Ashland Inc, a global additives and specialty ingredients company, has appointed James Minicucci as senior vice president (SVP) of strategy, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), and portfolio management. Minicucci will report to Ashland's chair and CEO, Guillermo Novo.

Previously, Minicucci served as the SVP of Global Specialty Gases at Merck KGaA, and he also held leadership roles at Versum Materials, Air Products, Marakon Associates, Rohm and Haas, and The Gillette Company. He holds a bachelor of science degree and a master of science degree in chemical engineering from Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, Ashland said in a press release.

“Jim is an experienced global business leader with a strong record for delivering top and bottom-line results. His commercial and operational acumen extends beyond running businesses and incudes a strong background in corporate and business strategies as well as mergers and acquisitions,” said Novo. “His international experience, especially in Asia as a resident of Taiwan and South Korea for the last seven years, will be of great value as we invest to expand our business globally.”