Benoît Mayran de Chamisso was born in Versailles (France) in 1950.

He graduated from HEC Paris in 1973.

After performing his national service at the French Embassy in Tunis, he joined the Plastics division at Bayer France in Paris as an account executive in 1975.
 
In 1982, he transferred to Bayer AG’s headquarters in Leverkusen (Germany) where he was promoted to the position of Marketing Manager in the Polyamides department.

On returning to Bayer France in 1986, he occupied successive positions as Head of the PU Insulation Department and Director of various sales divisions (Mineral Chemicals, Organic Chemicals, Pigments, Paints and Speciality Chemicals).

In 2003 he became Director of the new Bayer Chemicals entity in France.

When the LANXESS Group was formed on July 1st 2004 from Bayer’s Chemicals and Polymers sectors, he was appointed as the Group's first Chairman in France.