today we are reaching out with a special edition of our newsletter. The Helmholtz Association has appointed Sabine Helling-Moegen as its new Managing Director. She will assume the position on November 1, 2025. The decision was made unanimously by the Members’ Assembly during a special session yesterday evening. Sabine Helling-Moegen has been serving as Administrative Director of the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), a research center of the Helmholtz Association, since 2015. From 2021 to 2024, she also served on the Helmholtz Executive Committee as an Administrative Vice President and spokeswoman for the Administrative Directors of the Helmholtz Association.

During a special session, the Members’ Assembly of the Helmholtz Association unanimously elected science manager Sabine Helling-Moegen as the new Managing Director. She succeeds Franziska Broer, who held the position from 2016 to 2025 and transitioned on May 1 to become the Administrative Director of the University of Freiburg’s Medical Center. In the interim, Effrosyni Chelioti has served as Acting Managing Director; she will lead the “Directorate-General 1 – Policy Issues and Strategies” at the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) starting September 1.

Sabine Helling-Moegen appointed Managing Director of the Helmholtz Association

At the DZNE, Sabine Helling-Moegen is responsible for finance, human resources, purchasing, third-party funds, legal affairs, and infrastructure. Her career in science management began in 2002 at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), another Research Center of the Helmholtz Association, where she quickly took on leadership responsibilities. In 2006, she moved to the Helmholtz Association’s head office and, as Division Manager Administration, oversaw traditional administrative areas as well as science policy issues. In that role, she also led the establishment of the Helmholtz Academy for Leadership. From 2011 to 2014, she was Head of Human Resources at MLP AG, where she played a key role in a company-wide transformation process. She is a fully trained lawyer, having studied law in Würzburg, Regensburg and Lisbon. She also holds a doctorate from the German University of Administrative Sciences in Speyer and a master’s degree in European and International Law from the University of Aberdeen, Scotland.

Sabine Helling-Moegen Appointed Managing Director of the Helmholtz Association

We’re currently experiencing an incredibly dynamic phase in research management. The demands on scientific organizations are fundamentally changing – due to digitalization, new forms of collaboration, and increased expectations from society and politics. Especially in such times, research-oriented, strategically well-positioned structures are needed to enable excellent science. The Helmholtz Association is a pioneer in this regard: it is solution-oriented, tackles long-term challenges, and uniquely connects basic research, applied science, and large-scale infrastructures. I recognized Helmholtz’s orientation early on as a unique strategic feature – it was even the subject of my dissertation and shapes my perspective on the Association to this day.

The major questions of tomorrow – from health and demographic change to energy, the climate, and digitalization – clearly show how essential the contribution of science is to our society. Helmholtz is very well equipped to address these challenges, thanks to its broad thematic scope, excellent infrastructures, international visibility, and the ability to strategically tackle complex issues through its programs. At the same time, we’re now witnessing growing global pressure on science – due to political dynamics, new expectations, and increasing competition. For us, this means we must become more resilient – in terms of content, organizationally, and in our international collaboration.

We should work diligently to become more international: through talent recruitment, through sustainable partnerships, and by creating an environment that attracts talent from all over the world. This will not only mean forging new alliances, but also nurturing long-standing relationships. The use of artificial intelligence will also increasingly transform our work – both in research itself and in how research is organized. AI can help accelerate processes, make data more usable, and restructure administrative tasks. For Helmholtz, this holds great potential – if we implement it wisely, with an approach grounded in science, and with a strong sense of responsibility.

First and foremost, I’m looking forward to getting to know the head office team in person. This kind of direct, trust-based exchange is very important to me – to develop a shared understanding, but also to clarify expectations early on. Together with Martin Keller, we will shape the onboarding process for the executive leadership. At the same time, we’ll both start in our roles during a period that is also strategically very demanding. The implementation of Germany’s High-Tech Agenda will keep us intensely occupied over the months to come – not just as a political initiative, but also as an operational task for the head office and the Helmholtz Association as a whole. Another key focus will be on the upcoming strategic evaluation of the programs. Within the head office, we will coordinate closely to determine how we can support this process in a structured, reliable, and service-oriented way. Last but not least, I’m committed to intensifying internal dialogue – across research fields and functional areas. The Association’s diversity is a major strength. But for it to have a real impact, we need to create spaces that foster constructive and productive collaboration.

We must do an even better job of explaining how research concretely contributes to improving people’s quality of life – for instance, by enabling new technologies, providing reliable data, and achieving medical breakthroughs. At the same time, we must listen carefully: What is society most concerned about? What expectations are there from science, and where might we need to find new answers? Within the Helmholtz Association, there are already many effective formats for this dialogue – at the regional, national, and international level. I see this as an ongoing task, one we should continue to pursue together with the Centers – applying a differentiated and open approach, and with a clear sense of our responsibility.

The complete interview can be found here

The interview was conducted by Sebastian Grote.

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