Neil Lerner
About Neil Lerner
Neil Lerner is Senior Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer, and the Company’s principal accounting officer at Compass Therapeutics (CMPX). He joined Compass in November 2020 as Vice President of Finance and became Chief Accounting Officer in January 2025; he is a CPA with 25+ years of accounting and finance experience including SEC reporting, SOX, budgeting/forecasting, and cost accounting . His education includes a B.S. from the University of Colorado Denver and a Master’s of International Management from the University of Denver; age 57 as of April 15, 2025 . As principal accounting officer, he signs SEC filings on behalf of the Company, evidencing accountability for financial reporting and internal controls . No executive-specific performance metrics (e.g., TSR, revenue/EBITDA growth) are disclosed for Lerner in CMPX filings; CMPX provides scaled executive pay disclosure as an “emerging growth company,” and Lerner is not a named executive officer in the proxy compensation tables .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psychemedics Corporation (formerly Nasdaq: PMD, OTC: PMDI) | Vice President of Finance; primary financial officer | 2010–Nov 2020 | Led accounting/finance functions; SEC reporting; systems; SOX; budgeting; cost accounting |
| Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) | Finance partner R&D & BD; ERP implementation lead; Plant Controller; Internal Auditor | Not disclosed | Cross-functional finance leadership across R&D, operations, systems, and audit |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| None disclosed | — | — | CMPX biography lists no external board or public company roles |
Fixed Compensation
No base salary, target bonus, or actual bonus data for Neil Lerner is disclosed in CMPX’s DEF 14A; CMPX’s “named executive officers” (NEOs) for FY2024 are the CEO, CFO, General Counsel, and former CEO, not including the CAO . CMPX provides scaled disclosure as an “emerging growth company,” which can limit executive compensation detail beyond NEOs .
| Component | FY2024 | FY2025 | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Salary ($) | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | CAO not included in NEO comp tables |
| Target Bonus (%) | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | — |
| Actual Bonus Paid ($) | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | — |
Performance Compensation
No performance-based metrics (e.g., corporate scorecard weights/targets, individual KPIs, payout multipliers) are disclosed for Lerner. Company practice during 2024 included a special option grant program to re-align incentives due to “underwater” options, covering all employees and executives except the CEO; vesting structures on CMPX time-based awards are monthly over 48 months for options, and annual 25% tranches over 4 years for RSUs (these patterns are shown for NEOs; individual CAO grants are not enumerated) .
- Clawback policy: CMPX adopted an incentive compensation recoupment policy applicable to executive officers for three completed fiscal years preceding an accounting restatement due to material noncompliance .
- Insider trading/hedging/pledging policy: Short sales and derivative transactions are prohibited; pledging or use of derivatives requires advance Audit Committee approval, mitigating misalignment and forced-sale risks .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Total beneficial ownership (shares) | Not disclosed | Lerner is not listed individually in the “Principal Stockholders” table; table enumerates directors and NEOs only . |
| Ownership as % of shares outstanding | Not disclosed | — |
| Vested vs. unvested shares | Not disclosed | Company-wide vesting frameworks disclosed for NEO awards (options: monthly over 48 months; RSUs: 25% annually over 4 years) . |
| Options (exercisable vs. unexercisable) | Not disclosed | — |
| Shares pledged as collateral | Prohibited without Audit Committee approval | Insider trading policy prohibits pledging without advance approval; shorting/derivatives barred . |
| Stock ownership guidelines | Not disclosed | No explicit ownership multiple disclosed in proxy . |
| Compliance status | Not disclosed | — |
Employment Terms
| Aspect | Detail |
|---|---|
| Current Role | Senior Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer; principal accounting officer |
| Appointment/tenure | Joined CMPX in Nov 2020 as VP Finance; became CAO Jan 2025; signs company filings in CAO capacity |
| Contract term/expiration | Not disclosed |
| Severance/change-of-control | Not disclosed (company discloses severance/CIC terms for NEOs; no CAO terms provided) – |
| Non-compete/non-solicit | Not disclosed |
| Garden leave/post-termination consulting | Not disclosed |
Additional Filings Referencing Lerner
| Date | Document | Role Cited |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 5, 2025 | Form 10-Q (signatures) | Principal Accounting Officer |
| Nov 5, 2025 | Form 8-K (Item 9.01) | Chief Accounting Officer; signed filing |
| Jan 9, 2024 | Form 8-K (Item 5.02/8.01) | Signed as Vice President of Finance |
Investment Implications
- Alignment and selling pressure: CMPX bans shorting/derivatives and requires Audit Committee approval for pledging, curbing hedging-related misalignment and margin-call risk; clawback coverage for executive officers further supports pay-for-performance discipline .
- Retention/contract risk: No CAO-specific employment agreement, severance, or change-of-control terms are disclosed, limiting visibility into retention economics compared to CEO/CFO/GC disclosures –.
- Execution/control quality: Lerner’s long-tenure finance background and role as principal accounting officer, reinforced by signing authority on SEC filings, are positives for financial reporting rigor and internal control oversight .
- Data gaps: Absence of disclosed CAO cash/equity compensation, ownership, and vesting specifics constrains detailed pay-for-performance and insider-selling pressure analysis; monitoring future proxies and Form 4 filings is warranted .