John Higgins
Director at TECH
Board
About John L. Higgins
Independent director of Bio‑Techne (ticker: TECH); age 55; director since 2009. Former President & CEO of Ligand Pharmaceuticals (retired Dec 2022), with prior finance and corporate development roles in pharma and investment banking; BA in economics, magna cum laude, Colgate University. Current committee roles: Audit Committee Chair and member of Nominations & Governance; other public company board: OmniAb, Inc. (Chair, since 2022). Independence affirmed by the Board; board attendance strong (Board met 7 times in FY2025; each director ≥85%, average 96%).
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | President & CEO; Director | 2007–Dec 2022 (retired) | Public company leadership; financial and strategic oversight relevant to TECH; M&A perspective highlighted for Audit Chair role |
| Connetics Corporation | Chief Financial Officer; EVP Finance & Administration and Corporate Development | CFO 1997–2007; EVP 2002–2006 | Deep finance and corporate development experience |
| BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | Executive management team member; Director | Not dated | Biopharma operating and board exposure |
| Dillon, Read & Co. Inc. | Healthcare banking team member | Early career | Capital markets and transaction experience |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| OmniAb, Inc. | Chair | Since 2022 | Current public company directorship; Chair role |
Board Governance
- Committee assignments: Audit Committee Chair; Nominations & Governance Committee member. Audit Committee responsibilities include oversight of external auditor, internal controls, financial reporting, cash investment policy, material cybersecurity incidents, hotline ethics reports; recent focus areas: financial reporting, internal controls, cybersecurity. Nominations & Governance responsibilities include director recruitment/independence determination, governance standards, committee composition, board/committee self-evaluations, governance trends, sustainability oversight; recent focus areas: refreshment, composition, director education.
- Independence: Board determined all non‑employee directors are independent; directors in executive session four times in FY2025; no related‑party transactions requiring disclosure since the beginning of last fiscal year.
- Attendance: Board met seven times in FY2025; each director attended at least 85% of Board meetings; average 96%. Committee average attendance: Compensation 90% (5 meetings), Nominations & Governance 100% (4 meetings), Science & Technology 100% (2 meetings).
- Shareholder vote signals: Higgins re‑elected with 135,131,210 For; 5,460,347 Against; 236,002 Abstain (majority standard). Say‑on‑pay received 100,792,824 For; 39,025,321 Against; 1,009,414 Abstain.
Fixed Compensation
| Component | FY2025 Amount | Higgins‑Specific Details | Terms |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer (non‑employee director) | $75,000 | Included in Higgins’ cash fees | Paid monthly; no meeting fees; reimbursement for reasonable expenses |
| Audit Committee Chair fee | $25,000 | Applies to Higgins | Paid monthly |
| Other committee chair fee | $15,000 | Not applicable to Higgins (Audit Chair only) | Paid monthly |
| Board Chair fee | $120,000 | Not applicable | Paid monthly |
| Total cash fees paid (FY2025) | $100,000 | Reported for Higgins | Per director compensation table |
Performance Compensation
| Equity Element | FY2025 Grant | Higgins‑Specific | Vesting/Terms |
|---|---|---|---|
| Restricted stock (RS) | Equity grant valued at $200,000 annually; 50% in RS | 1,462 RS shares at $68.37 grant date value; RS fair value $99,957 | Vests upon earlier of 1‑year from grant or next annual meeting |
| Stock options | Equity grant valued at $200,000 annually; 50% in options | 3,511 options; option fair value $99,984 | 10‑year term; exercise price = FMV at grant date; time‑based vesting (not performance‑based) |
| Dividends on RS | $481 | Reported for Higgins | Dividends not included in grant‑date fair value |
Performance metrics tied to director compensation: None disclosed; director equity is time‑based (no RSU/option performance conditions).
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Role | Interlock/Conflict Notes |
|---|---|---|
| OmniAb, Inc. | Chair | No related‑party transactions involving TECH directors/officers requiring disclosure since beginning of last fiscal year. Directors limited to ≤4 other public boards; currently no director serves on more than two. |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Financial acumen and M&A perspective; broad public company executive and board experience; relevant to Audit Chair responsibilities.
- Industry experience from leadership roles at Ligand and OmniAb; operations and risk oversight capabilities.
Equity Ownership
| Holder | Direct Shares | Options (status/date) | Total Beneficial Ownership | % of Outstanding | Reference Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John L. Higgins | 65,236 shares | 63,544 vested but unexercised options | 128,780 shares | 0.1% (of 155,691,017 shares outstanding) | Sept 2, 2025 |
| John L. Higgins | — | 68,584 options held | — | — | As of June 30, 2025 |
Policy alignment:
- Director stock ownership guideline: ≥3× annual retainer within five years; all independent directors met as of June 30, 2025 except Dr. Klimovsky and Dr. Herr (implies Higgins in compliance).
- Prohibition on hedging and pledging shares by directors and executives.
Governance Assessment
- Strengths: Long‑tenured independent director with deep finance/M&A background; Audit Chair with clear oversight of internal controls, financial reporting, ethics hotline, and cybersecurity incident materiality; strong re‑election support in 2025.
- Alignment: Time‑based equity grants and ownership guidelines (≥3× retainer) support alignment; prohibition on hedging/pledging reduces misalignment risks; no related‑party transactions requiring disclosure.
- Capacity/engagement: Committee workload evident (N&G 100% average attendance; Compensation 90% average); Board average attendance 96%; limits on other boards mitigate overboarding risk.
- Auditor oversight: KPMG retained since 2002; Audit Committee assessed independence and recommended inclusion of audited financials; continued vigilance advisable given long tenure.
- RED FLAGS: None disclosed regarding related‑party transactions, pledging/hedging, or attendance shortfalls; monitoring warranted on auditor tenure and any future multi‑board commitments.