Beth Shafer
About Beth Shafer
Beth Shafer, Ph.D., is Chief Business Officer at Scholar Rock (SRRK), joining in August 2024; she is 46 years old and leads corporate and business development strategy . She previously served as CBO at Voyager Therapeutics (2023–2024), VP & Head of R&D BD at Takeda (2018–2023), and held BD&L roles at Novartis and Roche; she is also a Venture Partner at Mubadala Capital Ventures and has served on boards of Aquinnah Pharmaceuticals and Arcellx . During her tenure period, Scholar Rock’s pay-versus-performance disclosures show improving TSR and deepening investment in pipeline despite net losses typical of late-stage biotech; the company reported negative net income and emphasized that it does not use net income as a performance measure at this stage .
| Metric | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Shareholder Return (Value of $100) | $36.43 | $75.68 | $173.99 |
| Net Income (USD millions) | -$135 | -$166 | -$246 |
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Voyager Therapeutics | Chief Business Officer | 2023–2024 | Led BD during portfolio refocus; prepared partnering posture and strategic optionality . |
| Takeda Pharmaceuticals | VP & Head of R&D Business Development (GI & Inflammation, Neuroscience, Drug Discovery Sciences, Externalizations) | 2018–2023 | Ran multi-TA R&D BD groups; completed transactions in neuroscience, GI, ophthalmology; built externalization strategy . |
| Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research | Head, Ophthalmology and Disease Area BD&L | n/d | Executed BD&L for disease areas; facilitated platform-aligned licensing . |
| Roche | Director, BD&L | n/d | Closed BD&L transactions; expanded pipeline through external sourcing . |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mubadala Capital Ventures | Venture Partner | 2023–Present | Strategic investing and portfolio support . |
| Aquinnah Pharmaceuticals | Director | n/d | Board role; neurodegenerative focus . |
| Arcellx | Director (prior) | n/d | Prior public company board experience . |
Fixed Compensation
- Beth Shafer is listed as an Executive Team Member (Chief Business Officer) but is not one of the company’s Named Executive Officers (NEOs) in the 2025 proxy; individual base salary and bonus details for her were not disclosed .
- Scholar Rock’s methodology: executive base salaries are set using peer benchmarks and performance considerations; reviewed annually by the compensation committee with independent consultant Pay Governance .
| Component | Beth-Specific Disclosure | Company Policy Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Base Salary | Not disclosed | Set vs. peers; annual review . |
| Target Bonus % | Not disclosed | Annual bonus program for executives; targets vary by role . |
| Actual Bonus Paid | Not disclosed | Based on corporate goals and (for non-CEO executives) individual factors . |
Performance Compensation
- Beth-specific performance metrics, weights, targets, and payouts were not disclosed; the proxy’s detailed plan metrics are provided for NEOs only .
- Company program design: time-based stock options and RSUs granted; committee may introduce performance-based equity in future; annual cash bonuses tied primarily to corporate goals .
| Metric | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not disclosed for Beth | — | — | — | — | Options/RSUs generally time-based; options quarterly after 1-year cliff; RSUs annual installments . |
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Beneficial ownership table does not list Beth as a separate line item, indicating her individual ownership is not disclosed and is below 1% of shares outstanding; the table enumerates directors and NEOs specifically .
- Policy prohibitions: hedging, short sales, derivative transactions, and pledging/margin are explicitly prohibited for employees and officers, aligning incentives and mitigating misalignment risks .
- Inducement equity grants (company-wide for new hires): in July, August, and September 2024, Scholar Rock announced inducement awards under Nasdaq Rule 5635(c)(4) with standard vesting—options at 25% on first anniversary then quarterly, RSUs in four annual installments; recipients were not named in releases . Equity grant timing policy states new hires receive awards on the second Monday of the month following employment commencement .
| Alignment Factor | Status / Terms |
|---|---|
| Hedging/Pledging | Prohibited by insider trading policy . |
| Ownership Guidelines | Not disclosed for executives; proxy does not specify officer ownership guidelines . |
| Inducement Grant Vesting (new hires) | Options: 25% at 1-year; remaining 75% in 12 equal quarterly installments; RSUs: four equal annual installments . |
| Equity Grant Timing | New hires: second Monday of month following start date . |
Employment Terms
- Beth’s individual employment agreement terms (severance, change-of-control triggers, non-compete/non-solicit) were not disclosed; detailed severance/CIC terms are provided for NEOs only .
- No material legal proceedings involving executive officers or executive team members, including Beth, were reported .
- Clawback: Compensation Recovery Policy adopted November 28, 2023, compliant with Nasdaq listing rules; applies to incentive-based compensation tied to financial reporting measures in the event of restatements .
Investment Implications
- Compensation structure and alignment: Prohibitions on hedging/pledging reduce misalignment risk; equity grant timing and standard vesting schedules suggest retention incentives for newly hired executives, with first meaningful vesting typically at the one-year mark and ongoing quarterly/annual vesting thereafter .
- Data gaps limit direct pay-for-performance analysis (no Beth-specific base, bonus, or PSU metrics disclosed); however, broader program design emphasizes time-based equity with the potential for performance-based awards in future, and annual bonuses linked to corporate milestones .
- Execution track record context: Beth’s appointment coincided with a period of corporate momentum—positive Phase 3 SAPPHIRE data and an upsized $345M equity raise in October 2024—supporting a business development mandate focused on partnering and pipeline leverage, though attribution to an individual executive should be avoided in the absence of explicit disclosures .
- Risk controls: Company-wide clawback policy and explicit trading restrictions mitigate governance red flags; Beth is not individually enumerated in beneficial ownership disclosures, and no related-party transactions or legal proceedings implicating executive team members were reported .
Note on benchmarking: Scholar Rock’s 2024 compensation peer group (e.g., Apellis, Denali, Sarepta, BridgeBio, Vaxcyte) guides overall competitive pay philosophy; this peer set informs expectations for CBO compensation, but Beth-specific figures were not disclosed .