Frank Witney
About Frank Witney
Frank R. Witney, PhD (age 71) has served as an independent director of Revvity (RVTY) since 2016. He is a former CEO of Affymetrix (2011–March 2016) and Dionex, with deep operating experience across life science tools and diagnostics; education includes a PhD in molecular and cell biology and MS in microbiology (Indiana University) and BS in microbiology (University of Illinois), and he previously held senior roles at Bio‑Rad and Revvity’s Drug Discovery Tools division post-Packard BioScience acquisition . He is a member of Revvity’s Compensation & Benefits Committee and the Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee, and is affirmatively determined “independent” under NYSE rules .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affymetrix, Inc. | President & CEO | 2011 – Mar 2016 | Led company until acquisition by Thermo Fisher; expertise in microarray/cellular analysis |
| Dionex Corp. | President & CEO | Prior to Affymetrix (dates not disclosed) | Leadership in ion/HPLC markets |
| Panomics (acquired by Affymetrix) | President & CEO; later EVP & Chief Commercial Officer at Affymetrix | Prior to initial Affymetrix tenure | Commercial leadership; quantitative biology focus |
| Revvity (Packard BioScience acquisition) | President, Drug Discovery Tools division | Post-2001 acquisition | Operations leadership post-merger integration |
| Bio‑Rad Laboratories | Various leadership positions | Not disclosed | Led entry into proteomic/bioassay technologies |
| NIH | Post-doctoral fellow | Not disclosed | Scientific training |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cerus Corporation (public) | Director | Current | Life sciences tools exposure |
| Standard BioTools, Inc. (public) | Director | Current | Life science instrumentation |
| Telesis Bio, Inc. (public) | Director | Until 2024 | Formerly Codex DNA |
| Ampersand Capital Partners | Operating Partner | Current | PE operating partner; potential network interlocks to monitor |
Board Governance
- Committee assignments: Compensation & Benefits; Nominating & Corporate Governance. Not a committee chair .
- Independence: Board determined Witney is independent under NYSE Section 303A.02(b) .
- Attendance/engagement: Board met 6 times in FY2024; all directors attended ≥75% of combined board+committee meetings and the annual meeting (virtual) .
- Committee activity levels: Audit (8 meetings), Compensation & Benefits (5), Nominating & Corporate Governance (3) in FY2024, indicating active oversight cadence .
- Compensation committee governance: Uses independent consultant (Pearl Meyer) and meets in executive session; no compensation committee interlocks involving RVTY executives disclosed .
Fixed Compensation (Director)
| Component (FY2024 Board Year) | Frank Witney Detail | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer | $90,000 | Paid quarterly; meeting fee proration applies if <75% attendance (not applicable – all fulfilled) . |
| Committee chair fees | $0 | Not a chair; chair fees: Audit $25k, Comp $20k, Nominating $15k (for reference) . |
| Stock award (unrestricted shares) | 1,218 shares; grant date fair value $124,967 | Granted May 1, 2024; target $125,000; shares unrestricted . |
| RSU grant (time-based) | 977 RSUs; grant date fair value $99,967 | Granted May 1, 2024; target $100,000; vests 100% at next annual meeting or earlier upon death/disability/qualifying retirement, or termination within 12 months following change in control . |
| All other compensation | $5,000 | Charitable match via Revvity Foundation . |
| Total compensation | $319,933 | Sum of cash + equity + other . |
- Director program changes: Equity retainer increased by $25,000 effective April 23, 2024 (to $225,000 combined stock+RSU target); cash retainer unchanged; no changes for 2025 board year .
Performance Compensation
- Non-employee director compensation at Revvity has no performance-based components; equity is time-based RSUs and unrestricted stock, with vesting as described above and no options outstanding for directors .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Sector | Role | Potential Interlock/Conflict Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cerus Corporation | MedTech/Blood safety | Director | Monitor any material transactions with Revvity; none specifically disclosed in cited sections . |
| Standard BioTools, Inc. | Life science tools | Director | Same as above . |
| Telesis Bio, Inc. | Synthetic biology | Former Director (until 2024) | Past role; not current . |
| Ampersand Capital Partners | Private equity | Operating Partner | Related-party policy governs any material interests; chair can approve between meetings; committee oversight . |
Expertise & Qualifications
- 30+ years leading life science tools and diagnostics companies; CEO experience (Affymetrix, Dionex) and commercial/operations expertise (Bio‑Rad, Affymetrix, Revvity division) .
- Scientific credentials (PhD molecular & cell biology; MS/BS microbiology); NIH postdoc; brings product strategy, business development, and operational management expertise to the board .
Equity Ownership
| Metric (as of Feb 14, 2025 unless noted) | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Beneficially owned common stock | 18,662 | Less than 1% of class . |
| Stock-based holdings | 0 | Indirect/deferred holdings column shows 0 for Witney . |
| Acquirable within 60 days | 0 | No options or RSUs acquirable within 60 days . |
| Unvested RSUs (as of Dec 29, 2024) | 977 | Annual director RSU grant; vests at next annual meeting . |
| Stock options | None | Directors held no stock options as of 12/29/2024 . |
| Ownership guidelines compliance | In compliance | Directors must hold ≥5x annual cash retainer; all directors compliant as of 2/14/2025 . |
Governance Assessment
-
Strengths:
- Independence and multi-committee service (Compensation & Benefits; Nominating & Corporate Governance) support board effectiveness .
- Active oversight cadence (5 compensation, 3 nom/gov meetings) and robust compensation committee governance/independent consultant usage .
- Clear anti-hedging policy for board members; trading pre-clearance; officer-level pledge prohibition enhances alignment; director ownership guidelines at 5x cash retainer, with full compliance .
- Shareholder support: 95.7% “say-on-pay” approval in 2024 indicates broad investor confidence in compensation governance .
-
Potential conflicts/watch items (no specific transactions disclosed in cited sections):
- External public company boards (Cerus, Standard BioTools) and PE Operating Partner role (Ampersand) warrant monitoring for related-party exposure; Revvity’s related-party transaction policy requires nom/gov committee review/approval and annual review of ongoing transactions .
- Equity retainer increase in 2024 (+$25k) raises the equity mix but remains aligned with market benchmarking via independent consultant; cash retainer unchanged .
-
RED FLAGS:
- None evident in cited sections regarding hedging/pledging, related-party transactions, attendance shortfalls, or option repricings; directors held no options and all met attendance thresholds .
- Continue to monitor disclosures for any future related-party transactions involving companies where Witney has roles; policy oversight mitigates risk .