Christine Heckart
About Christine A. Heckart
Independent director at SiTime since April 2021; age 59 as of March 31, 2025. Former CMO/marketing executive at leading technology firms and current founder/CEO of Xapa World, Inc. (private) focused on mobile enrichment. Holds a B.A. in economics from the University of Colorado Boulder; prior public company board experience at Lam Research (2011–2019). Determined independent by the Board under Nasdaq standards .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cisco Systems, Inc. | SVP, Business Unit & Product Marketing | Dec 2017–Aug 2018 | Led product marketing across Cisco’s portfolio |
| Brocade Communications Systems, Inc. | SVP & Chief Marketing Officer | Mar 2014–Nov 2016 | Global marketing; company later acquired by Broadcom |
| ServiceSource International Inc. | CMO; EVP Strategy, Marketing, People & Systems | Jul 2012–May 2013 | Strategy and go-to-market leadership |
| NetApp, Inc. | Chief Marketing Officer | Feb 2010–May 2012 | Brand and demand generation leadership |
| Microsoft Corporation | General Manager, TV, Video & Music | 2005–2010 | Led media product lines |
| Juniper Networks, Inc. | Led Global Marketing | 2002–2005 | Enterprise marketing leadership |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xapa World, Inc. (private) | Founder & CEO | Sep 2021–present | Mobile app for human enrichment |
| SiTime Corporation | Director; Member, Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee | Apr 2021–present | Independent; committee member (not chair) |
| Lam Research Corporation | Director (public) | May 2011–Aug 2019 | Prior public board; not current |
| 6Sense Insights, Inc. (private) | Director | Nov 2015–Feb 2020 | Private company board |
Board Governance
- Independence: Board affirmatively determined Heckart is independent (Nasdaq standard); majority of SiTime’s board is independent .
- Committee assignments: Member, Nominating & Corporate Governance; chairs: Schuelke (Nom/Gov), Chitkara (Audit), Kreindl (Compensation & Talent) .
- Attendance: Board met 4 times in 2024; each director attended all Board and relevant committee meetings; Nom/Gov met 5 times, Audit 10, Compensation & Talent 12 .
- Board leadership: Combined Chair/CEO with lead independent director (Chitkara); independent exec sessions are held regularly .
- Shareholder engagement: Management and lead independent director met holders representing ~24% of outstanding shares in Feb–Mar 2025; engagement informs compensation/governance .
Fixed Compensation (Director)
| Component | Policy/Amount | Christine Heckart (2024) |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer | $40,000 | $40,000 |
| Committee membership fees | $8,000 per committee member (Nom/Gov) | $8,000 (Nom/Gov member) |
| Committee chair fees | $20,000 per chair (not applicable to Heckart) | $0 |
| Lead independent director premium | $20,000 (Chitkara only) | $0 |
| Cash fees total (2024) | Sum of above | $48,000 |
Performance Compensation (Director)
| Equity Grant Type | Grant Date | Grant Value | Vesting | Metric |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual RSU (non-employee directors) | First business day after annual meeting (2024 cycle) | $250,000 grant-date fair value; for 2024, $257,649 reported | Vests on quarterly date in one-year anniversary quarter; accelerates if next annual meeting occurs prior and service ends | Time-based only (no performance metrics) |
| One-time RSU (parity adjustment) | Mar 2025 | $175,000 | Vests in full May 2025 | Time-based only |
Director equity is not performance-conditioned; RSUs are time-based. No PRSUs or options are granted to non-employee directors under policy .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Type | Overlap/Interlock | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lam Research Corporation | Public | None with SiTime peers disclosed | Prior public board; tenure ended 2019 |
| 6Sense Insights, Inc. | Private | None | Prior private board |
| Current public boards (other than SiTime) | — | None | No current other public company boards disclosed |
| Committee interlocks | — | None | Compensation Committee interlocks disclosure indicates none among members; Heckart not on Compensation Committee |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Board skills matrix identifies Heckart as having: Industry Experience; Executive Leadership; Public Company Board; Business Development & Strategy; International Leadership; Corporate Governance; Sustainability; M&A .
- Education: B.A. in economics (University of Colorado Boulder) .
- Noted governance experience including prior public board service and M&A exposure .
Equity Ownership
| Item | Amount | As-of Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beneficial ownership (shares) | 12,871 | Mar 28, 2025 | Includes 3,116 RSUs vesting within 60 days |
| RSUs vesting within 60 days | 3,116 | Mar 28, 2025 | Included in beneficial ownership per SEC rules |
| Unvested RSUs (directors) | 2,115 | Dec 31, 2024 | Aggregate RSUs not yet vested |
| Shares outstanding | 23,721,534 | Mar 28, 2025 | Used for ownership context |
| Ownership % (calculated) | ~0.054% | Mar 28, 2025 | 12,871 / 23,721,534; calculated from cited values |
| Pledging/Hedging | Prohibited | Policy | No pledging, hedging, short sales, or margin accounts permitted |
| Stock ownership guideline | 5x annual retainer (2024); 6x annual base cash comp by Dec 31, 2026 | Policy | Directors expected to meet guideline within four years; increased to 6x by 2026 |
Governance Assessment
- Independence and attendance: Heckart is independent and had perfect attendance across Board/committee meetings in 2024—supportive of Board effectiveness and oversight quality .
- Roles/committees: As a member of Nominating & Corporate Governance, she contributes to director compensation policy, governance practices, sustainability oversight, and succession planning; she is not a chair, which helps mitigate excessive influence risks .
- Compensation alignment: Director pay uses modest cash retainers plus time-based RSUs; no options or performance-conditioned director equity, reducing pay-risk complexity. 2025 one-time RSU grant to Heckart addressed a policy gap from her 2021 onboarding and restored parity—transparent rationale disclosed (neutral signal) .
- Ownership and conduct: Beneficial ownership with near-term vesting underpins alignment; strict prohibitions on hedging/pledging and existence of stock ownership guidelines are positive alignment signals; no related-party transactions involving Heckart disclosed .
- Shareholder engagement context: Board’s outreach (24% of shares) and say-on-pay improvement (82% approval in 2024 vs. 51.2% in 2023) indicate responsiveness to investor feedback—beneficial to overall governance climate .
Red flags: None disclosed specific to Heckart. No related-party transactions, no hedging/pledging, no committee interlocks; the one-time RSU grant is disclosed with rationale and is within the policy framework (cap remains $600k annual, $850k first year) .
Notes on Compensation Structure and Risk Controls
- Director policy caps total non-employee director compensation at $600,000 annually ($850,000 in first year), with change-in-control full acceleration of unvested RSUs—standard market practice; no stock options granted to directors .
- Clawback policy (Section 16 officers) adopted Nov 2023; while directors’ RSUs are time-based, overall governance posture on recoupment and prohibition of hedging/pledging strengthens investor confidence .