(e)
On February 24, 2009, the Compensation and Option Committee of Thoratec Corporation (the "Company"), approved the Thoratec Corporation Corporate Executive Incentive Plan FY2009 (the "2009 Corporate Plan") and the International Technidyne Corporation Executive Incentive Plan FY2009 (the "2009 ITC Plan," and collectively the "Plans"), pursuant to which certain members of management, including the current executive officers, may receive bonuses for 2009. Gerhard F. Burbach, the Company's President and Chief Executive Officer, David V. Smith, the Company's Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, and David A. Lehman, the Company's Senior Vice President and General Counsel, are participants in the 2009 Corporate Plan and Lawrence Cohen, the President of International Technidyne Corporation, the Company's wholly-owned subsidiary, is a participant in the 2009 ITC Plan. The bonuses under each Plan are based on a specified target bonus percentage of a participant's 2009 base salary and are payable based on the achievement of two Company-oriented financial goals and the achievement of personal performance objectives individually specified for each participant. The Company-oriented financial goals vary depending on the specific Plan and are based on Thoratec's 2009 revenue and pre-bonus non-GAAP income before tax for the 2009 Corporate Plan and ITC 2009 revenue and non-GAAP pre-bonus income from operations for the 2009 ITC Plan. The management business objectives are personalized for each participant. In addition to the target bonus, a participant may earn an additional bonus amount if the Company or ITC exceeds their target non-GAAP income before tax /non-GAAP income from operations goal, as applicable. Assuming each of the Company-oriented financial goals is achieved in 2009, the target earnings/income goals are not exceeded, and each of the executive officers achieves all of their personal performance objectives, the maximum dollar amounts of target bonuses that would be paid to the executive officers are set forth in the table below.

       Name                                  Title                            2009 Target Bonus
Gerhard F. Burbach    President, Chief Executive Officer and Director             $475,150

David V. Smith        Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer        $289,966

Lawrence Cohen        President of International Technidyne Corporation           $220,500

David A. Lehman       Senior Vice President and General Counsel                   $168,056