Sherrie Perkins
About Sherrie Perkins
Independent director at HSDT (now Solana Company f/k/a Helius Medical Technologies), serving since March 2021. Background spans medtech commercialization, marketing, and new business development (Cyberonics/LivaNova), venture mentoring at MD Anderson, and academia; degrees include a B.S. in Medical Technology (Mississippi State) and M.A. in Management (Central Michigan) . The Board has classified Ms. Perkins as independent under Nasdaq standards, and she serves on independent Board committees .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cyberonics, Inc. (affiliate of LivaNova) | VP Marketing & New Business Development | Nov 2011 – Oct 2015 | Commercialization and business development leadership |
| LivaNova PLC | VP, Sleep Apnea/New Ventures | Oct 2015 – Jan 2017 | Venture initiatives in sleep apnea |
| LivaNova PLC | Consultant | Jan 2017 – Jun 2019 | Strategic consulting |
| eNeura, Inc. (private) | Independent Director | 2018 – 2020 | Board service at migraine therapy company |
| MD Anderson Cancer Center | Venture Mentoring Service Mentor | Since 2017 | Commercialization guidance to ventures |
| University of St. Thomas (Cameron School of Business) | Adjunct Professor, Master of Clinical Translation Management | Since Jun 2021 | Teaching in clinical translation management |
External Roles
| Category | Company/Institution | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Public company boards | — | — | None disclosed in company proxy materials |
| Private/Non-profit/Academic | MD Anderson VMS | Mentor | Current |
| Private/Non-profit/Academic | University of St. Thomas | Adjunct Professor | Current |
| Private/Non-profit/Academic | eNeura, Inc. | Director | 2018–2020 (past) |
Board Governance
- Committee assignments (current): Compensation Committee member; Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee Chair. Both committees are composed entirely of independent directors .
- Independence: Board determinations classify independent directors per Nasdaq; Ms. Perkins is an independent director .
- Attendance: In 2024, the Board met four times and each director serving in 2024 attended at least 75% of aggregate Board and committee meetings; Compensation and Nominating & Governance Committees each met once in 2024 .
- Board leadership: 2024 Board Chair was independent (Blane Walter) ; by late 2025, Joseph Chee chaired the Board and was not independent .
- Risk oversight: Audit oversees financial/cybersecurity risk; Compensation oversees executive and director compensation risk; Nominating & Governance oversees director independence and governance practices .
- Policies: Insider Trading Policy prohibits director/officer hedging/monetization transactions and implements blackout and pre-clearance; Code of Business Conduct & Ethics applies company-wide .
Fixed Compensation
- Director pay policy: Base annual cash retainer $35,000; Board chair $68,000; committee fees—Audit Chair $16,000/member $8,000; Compensation Chair $10,000/member $5,000; Nominating & Governance Chair $7,500/member $5,000. Annual equity retainer targets ~$50,000; in 2024, Board grants were options plus cash equal to $50,000 minus option value (in lieu of RSUs) .
Director compensation (actuals):
| Metric | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash fees | $47,500 | $53,451 |
| Option awards (grant-date fair value) | $29,911 | $26,195 |
| Stock awards (RSUs) | $12,964 | — |
| Total | $90,375 | $79,646 |
Performance Compensation
- Structure: No performance-based metrics disclosed for non-employee director equity; annual equity retainer paid in options (and historically RSUs) per policy .
- Clawback: Company adopted a Nasdaq-compliant clawback policy for Section 16 officers; not specific to directors’ retainer equity .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
- Current public company boards: None disclosed for Ms. Perkins .
- Related interlocks: None disclosed with HSDT competitors, suppliers, or customers .
Expertise & Qualifications
- Domain expertise in medtech commercialization, marketing, and venture/new business development (Cyberonics/LivaNova); venture mentoring; academia .
- Education: B.S. Medical Technology (Mississippi State University); M.A. Management (Central Michigan University) .
- Governance: Chair, Nominating & Corporate Governance; member, Compensation—independent committees .
Equity Ownership
| Ownership detail | 2024 (Record date May 28, 2024) | 2025 (Record date Oct 1, 2025) |
|---|---|---|
| Total beneficial ownership (shares) | 7,991 | 2,666 |
| Percent of class | <1% | <1% |
| Options exercisable (included in beneficial) | 6,190 | 2,664 (exercisable within 60 days) |
| RSUs unvested (at year-end prior period) | 557 RSUs outstanding at 12/31/2023 (director comp table) | Not applicable; 2024 Board grants were options plus cash in lieu of RSUs |
| Shares pledged | No pledging disclosed; company prohibits hedging/monetization by directors |
Governance Assessment
- Strengths: Independent director; chairs Nom/Gov and serves on Comp (both fully independent committees) . Attendance met company threshold (≥75%) and committees were active in 2024 . Hedging prohibited and strong insider trading controls . No related-party transactions involving Ms. Perkins disclosed .
- Watch items: Low direct equity ownership (<1%) may indicate limited alignment with common shareholders, though directors receive annual equity retainers . Board leadership shifted to a non-independent Chair in 2025, potentially heightening the importance of strong independent committee leadership and processes .
- Shareholder context: Most recent disclosed say-on-pay (2021) received 92.2% support, indicating historical shareholder alignment on pay practices; next say-on-pay required by 2027 .
Appendix: Committee Assignments (current)
| Committee | Role |
|---|---|
| Compensation Committee | Member |
| Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee | Chair |
Related-party review: The company maintains a formal related-person transactions policy; no transactions involving Ms. Perkins were disclosed in the “Certain Relationships and Related Transactions” sections reviewed .