| 1982-1988 | Studies Biology, University Bayreuth |
| 1988-1991 | Ph.D., University Bayreuth |
| 1991-2001 | Group Leader, Institute for Botany, University Heidelberg |
| 2001 | Habilitation, Botany, University Heidelberg |
| since 2001 | Forschungszentrum Jülich |
| 2001-2011 | Director, ICG - Institute for Chemistry and Dynamics of the Geosphere, ICG-4: Phytosphere |
| since 2011 | Director, IBG - Institute for Bio- and Geosciences, IBG-2: Plant Sciences |
| 2004-2011 | Member, Executive Board, EPSO - European Plant Science Organization |
| 2006-2008 | Research Director, Research Area Earth and Environment, Forschungszentrum Jülich |
| since 2006 | Member, Executive Board, European Technology Platform Plants for the Future |
| 2006 | Founder, JPPC - Jülich Plant Phenotyping Center |
| 2007-2012 | Member, Steering Committee, European Technology Platform Biofuels |
| since 2007 | Member, Directorate, KoGa - Competence Center for Horticulture |
| 2008-2011 | Vice President, EPSO - European Plant Science Organization |
| since 2009 | Spokesman, IPPN - International Plant Phenotyping Network |
| since 2010 | Chairman, BioSC - Bioeconomy Science Centers |
| since 2011 | Coordinator, Cross-Program Activity Sustainable Bioeconomy, Helmholtz Association |
| since 2012 | Coordinator, EPPN - European Plant Phenotyping Network |
| German Head, LABEX Germany of EMBRAPA (Brazilian Agro Research Organization) |
| Member, Science Advisory Board, German Association for the Support of Private German Plant Breeding |
| Chief Executive Officer, QS Science Fund - Fruits, Vegetables and Potato |
| Member, CEPLAS - Center of Excellence in Plant Sciences |
| Coordinator, DPPN - German Plant Phenotyping Network |
| since 2013 | Senior Official, EU-CELAC - workgroup Bioeconomy in the cooperation process between Latin America and Europe, Government of the Federal Republic of Germany |
| Programme Speaker, Helmholtz Programme Key Technologies for the Bioeconomy |
| 2014-2018 | Chairman of the European Technology Platform Plants for the Future |
| since 2015 | Chairman of the International Plant Phenotyping Network (IPPN) |
| since 2016 | Chairman of the ESFRI-project EMPHASIS: European Plant Phenotyping Infrastructure |
| since 2019 | Member of the Excellence Cluster CEPLAS (Plant Sciences) and member of the steering committee |
| Member of the Excellence Cluster PhenoRob (Robotics for Phenotyping and Digital Agriculture) and member of the board of PhenoRob |
| 1995-1999 | Research Fellow, Neuroendocrine Unit, Innenstadt University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilian University of Munich |
| 1999-2002 | Postdoctoral Scientist, Discovery Research (Nature 2000. Cit.: 2335), Lilly Research Laboratories, Eli Lilly and Co., Indianapolis, IN |
| 2002-2003 | Senior Scientist, Department of Pharmacology, German Institute of Human Nutrition, Potsdam-Nuthetal |
| 2003-2009 | Associate Professor, Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, Obesity Research Center and Genome Research Institute, University of Cincinnati, OH |
| 2009-2011 | Professor, Institute for Metabolic Disease, Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, OH |
| Research Director, Cincinnati Diabetes and Obesity Center, College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, OH |
| Arthur Russell Morgan Endowed Chair of Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, OH |
| since 2011 | Director, Institute for Diabetes and Obesity, HelmholtzZentrum München - German Research Center for Environmental Health, Munich |
| Scientific Director, Helmholtz Diabetes Center, Munich |
| since 2012 | Alexander von Humboldt Professor and Chair, Division of Metabolic Diseases; Professor of Medicine, Technical University of Munich |
| Adjunct Professor, Yale University, CT |
| since 2016 | Director of Biomedicine, Helmholtz Pioneer Campus, HelmholtzZentrum München - German Research Center for Environmental Health, Munich |
| since 2018 | CEO, HelmholtzZentrum München - German Research Center for Environmental Health, Munich |
