Joseph Turk
About Joseph Turk
Joseph Turk, 57, has served on Lifeward’s Board since April 2022 and as Chairman since September 4, 2024. He is considered independent under Nasdaq rules; the Board determined all current directors other than the co-CEOs are independent, and all committee members are independent under Nasdaq and SEC requirements. Turk holds a B.A. from Wabash College and an M.A. from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management; his background spans senior operating roles in home therapies and device commercialization, including Medicare reimbursement strategy .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fresenius Medical Care North America | Executive Vice President; Global Head of Home Therapies | EVP since 2019; Global Head since Jan 2022 | Led home therapies; prior President roles in Renal Therapies 2021 and U.S. Home & Critical Care Therapies 2019–2021 |
| NxStage Medical, Inc. | President; SVP; VP Marketing | 2000–2019 | Commercialized breakthrough medical device; business development transactions |
| Boston Scientific Corporation | Various roles | N/D | Medical device operating experience |
| McKinsey & Company | Consultant | N/D | Strategy/operations grounding |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fresenius Medical Care North America | Executive Vice President | 2019–present | Home therapies leadership; payer/reimbursement expertise |
| — | Other public company directorships | — | None disclosed in proxy |
Board Governance
- Independence: Turk is an independent director under Nasdaq listing standards; all current audit, compensation, and nominating committee members are independent .
- Board attendance: The Board held 13 meetings in 2024; all incumbent directors except Hadar Levy attended at least 75% of Board and committee meetings. Turk attended the 2024 annual meeting; the Board regularly holds executive sessions of independent directors .
| Committee | Members | Chair | Meetings (2024) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audit | Robert Marshall; Dr. John W. Poduska; Hadar Levy | Robert Marshall | 5 meetings; all members financially literate; Marshall and Levy designate as “audit committee financial experts” |
| Compensation | Randel E. Richner; Joseph Turk; Dr. John W. Poduska | Dr. John W. Poduska | 5 meetings; oversees pay policy, director compensation, and equity grants |
| Nominating & Corporate Governance | Randel E. Richner; Michael Swinford | Randel E. Richner | 2 meetings; oversees nominations, governance policies |
Fixed Compensation
| Component (2024) | Amount (USD) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual non-employee director retainer | $11,222 | Cash retainer |
| Chair retainer (portion; prorated from Sep 4, 2024) | $11,348 | Appointed Chair effective Sep 4, 2024 |
| Meeting fees | $13,056 | Board meetings attended |
| Compensation committee membership fee | $3,791 | Member of Compensation Committee |
| Total cash fees | $39,417 | Reported in Director Compensation table |
- Chair fee policy change proposed (effective at Aug 1, 2025 meeting): Annual cash fee and annual equity grant (or cash in lieu) for Chair to be double amounts for other directors. If implemented for 2024, Chair would have received $78,834 cash and $100,000 annual RSU value .
Performance Compensation
| Equity Component | Grant Date | Grant Size/Value | Vesting | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual RSU Award (policy) | At/after appointment; annually | $50,000 value typical | Vests in four equal quarterly installments starting three months after grant | RSUs or cash in lieu at committee discretion per 2020 policy |
| Initial RSU Award (policy) | Upon appointment | $50,000 value | Same as above | Applies to independent, non-employee directors |
| Equity actually granted in 2024 | — | None | — | Company did not maintain an active equity plan in 2024; no equity-based awards granted in 2024 |
- Performance metrics: Director RSU awards vest based on time, not on performance goals; the plan permits performance goals in awards generally, but director grants are disclosed as time-based vesting .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Relationship | Potential Interlock/Conflict | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fresenius Medical Care North America | Turk is EVP | If Lifeward entered transactions with Fresenius, this would require related-party oversight | No related-party transactions with Turk disclosed |
| Numotion/CorLife | Swinford is CEO of Numotion (parent of CorLife); Board approved exclusive distributor arrangement | Interlock pertains to Swinford, not Turk | Reviewed and approved by Board; arms-length terms |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Management leadership in achieving favorable Medicare reimbursement; commercialization of novel medical devices; multiple business development transactions .
- Financial literacy is required for audit committee; compensation governance experience via committee membership .
- Education: B.A. (Wabash), M.A. (Kellogg Graduate School of Management) .
Equity Ownership
| As-of Date | Shares Outstanding | Turk Shares Beneficially Owned | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 20, 2024 | 8,808,143 | 27,134 | <1% |
| Jun 23, 2025 | 11,602,266 | 33,134 | <1% |
Notes:
- Beneficial ownership determination includes shares vesting/exercisable within 60 days; percentages are computed on that basis .
Insider Trades & Section 16(a) Compliance
| Item | Status |
|---|---|
| Section 16(a) filings (2024) | Company states all required filings were timely except one late Form 4 by Michael Swinford; no late filings referenced for Turk |
Governance Assessment
- Committee roles and independence: Strong—Turk serves on the Compensation Committee; all members are independent under Nasdaq and SEC rules; audit committee has designated financial experts; independent-only executive sessions are held .
- Attendance and engagement: Adequate—Board met 13 times in 2024; all incumbent directors except Levy attended at least 75%; Turk attended the 2024 AGM, indicating engagement .
- Pay structure and alignment: Mixed—Turk’s 2024 compensation was entirely cash due to lack of active equity plan; standard policy provides $50k RSUs with time-based vesting, which lacks performance metrics. Proposed doubling of Chair cash/equity starting Aug 2025 increases guaranteed compensation and time-based equity, potentially diluting pay-for-performance alignment for the Chair role (RED FLAG: pay inflation risk without added performance conditioning) .
- Conflicts/related-party exposure: Low—No related-party transactions disclosed involving Turk; audit committee oversees such matters under Israeli law; monitor for any future Fresenius/Lifeward dealings given Turk’s EVP role (monitoring item) .
- Share ownership: Modest “skin in the game”—<1% ownership; increased share count held from 27,134 to 33,134 between Nov 2024 and Jun 2025; no pledging disclosed (neutral) .
- Shareholder oversight signals: Say-on-Pay on agenda; robust governance processes and charters for committees; Code of Ethics and insider trading policy in place .
Overall, Turk brings deep healthcare operations and reimbursement expertise and serves as an independent Chair with active committee participation. Key monitoring items are the step-up in Chair compensation without performance-based features and any future transactions involving Fresenius that would require audit committee scrutiny .