Please introduce yourself:

My name is Dr. Eva Elisabeth Wille, and I see my role as creative bridge-building: between those who create and market books, journals, in print and electronic form, text and data, science, medicine and humanities, societies, authors, governmental organizations, cultures in East, West, North, and South; always with the passion to create and develop brands.

What does your biography look like?

1974 - 1984 University: studying, researching, lecturing chemistry mostly at LMU Munich and TU Berlin

1985             PR/Product Information Group Leader at VCH 

1988             Head of Journal Division VCH, Managing Director of Physik Verlag, and of Verlag Chemie

1996             Publishing Director STM Wiley-VCH Verlag

1998            VP Global Publishing Director Chemistry and Physics, John Wiley & Sons 

2007 - 2020 VP Executive Director (Global Chemistry, Society Publishing and Government Affairs)

2007 -2009 Speaker/President of Germany`s Business to Business Media Association (Deutsche Fachpresse)

Why did you choose to work in academic publishing?

Publishing is a multifaceted "people business" serving science and society globally.

What was your most remarkable situation or exciting experience during this time? (For long-time employees, in addition: How has working at Wiley-VCH changed over time?)

I had the luck to enjoy countless unique exciting moments: all kinds of get-togethers and diverse events in Weinheim and at many inspiring places all over the world. They range from the Universitätsseminar der Wirtschaft at Schloss Gracht (European School of Management and Technology), the early morning taxi ride passing the Berlin Reichstag right after the wall had fallen to meet future colleagues from East Germany, spending the night in the airplane on an icy runway at the John F. Kennedy Airport in New York after a global strategy meeting on St. Patricks Day, my first visits to Japan and China, attend the Nobel Award ceremony, Stockholm, host an exciting reception at Pacifichem Chemistry Congress in Honolulu with a wonderful firework display… losing an important contract and winning it back a few years after…

When I joined Verlag Chemie in 1985 it was "very local", print was the medium. When I retired VCH was part of a truly global Wiley and we had had already many transformations to „e“ and to new business models -  all „Wileys" looking forward to being the igniting partner for lifelong learning and constant innovation. 

What are you most looking forward to in this anniversary year?

To meet physically again colleagues, scientists, authors, and other stakeholders after many "Corona Lock Downs" and seemingly endless working from home periods.

Please complete this sentence: 100 Years of growing knowledge is….

A great starting point!