Berkeley Lights CEO Eric Hobbs leaves his post

  • Push-out Score determined
  • After about five years in the position
  • Accolades, praise and thanks for Hobbs
  • Search for a successor
  • Hobbs will remain as president of the Antibody Therapeutics business line at Berkeley Lights
  • Hobbs said 68 words

(exechange) — Emeryville, California, January 5, 2022 — Eric Hobbs, chief executive of Berkeley Lights, leaves his position. As announced by Berkeley Lights Inc. in a news release and in a regulatory filing published on Wednesday, January 5, 2022, Eric D. Hobbs leaves his post as chief executive officer at the digital cell biology company, after about five years in the role, effective upon the appointment of his successor.

Berkeley Lights will undertake a search for a successor.

“Execute on its business strategy”

Berkeley Lights did not give an explicit reason for Eric Hobbs’s departure from the CEO post. Berkeley Lights said: “The Company is initiating a search for a new CEO as it continues to execute on its business strategy, including the successful addition of services to its portfolio of product offerings.”

Hobbs will remain as president of the Antibody Therapeutics business line at Berkeley Lights

“Eric D. Hobbs, Ph.D. will transition from his role as chief executive officer (CEO) and member of the board of directors to president of the Antibody Therapeutics business line,” Berkeley Lights said.

“Not the result from any disagreement”

“Dr. Hobbs’ transition is not the result from any disagreement with the Company or the Board,” Berkeley Lights said.

Share price decline since January 2021

The announcement follows a decline in Berkeley Lights Inc.’s share price of 78% since January 2021.

In the position of CEO since 2017

Eric Hobbs became CEO of the Company in 2017.

Eric D. Hobbs, Ph.D. has served as a member of the Company’s board of directors and as the Company’s Chief Executive Officer since March 2017.

Previously, Hobbs served as the Company’s Senior Vice President, Operations and Consumables, from March 2016 to March 2017, as the Company’s Vice President, Operations and Consumables, from February 2015 to March 2016, and as Senior Director, Research and Development, from May 2013 until February 2015.

Prior to Berkeley Lights, Hobbs held roles of increasing responsibility at FormFactor, Inc., a publicly-traded semiconductor technology company, serving most recently as Senior Director of Product Management.

Hobbs received his B.A. in Liberal Arts, with minors in Mathematics and Physics from Saint Mary’s College of California, his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Southern California, and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, Microelectromechanical Systems, from the University of California, Berkeley.

Push-out Score determined

The Push-out Score™ determined by exechange gauges the pressure surrounding Eric Hobbs’s move on a scale of 0 to 10.

exechange reached out to Berkeley Lights and offered the company the opportunity to comment on the score.

Read the full story in the exechange report 2.2022 ($).