Tara Kieffer
ENANTA PHARMACEUTICALSAbout Tara Kieffer
Tara L. Kieffer, Ph.D., is Chief Product Strategy Officer at Enanta (since January 1, 2024) and joined Enanta in December 2020 as SVP, New Product Strategy & Development; she is age 47, with a B.A. from Colgate University and a Ph.D. in Immunology from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine . Her remit spans virology and immunology program strategy, and she has been an active voice on clinical design and endpoints in ENTA’s respiratory programs (RSV, COVID), including trial powering, virologic load and symptom outcomes in public forums . Pay-for-performance constructs at Enanta include two-year relative TSR units; recent rTSRU outcomes were mixed—127% payout for the 2022–2021 cycle, 0% for 2023–2022, and 0% for 2024–2023—while PSUs paid 100%, 70%, and 150% respectively, indicating program milestone sensitivity even amid stock pressure .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enanta Pharmaceuticals | Chief Product Strategy Officer | 2024–present | Leads product strategy across virology/immunology; aligns clinical endpoints and advancement across RSV/COVID programs . |
| Enanta Pharmaceuticals | SVP, New Product Strategy & Development | 2020–2023 | Built new product and development strategy upon joining in Dec 2020; drove pipeline advancement and external program framing . |
| Vertex Pharmaceuticals | VP, External Innovation, Business Development | 2018–2020 | Led BD and external innovation; sourced and evaluated external assets . |
| Vertex Pharmaceuticals | VP, Integrated Program Management | 2017–2018 | Program leadership across development portfolio; execution oversight . |
| Vertex Pharmaceuticals | Senior Director, Chief of Staff to CMO | 2014–2017 | Coordinated clinical strategy and execution under CMO . |
| Vertex Pharmaceuticals | Virology scientist; Director, Clinical Biomarkers (progression over prior decade) | ~2004–2014 | Advanced translational biomarker capability and virology expertise . |
| Johns Hopkins School of Medicine | Graduate research (Molecular Biology & Genetics) | 1999–2004 | Ph.D. work building immunology foundation relevant to antiviral strategies . |
External Roles
No public company board or external directorships disclosed in the executive officer biography for Tara L. Kieffer .
Fixed Compensation
Multi-year detail is limited as Dr. Kieffer is not a 2024 Named Executive Officer; 2021 compensation (as disclosed when she was an NEO) is below.
| Metric | FY 2019 | FY 2020 | FY 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Salary ($) | — | — | 305,137 |
| Sign-on Bonus ($) | — | — | — |
| Stock Awards ($) | — | — | 256,227 (rTSRUs/RSUs grant-date fair value) |
| Option Awards ($) | — | — | 1,350,304 (Black-Scholes grant-date fair value) |
| Non-Equity Incentive ($) | — | — | 128,250 (prorated annual variable cash comp) |
| All Other Compensation ($) | — | — | 2,438 (benefits/insurance) |
| Total ($) | — | — | 2,042,356 |
| Approved Base Salary (Calendar Year) | — | — | $375,000 (CY2021) |
| Target Variable Cash Bonus (%) | — | — | 40% (CY2021) |
Notes:
- Annual cash bonuses are determined on a calendar-year basis, with variable cash compensation blending corporate and individual objectives; Kieffer’s 2021 target was 40% of base .
- Stock awards include rTSRUs with 0–150% payout range over a two-year TSR measurement against Nasdaq Biotechnology Index constituents .
Performance Compensation
Structure and recent outcomes relevant to Kieffer’s role and compensation design:
- Variable cash compensation design (for executives other than CEO): 70% corporate objectives and 30% individual objectives; targets set at market 50th percentile. Corporate performance ratings were 90% for 2023 and 75% for 2024, driving annual payouts in the structured plan .
- PSUs (research and development milestones, two-year performance, 0–150% of target): categories include clinical advancement, research milestones, and external value-driving actions, weighted toward clinical success; payout mechanics lock against “stretch goals” due to inherent development risk .
- rTSRUs (two-year performance, threshold at 40th percentile TSR, target at 60th, max at 75th; 0–150% of target): interpolation between percentiles; measures relative TSR vs Nasdaq Biotechnology Index components .
Performance award realization (company-wide PSU/rTSRU two-year cycles):
| Metric | 2022–2021 | 2023–2022 | 2024–2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| PSU % of Target Earned | 100% | 70% | 150% |
| rTSRU % of Target Earned | 127% | 0% | 0% |
| Combined Indicator | 114% | 35% | 75% |
Key vesting mechanics and schedules:
- Options: 10-year term; typically vest quarterly over four years; exercise price equals grant-date closing price .
- RSUs: typically vest annually over four years; used broadly for retention; executives shifted to more option-heavy mix in FY2024 .
- PSUs/rTSRUs: two-year performance period ending each December 31; 0–150% payout scaling; settled the following February if employed .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Initial Section 16 Statement (Form 3) | Filed 12/8/2020; at that time “No securities are beneficially owned” (new officer filing) . |
| Beneficial Ownership (2024 proxy table) | Not individually listed among NEOs/directors; executive group aggregates are shown, but Kieffer’s individual holdings not provided in the table . |
| Hedging/Pledging | Company policy prohibits hedging (short sales, puts/calls/derivatives) and pledging/margin arrangements for executives and directors . |
| Clawback | Nasdaq-compliant clawback policy adopted; recovery of incentive compensation for restatements in prior three completed fiscal years . |
| Option Moneyness (Retention context) | As of 12/31/2024, 100% of outstanding options were out-of-the-money; 68% by >500%, highlighting limited realizable value and heightened retention risk without fresh retention grants . |
| Ownership Guidelines | Not quantified by salary multiples in proxy; general alignment via broad-based equity grants and anti-hedge/pledge rules . |
Employment Terms
Severance and change-of-control provisions for Tara L. Kieffer (as disclosed in the 2022 proxy; terms for then-executives including Kieffer):
| Scenario | Salary ($) | Bonus ($) | Benefits ($) | Other ($) | Equity Acceleration Value ($) | Total ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Termination without cause, not in connection with CoC | 187,500 | — | — | 7,747 (accrued vacation) | — | 195,247 |
| Termination without cause within 12 months after CoC (double-trigger) | 375,000 | 150,000 (target bonus) | — | 7,747 (accrued vacation) | 2,221,595 (intrinsic value of unvested options/RSUs/PSUs at 9/30/2021) | 2,754,342 |
Additional severance construct:
- Non-CoC severance: six months salary plus up to six months benefits continuation for executives other than CEO .
- CoC equity: all unvested options/RSUs fully vest; PSUs vest at target for double-trigger events .
Investment Implications
- Retention and incentive alignment: With all outstanding options out-of-the-money at year-end 2024 and rTSRUs paying 0% in the last two performance cycles, equity realizability for many executives—including product strategy leaders—has been low; the committee responded by shifting FY2024 time-based awards to options and using PSUs/rTSRUs to target only 20% of peer median equity, signaling disciplined dilution but elevating retention risk if stock underperforms peers .
- Change-of-control economics: Double-trigger terms with full acceleration at target for PSUs and full vesting for options/RSUs create clear incentives to support strategic transactions; Kieffer’s illustrative CoC package (based on 2021 tables) was dominated by equity value rather than cash multipliers, aligning with shareholder-friendly structures (no tax gross-ups disclosed) .
- Governance and trading signals: Strong anti-hedging/pledging and clawback policies reduce misalignment risks; say-on-pay support at ~79% in 2024 suggests investor acceptance, though equity plan amendments adding 800k shares highlight the need to refresh retention capacity amid extensive out-of-the-money overhang .
- Execution track record: Program milestone attainment (PSU payouts) remained robust even during stock drawdowns, indicating operational progress under product strategy leadership; however, relative TSR underperformance limits rTSRU payouts and could cap total equity realization without improved market-relative performance .
Overall: For analysts and PMs, monitor upcoming two-year PSU/rTSRU cycles through December 2025, cadence of option grants and moneyness, and any 8-K 5.02 updates to executive arrangements. The equity overhang/out-of-the-money profile and need for retention awards suggest a setup where positive clinical or BD catalysts are critical for compensation realization and retention stability .