Shahir Kassam-Adams
About Shahir Kassam-Adams
Shahir Kassam-Adams (age 65) has served on Forian’s Board since March 2021. He is a healthcare data and technology operator and investor, co‑founder and former CEO of Universal Patient Key (recapitalized as Datavant in 2018), with senior strategy roles at Decision Resources Group and Thomson Healthcare; he holds an MS in Computer Science (Johns Hopkins) and an MBA (Wharton) .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Universal Patient Key (recapitalized as Datavant) | Co‑Founder, CEO | Through 2018 | Built patient data platform later integrated into Datavant |
| Datavant | Strategy & Corporate Development lead; Executive Advisor | 2018–2022 (Strategy & Corp Dev); Advisor since 2022 | Corporate development leadership; ongoing advisory |
| Decision Resources Group (now Clarivate) | Board Member; President; Chief Strategy Officer | 2007–2013 | Commercial and strategic leadership; board oversight |
| Thomson Healthcare (Thomson Reuters Scientific & Healthcare; now Merative) | EVP & Chief Strategy Officer | 2002–2017 | Enterprise strategy in healthcare data/analytics |
External Roles
| Organization | Role/Relationship | Since | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Datavant | Executive Advisor | 2022 | Ongoing advisory role to health data platform company |
| New Mountain Capital | Executive Advisor | 2022 | Advisory role to alternative investment firm |
| Veritas Data Research, Inc. | Material equity interest holder | 2023 | Forian licenses information products to Veritas; SOWs in 2023–2024; $150,000 total fees paid to Forian through Apr 25, 2025 |
Board Governance
- Independence status: Independent in 2023 and 2024; not independent in 2025 (Board determined Adam Dublin, Shahir Kassam‑Adams, and Max Wygod are not independent) .
- Committee assignments: 2023 Audit Committee member and Nominating Committee chair; resigned from Audit and Nominating Committees on Dec 28, 2023; not listed on 2024–2025 committee rosters .
- Attendance and engagement: Board met 7 times in FY2024; each director attended at least 75% of Board and committee meetings; Audit Committee met 4x, Compensation Committee 1x, Nominating Committee did not meet in 2024 .
- Policies supporting governance: Company prohibits hedging, short sales, transactions in publicly traded options, margin accounts and pledges; adopted an incentive compensation clawback policy effective Oct 2, 2023 .
Fixed Compensation
Directors receive equity only; no cash retainers, meeting fees, or chair fees disclosed.
| Component | FY 2022 | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fees earned or paid in cash ($) | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Option awards grant-date fair value ($) | $94,462 (15,000 options; $6.81 strike) | $33,416 (15,000 options; $3.14 strike) | $34,455 (15,000 options; $3.14 strike) |
| Equity form | Non-employee director stock options (15,000 each year) | Non-employee director stock options (15,000) | Non-employee director stock options (15,000) |
Performance Compensation
No performance‑based director compensation (no RSUs/PSUs or cash bonuses) disclosed; directors historically receive only equity options.
| Performance metric (director compensation) | Applied? | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Cash bonus / performance pay | Not disclosed / not paid | “Historically, our non‑employee directors have not received compensation … other than equity compensation.” |
| Equity RSUs/PSUs with operating KPIs | Not disclosed | Only option grants to directors disclosed |
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Category | Entity | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Public company boards | None disclosed | — | — |
| Private/other boards | Decision Resources Group | Board Member (historical) | DRG later became part of Clarivate |
| Related-party interlock | Veritas Data Research, Inc. | Material equity interest; Forian licensing agreement | SOW No.1 (Dec 29, 2023; amended Feb 21, 2024) and SOW No.2 (Sept 4, 2024); $150,000 total license fees to Forian through Apr 25, 2025 |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Healthcare data/analytics operator and strategist with senior P&L and M&A experience (Thomson Healthcare; DRG) .
- Founding and scale‑up experience in identity‑linked patient data platforms; post‑recapitalization corporate development at Datavant .
- Technical and business training: MS in Computer Science (Johns Hopkins) and MBA (Wharton) .
Equity Ownership
| Metric | Apr 26, 2023 | Apr 26, 2024 | Apr 25, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shares held directly | 121,340 | 174,934 | 174,934 |
| Options exercisable within 60 days | 11,250 | 22,500 | 37,500 |
| Total beneficial ownership (shares) | 132,590 (<1%) | 197,434 (<1%) | 212,434 (<1%) |
| Shares outstanding reference | 32,583,971 | 31,139,797 | 31,202,313 |
| Hedging/pledging | Prohibited by company policy | Prohibited | Prohibited |
Governance Assessment
- Strengths: Seasoned healthcare data executive with technical and corporate development credentials; consistent Board meeting attendance; equity‑only director compensation; anti‑hedging/pledging policy and formal clawback adopted in 2023 support shareholder alignment .
- Concerns: Independence loss in 2025 following a related‑party relationship (material equity interest in Veritas Data Research, Inc.) and licensing arrangements between Forian and Veritas ($150,000 fees), coincident with his late‑2023 resignations from Audit and Nominating Committees; these dynamics raise conflict‑of‑interest and board effectiveness questions for audit and governance oversight .
- Additional context: Forian disclosed material weaknesses and revenue recognition control issues leading to restatements of 2023 periods; while not specific to Kassam‑Adams, they elevate the importance of robust independent audit and governance oversight around related‑party transactions .
- Historical compliance note: In 2022, annual director option grant Forms 4 (including Kassam‑Adams) were filed late; no director Section 16(a) delinquencies noted for 2024 (one late Form 4 for CFO) .