Michael Higgins
Camp4 TherapeuticsAbout Michael Higgins
Michael Higgins, age 62, has served on CAMP’s Board since 2017 and is currently an independent Class II director. He is Audit Committee Chair and designated an “audit committee financial expert”; he also serves on the Compensation Committee. Higgins holds a BS from Cornell University and an MBA from Dartmouth’s Tuck School; his career spans COO/CFO roles in biopharma and venture company-building.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ironwood Pharmaceuticals | Senior Vice President, Chief Operating Officer | 2003–2014 | Operational leadership at public biopharma |
| Genzyme Corporation | Vice President, Corporate Finance; Vice President, Business Development | Pre-2003 | Corporate finance and BD leadership |
| Polaris Partners | Entrepreneur-in-Residence | 2015–2020 | Venture company-building |
| Voyager Therapeutics | Interim Chief Executive Officer | Jun 2021–Mar 2022 | Stabilized leadership transition |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Since | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Voyager Therapeutics, Inc. | Chair of the Board; Director | Chair since Jun 2019; Director since 2015 | NASDAQ-listed biotech; governance leadership |
| Pulmatrix, Inc. | Chair of the Board | Apr 2020 | NASDAQ-listed biotech |
| Cyclerion Therapeutics, Inc. | Director | Nov 2023 | NASDAQ-listed biotech |
| Genocea Biosciences Inc. | Director (prior) | 2015–May 2022 | Immuno-oncology; prior board service |
Board Governance
- Independence: CAMP’s Board determined all directors except the CEO are independent under Nasdaq rules; Higgins is independent.
- Committee assignments:
- Audit Committee: Chair (members Higgins, Boylan, Chakravarty, Williams); Higgins is the audit committee financial expert. Audit met 3 times in FY2024.
- Compensation Committee: Member (Holtzman Chair; members Holtzman, Higgins, Young). Met 3 times in FY2024.
- Nominating & Corporate Governance: Not a member. Committee did not meet in FY2024.
- Attendance: Board held 5 meetings in FY2024; each director attended at least 75% of Board/committee meetings during their service period.
- Leadership: Steven Holtzman is Chair of the Board (independent non-employee).
- Audit Committee Report: Signed by Higgins as Chair.
Fixed Compensation
| Component | FY2024 Actual | FY2025 Policy (post-IPO) |
|---|---|---|
| Board retainer (cash) | $46,358 (Higgins) | $40,000 annual retainer for non-employee directors |
| Board chair premium | — | $70,000 for Board Chair (not applicable to Higgins) |
| Audit Committee | — | $15,000 chair; $7,500 member |
| Compensation Committee | — | $10,000 chair; $5,000 member (Higgins is member) |
| Nominating & Governance | — | $10,000 chair; $5,000 member |
| Research & Development Committee (legacy pre-IPO) | Eligible pre-IPO fees noted | Pre-IPO: $7,500 chair fee (Higgins previously eligible as Compensation Chair pre-IPO); superseded by post-IPO policy |
Notes: FY2024 fees were pro-rated across pre-IPO and post-IPO policies; reimbursement of reasonable travel/meeting expenses is permitted.
Performance Compensation
| Metric | Value | Vesting/Terms |
|---|---|---|
| Unvested Options (as of 12/31/2024) | 6,831 units (Higgins) | As granted under legacy plans; time-based vesting per award |
| Unvested RSAs (as of 12/31/2024) | 1,063 units (Higgins) | Time-based vesting; restrictions lapse per award |
| Annual director option grant (policy, FY2025 onward) | 9,000 shares option, vests in full at 1 year (or next AGM if earlier) | Under 2024 Equity Incentive Plan; time-based vesting |
| New director initial option grant (policy) | 17,787 shares on appointment (Mar 2025); increased to 18,000 from Apr 1, 2025 | Vests monthly over 3 years |
CAMP does not disclose performance-conditioned metrics for director equity; director equity grants are time-vested options under the 2024 Plan.
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Area | Detail |
|---|---|
| Investor affiliations on CAMP Board | Certain other CAMP directors are affiliated with >5% shareholders (Enavate Sciences, 5AM Ventures, Polaris Partners, Northpond, AH Equity Partners); Higgins is not identified among these affiliations. |
| Recent Board changes | Douglas Williams (Class I) and Murray Stewart (Class II) appointed Mar 17, 2025; Williams added to Audit Committee. |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Financial and operating executive experience (Genzyme, Ironwood); venture company-building (Polaris EIR).
- Audit Committee financial expert designation under Item 407 of Regulation S-K.
- Biopharma board leadership; multiple chair roles at public biotechs (Voyager, Pulmatrix).
- Education: BS Cornell University; MBA Dartmouth (Tuck).
Equity Ownership
| Metric | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Total beneficial ownership | 39,667 shares; <1% of outstanding | |
| Direct/common shares | 28,739 shares | |
| Options exercisable ≤60 days | 10,928 shares | |
| Unvested RSAs | 1,063 units (as of 12/31/2024) | |
| Unvested options | 6,831 units (as of 12/31/2024) | |
| Pledging/Hedging | Company policy prohibits short sales, derivatives, hedging, margin accounts, and generally pledging, subject to limited exceptions; no pledging by Higgins is disclosed in the proxy. |
Governance Assessment
- Strengths
- Independent director with extensive biopharma operating and governance experience; Audit Committee Chair and financial expert designation.
- Active committee roles (Audit Chair; Compensation member) and Board attendance threshold met; audit and compensation committees met regularly in FY2024.
- Ownership alignment via equity holdings and ongoing director option grant program; prohibitions on hedging/pledging support alignment.
- Watch items
- Multiple external board commitments (Voyager chair, Pulmatrix chair, Cyclerion director) warrant ongoing monitoring of capacity and potential information interlocks, though none are disclosed as related-party transactions with CAMP.
- CAMP disclosed related-party loans and forgiveness to executives (CEO, CFO, CSO) with tax gross-up-like assistance; while not involving Higgins, the broader governance environment should be monitored for compensation rigor.
- Signals for investors
- Audit leadership and expertise improve board effectiveness in financial oversight; committee cadence suggests active governance.
- Emerging growth company status means no say-on-pay votes yet; investors should rely on disclosed policies (clawback, insider trading) and committee structures for comfort.
Insider trades: We attempted to fetch Form 4 activity for “Michael Higgins” at CAMP (2020–2025) using the insider-trades skill, but the request returned unauthorized (HTTP 401). We can re-run and provide an insider trading table once access is restored.