Kristine Yaffe
AlectorAbout Kristine Yaffe
Kristine Yaffe, M.D., is an independent director of Alector, Inc. (ALEC), serving since August 2019; she is 62 years old as of March 31, 2025 and is a nationally recognized leader in cognitive aging, neurodegeneration, and dementia epidemiology. She is the Scola Endowed Chair and the Leon Epstein Chair & Vice Chair, Professor of Psychiatry, Neurology, and Epidemiology, and Director of the Center for Population Brain Health at UCSF; she holds a B.S. from Yale and an M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, with residencies in neurology and psychiatry at UCSF; she was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2019 .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| UCSF | Scola Endowed Chair; Leon Epstein Chair & Vice Chair; Professor of Psychiatry, Neurology, Epidemiology | Current (dates not disclosed) | Director, Center for Population Brain Health; leadership in dementia risk factor research |
| Institute of Medicine (U.S.) | Co-Chair, Committee on Cognitive Aging | Prior (date not disclosed) | Co-led national committee on cognitive aging |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beeson Scientific Advisory Board | Member | Current | Scientific advisory capacity |
| Global Council on Brain Health | Member | Current | International brain health advisory role |
Board Governance
- Committee assignments: Member of the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee; Chairperson of the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee .
- Independence: Determined independent under Nasdaq rules; board review found no relationships interfering with independent judgment .
- Attendance and engagement: In FY 2024 the board held 7 meetings and all directors attended at least 75% of board and applicable committee meetings; CG&N Committee held 4 meetings in 2024, chaired by Yaffe; board holds executive sessions of independent directors after each regular meeting .
- Board structure: Independent Chair (Louis J. Lavigne, Jr.); no Lead Independent Director .
Fixed Compensation (Director)
| Component (FY 2024) | Amount (USD) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual director cash retainer | $45,000 | Outside Director Compensation Policy |
| CG&N Committee chair fee | $10,000 | Policy rate for CG&N chair |
| Cash fees earned | $55,000 | Reported for Yaffe in 2024 director comp table |
| Meeting fees | $0 | Not part of policy (no per-meeting fees) |
Performance Compensation (Director)
| Equity Element (FY 2024) | Grant detail | Vesting | Grant-date fair value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual RSU Award | 35,000 RSUs (granted June 12, 2024) | Vests in full on earlier of 1 year from grant or next annual meeting | Reported for Yaffe: $164,500 |
| Annual Option Award | None in 2024 | n/a | n/a |
Vesting mechanics and change-in-control:
- Annual RSU vesting: earlier of one year or next annual meeting; initial RSU awards vest quarterly; options typically vest monthly per policy and specific grants .
- In a change in control, all director equity awards fully vest and options become immediately exercisable .
Historic outstanding awards (as of 12/31/2024):
| Grant date | Instrument | Shares/Options | Exercise price | Expiration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 08/09/2019 | Stock option | 38,000 | $18.10 | 08/08/2029 |
| 05/11/2020 | Stock option | 19,274 | $29.09 | 05/10/2030 |
| 06/17/2021 | Stock option | 25,709 | $21.37 | 06/16/2031 |
| 06/16/2022 | Stock option | 18,918 | $8.07 | 06/15/2032 |
| 06/14/2023 | Stock option | 12,360 | $7.71 | 06/13/2033 |
| 06/12/2024 | RSU | 35,000 | n/a | n/a (RSUs) |
Year-over-year (director compensation mix):
| Metric | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash fees | $51,708 | $55,000 |
| Stock awards (RSUs) | $202,388 | $164,500 |
| Option awards | $64,027 | $0 |
| Total | $318,123 | $219,500 |
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Category | Disclosure |
|---|---|
| Current public company boards | None disclosed for Yaffe in ALEC proxy |
| Private/non-profit/academic boards | UCSF leadership; Beeson SAB; Global Council on Brain Health |
| Potential interlocks with ALEC ecosystem | None disclosed |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Internationally recognized expert in dementia epidemiology and modifiable risk factors; extensive academic leadership at UCSF .
- Awards: Potamkin Prize (2017), NIH Gordon Award in Epidemiology (2021), VA John B. Barnwell Award (2022) .
- National Academy of Medicine (2019) .
- Education: Yale (B.S.), University of Pennsylvania (M.D.); UCSF residencies in neurology and psychiatry .
Equity Ownership
| Holder | Shares held | Options exercisable (≤60 days) | Total beneficial | % outstanding |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kristine Yaffe, M.D. | 32,709 | 114,261 | 146,970 | * (<1%) |
RSUs/Unvested holdings:
- Unvested RSUs: 35,000 (granted 06/12/2024; annual RSU award) .
- Pledging/Hedging: Company policy prohibits pledging and hedging of ALEC stock by directors .
Governance Assessment
- Board effectiveness: Yaffe chairs the Corporate Governance & Nominating Committee, overseeing board composition, evaluations, succession planning (with Compensation Committee), and ESG oversight—key for board renewal and governance rigor . Independence affirmed by the board . Attendance thresholds met in FY 2024; CG&N met 4 times, indicating active governance engagement .
- Alignment & incentives: Director cash ($55k) and time-based RSUs ($164.5k) are modest and standard for biotech peers; change-in-control acceleration is disclosed but typical; anti-hedging/anti-pledging policies reinforce alignment .
- Conflicts/related-party exposure: No related-party transactions reported involving Yaffe; audit committee reviews related-party transactions per policy .
- Shareholder signals: Say-on-pay support was >98% in 2024, reflecting investor confidence in compensation governance; while this pertains to NEOs, it indicates board credibility on pay oversight ecosystems Yaffe interfaces with via succession planning collaboration .
- Red flags: None disclosed regarding attendance shortfalls (for Yaffe), pledging, hedging, or related-party transactions. Note: overall director equity accelerates upon change-in-control; common in sector but investors may watch cumulative CIC provisions across board and executives .
Overall, Yaffe’s governance profile is strong: independent, active chair of CG&N, robust academic domain expertise in neurodegeneration (strategically relevant to ALEC), clean related-party profile, and compliant with attendance and governance best practices—supporting board credibility and investor confidence .