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Joseph Harris

Director at NEPHROS
Board

About Joseph Harris

Independent director since September 2022; age 57 as of April 22, 2025. Currently VP, National Account at Murj; prior senior sales roles in cardiovascular/medical devices at HeartFlow, BIOTRONIK, and Boston Scientific. Education: B.S. in Systems Engineering Economics (West Point) and MBA in Marketing/Finance (University of Michigan). Board determined he is independent under Nasdaq rules.

Past Roles

OrganizationRoleTenureCommittees/Impact
MurjVP, National Account; formerly Midwest Sales DirectorJan 2023–Present SaaS cardiac monitoring workflow; commercial leadership in health-tech
HeartFlow, Inc.Area Sales Director, EastJan 2018–Feb 2019 Commercial expansion in non-invasive coronary diagnostics
BIOTRONIKMidwest Regional Sales DirectorJan 2016–Jan 2018 Regional leadership in cardiac rhythm management devices
Boston ScientificRegional Sales Manager and other roles1998–2015 Long-tenure operator across med-tech sales
U.S. ArmyOfficerNot disclosed Leadership/discipline credentials

External Roles

OrganizationRolePublic Company?TenureNotes
MurjVP, National AccountNoJan 2023–Present Health-tech SaaS; indicates commercial expertise
Other public company directorshipsNone disclosed for Harris

Board Governance

  • Independence: Affirmatively determined independent (Nasdaq standards).
  • Committees: Audit Committee member; Compensation Committee member; Governance (Nominating and Corporate Governance) Committee member. Audit Committee held 4 meetings in 2024; Compensation Committee held 3; Governance Committee held 1. All Audit Committee members are financially literate.
  • Attendance: Board held 6 meetings in 2024; each director attended at least 75% of Board and applicable committee meetings during their service period. Only one director attended the 2024 annual meeting.
  • Board leadership: No named Chairman in 2024 (CEO and Board jointly preside).
  • Large shareholder influence: Wexford-related entities owned ~34% of shares and hold nomination rights for two board seats under a 2007 investor rights agreement; one Wexford-designated seat is currently vacant.

Fixed Compensation

ComponentFY 2024 AmountNotes
Annual Board retainer (cash)$20,000 Standard for directors in 2024
Board meeting fees$1,500 per quarterly meeting Paid per meeting attended
Audit Committee chair retainer$10,000 (chair only) Harris is not the chair
Audit Committee meeting fees$1,000 per meeting (max 8) Applies to members
Special Committee fees$10,000 retainer + $1,000 per meeting (none in 2024) No Special Committee in 2024
Joseph Harris – Fees Earned (Cash)$29,000 FY 2024 director cash compensation
Total FY 2024 Compensation (Harris)$45,524 Includes option grant fair value

Performance Compensation

Award TypeGrant Date(s)Fair ValueVestingNotes
Annual non-employee director stock optionsMay 14, 2024 (for 2023 service) and Jan 1, 2025 (for 2024 service) $16,524 (aggregate for FY 2024 table) Director options vest in three equal installments at grant, first and second anniversaries Exercise price set at FMV on grant date; annual grant size formula: 0.0006 × fully-diluted shares; initial grants at 0.0011 × fully-diluted shares
Restricted StockNot disclosed for Harris2024 director fees paid in restricted stock to Amron and Spandow, not Harris

Performance metrics for directors: None disclosed (director equity awards are time-based; no TSR/financial metric linkage for director pay).

Other Directorships & Interlocks

CompanyExchangeRoleCommittee RolesOverlap/Interlock
None disclosed for Joseph HarrisNo public company board interlocks disclosed for Harris
  • Network risk context: Wexford-related entities hold ~34% and a Wexford partner (Amron) serves on the Board; nomination rights allow up to two Wexford nominees. Not directly an interlock for Harris but relevant to board dynamics.

Expertise & Qualifications

  • Sales/commercial leadership across med-tech devices (Boston Scientific, BIOTRONIK, HeartFlow) and health-tech SaaS (Murj).
  • Financial literacy per Audit Committee membership and Board determination.
  • Education: West Point (Systems Engineering Economics) and University of Michigan MBA (Marketing/Finance).

Equity Ownership

HolderShares Beneficially Owned% of ClassBreakdown/Notes
Joseph Harris45,120 <1% Includes 27,427 options exercisable within 60 days of April 22, 2025
Vested vs Unvested Options (as of 12/31/2024)20,276 vested; 14,292 unvested options (director option holdings)
  • Insider Trading/Alignment Policies: Hedging, pledging, short sales, and puts/calls in Company securities are prohibited for directors, officers, and employees.

Governance Assessment

  • Strengths: Independent director with broad commercial med-tech experience; sits on all three key committees (Audit, Compensation, Governance), supporting board effectiveness; Audit Committee financial literacy; positive shareholder support with ~99% Say‑on‑Pay approval in 2024; insider trading and hedging/pledging prohibitions enhance alignment.
  • Alignment: Holds options and shares; options vest over time, linking director value to stock performance; ownership <1% but consistent with small-cap norms.
  • Engagement: Met at least the 75% attendance threshold; however, only one director attended the 2024 annual meeting—an investor-relations engagement weakness to monitor.
  • Potential conflicts/RED FLAGS:
    • Concentrated shareholder influence: Wexford entities own ~34% with nomination and convening rights; a Wexford-affiliated director (Amron) serves on the Board. Not a Harris-specific conflict, but a board-level governance risk (control influence, board composition).
    • Lack of named Chairman in 2024 may diffuse accountability in agenda setting and risk oversight; monitor leadership structure evolution.

Say‑on‑Pay & Shareholder Feedback: ~99% approval in 2024, indicating strong investor support for compensation design.

Related‑Party Transactions: No Harris‑specific related party transactions disclosed; Board/Committee independence review found no disqualifying relationships for Harris.