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| SQNM > SEC Filings for SQNM > Form 8-K/A on 7-Oct-2009 | All Recent SEC Filings |
7-Oct-2009
Change in Directors or Principal Officers
On September 28, 2009, we terminated the employment of our president and chief executive officer, Harry Stylli, Ph.D., and our senior vice president of research and development, Elizabeth Dragon, Ph.D., effective immediately. In connection with the termination of his employment, our board of directors requested that Dr. Stylli resign as a director. Dr. Stylli submitted his resignation as a director effective immediately on September 28, 2009. On September 25, 2009, Paul Hawran informed us that he is resigning as our chief financial officer effective immediately.
Our board of directors has appointed Harry F. Hixson, Jr., Ph.D., to serve as our interim chief executive officer effective September 28, 2009. Dr. Hixson who is 71 years old has been our chairman of the board of directors since 2003. He also currently serves as the chairman of the board of directors of BrainCells, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on central nervous system drug development that he co-founded, where he was chief executive officer from September 2004 until September 2005. Dr. Hixson served as chief executive officer of Elitra Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on anti-infective drug development, from February 1998 until May 2003. He joined Amgen, Inc. in 1985 and served as president and chief operating officer and as a member of its board of directors from 1988 to 1991. Prior to Amgen, Dr. Hixson held various management positions with Abbott Laboratories, including vice president of its diagnostic products business group and vice president of research and development in its diagnostics division. Dr. Hixson also is a director of Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and Novabay Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Hixson received his Ph.D. in physical biochemistry from Purdue University and his M.B.A. from the University of Chicago. Dr. Hixson's annual salary for service as our interim chief executive officer has been set at $475,000. The target level for Dr. Hixson's annual bonus was set at 50% of his base salary although his bonus for 2009 has been prorated and will be paid provided he continues as chief executive officer through the end of 2009. Dr. Hixson has been added to our change in control severance benefit plan, which is more fully described in our proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 8, 2009, as a Tier I participant. Dr. Hixson has not been granted an equity award in connection with his appointment, but we anticipate that the compensation committee of our board of directors will meet to consider and approve an equity award no later than the next regularly scheduled meeting of our board of directors in October.
Our board of directors has designated Justin J. File as our principal financial and accounting officer effective September 28, 2009. Mr. File who is 39 years old has been our controller since March 2007. He was assistant controller at Applied Micro Circuits Corporation, a communications semiconductor company, from November 2005 until March 2007. Mr. File was employed by Siegfried Resources, LLC, a provider of accounting and finance professionals on a temporary basis, from January 2005 until November 2005. He was controller, manager of finance and administration and treasurer of ESI U.S. Holdings, a provider of digital simulation software for prototyping and manufacturing processes, from July 2003 until January 2005. Mr. File is a certified public accountant.
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