people's agendas and helping organisations and their employees thrive will help us greatly in enabling our sustainable growth,” said Helen Mets, president and CEO of Ahlstrom.