Elizabeth McKee Anderson
BIOMARIN PHARMACEUTICALAbout Elizabeth McKee Anderson
Elizabeth McKee Anderson (age 67) is an independent director of BioMarin (since July 2019). She is Chair of the Compensation Committee and a member of the Science & Technology Committee. Anderson previously held senior leadership roles at Johnson & Johnson (2003–2014) and was Vice President & General Manager of Wyeth Lederle Vaccines (1997–2002). She holds a B.S. in Engineering from Rutgers University and an M.B.A. from Loyola University Maryland .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johnson & Johnson | Various senior leadership positions | 2003–2014 | Senior operating/leadership experience in pharma/biotech |
| Wyeth Lederle Vaccines (Wyeth) | Vice President & General Manager | 1997–2002 | Commercial leadership in vaccines |
| Rhône-Poulenc Rorer | Executive roles (not specified) | Not disclosed | Prior pharma experience |
| American Red Cross | Executive roles (not specified) | Not disclosed | Healthcare-related leadership |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| GSK plc | Director | Current | Public company directorship |
| Insmed, Inc. | Director | Current | Chair, Nominations & Governance Committee; Director since Nov 2018 |
| Revolution Medicines, Inc. | Director | Current | Public company directorship |
| Aro Biotherapeutics Company (private) | Director | Current | Private company board |
| Wistar Institute (non-profit) | Trustee | Current | Non-profit governance role |
| Bavarian Nordic A/S | Director | Until Aug 2022 | Prior public directorship |
| Huntsworth PLC | Director | Until Dec 2019 | Prior public directorship |
Board Governance
- Independence and roles: Anderson is an independent director; she serves as Chair of the Compensation Committee (8 meetings in 2024) and member of the Science & Technology Committee (4 meetings in 2024) .
- Attendance and engagement: The Board met 10 times in 2024, and each director attended at least 75% of Board and committee meetings on which they served. All 11 nominees attended the 2024 Annual Meeting; independent directors meet in regular executive sessions .
- Election support: In 2025, Anderson received 160,575,395 votes FOR, 5,338,859 AGAINST, 261,996 ABSTAIN (broker non-votes 10,064,270) .
- Governance standards: BioMarin adopted a majority voting standard for uncontested director elections in 2025 with a director resignation policy. Committees are composed entirely of independent directors; Board and committees may engage advisors independently of management .
- Policies: Anti-hedging and anti-pledging policy prohibits hedging, short sales, and pledging for directors and employees. Clawback policy adopted Oct 4, 2023 in line with SEC/Nasdaq rules .
- Compensation committee interlocks: None; no relationships requiring disclosure under related-party rules in 2024 .
Fixed Compensation (Director)
| Year | Cash Fees ($) | Stock Awards ($) | Total ($) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 98,500 | 365,045 | 463,545 |
- Program design: Non-employee directors receive annual cash retainers based on Board/committee roles; no per-meeting fees. Annual equity is RSUs only (options removed), vesting in full immediately prior to the next annual meeting. In 2024, Compensation Committee Chair retainer increased to $24,000 (from $20,000); member retainer increased to $12,000 (from $10,000) .
Performance Compensation (Director)
| Element | 2024 Value | Vesting / Metrics |
|---|---|---|
| Annual RSU grant (non-employee directors) | $365,045 (grant-date fair value for Anderson) | Service-based; vests in full immediately prior to the next annual meeting; no performance metrics . |
| Outstanding director RSUs (as of 12/31/2024) | 4,720 RSUs (Anderson) | Standard director RSU terms per plan . |
Directors do not receive performance-based incentive pay; equity is time-based RSUs only to discourage short-term risk-taking .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Sector | Role | Committee/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| GSK plc | Pharma | Director | Public directorship |
| Insmed, Inc. | Biotech | Director | Chair, Nominations & Governance Committee; Director since Nov 2018 |
| Revolution Medicines, Inc. | Biotech | Director | Public directorship |
- Committee interlocks: None disclosed for 2024 (Compensation Committee interlocks) .
Expertise & Qualifications
- Skills cited by BioMarin include: management of large biotechnology/pharmaceutical organizations; compensation and corporate governance; finance and accounting; and sales/marketing experience. Education includes B.S. Engineering (Rutgers) and M.B.A. (Loyola University Maryland) .
Equity Ownership
| Metric | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Beneficial ownership (3/14/2025) | 23,080 shares | <1% of shares outstanding |
| Shares subject to options/RSUs vesting within 60 days of 3/14/2025 | — | None vesting within 60 days noted; dash indicates none |
| RSUs outstanding (12/31/2024) | 4,720 RSUs | Director RSU awards snapshot |
| Ownership guidelines | 5x cash retainer value (lesser of 10,000 shares and unvested RSUs or 5x) | All directors/NEOs (except those joining since Dec 2023) were in compliance as of 12/31/2024 |
| Hedging/Pledging | Prohibited | Anti-hedging and anti-pledging policy |
Compensation Committee Analysis (as Chair)
- Committee independence and authority: All members independent; sole authority to retain compensation consultants; 8 meetings in 2024. Committee submits annual CD&A report to Board (submitted Apr 1, 2025) .
- Peer group: 2024 executive compensation peer group included 12 biopharma companies (e.g., Alnylam, Biogen, Vertex, Regeneron). Consultant benchmarking informs decisions; clawback and anti-hedging policies in place .
- Shareholder oversight: 2025 Annual Meeting say-on-pay received 155,351,652 FOR; 10,227,321 AGAINST; 597,277 ABSTAIN (broker non-votes 10,064,270) .
- Equity plan oversight: Shareholders approved adding 8,000,000 shares to the 2017 Equity Incentive Plan on May 20, 2025 .
Governance Assessment
- Strengths: Independent chairing of Compensation Committee; use of an independent compensation consultant; formal clawback; anti-hedging/pledging; majority voting with resignation policy; broad investor support for her re-election in 2025 .
- Alignment: Director pay is heavily equity-based with RSUs vesting on an annual cycle; directors subject to 5x cash retainer ownership guideline; policy prohibits pledging/hedging, supporting alignment with long-term shareholders .
- Engagement: Meets attendance thresholds; participates on two key committees (Compensation as Chair; Science & Technology) suggesting active oversight across human capital/compensation and R&D strategy .
- Watch items: Anderson serves on three other public company boards (GSK, Insmed—also chairs N&G, Revolution Medicines), which investors often monitor for potential overboarding risk based on their policies; no interlocks or related-party issues disclosed for 2024 .