News: Microelectronics
1 July 2021
Transphorm appoints Kelly Smales to board
Transphorm Inc of Goleta, near Santa Barbara, CA, USA — which designs and manufactures JEDEC- and AEC-Q101-qualified 650V and 900V gallium nitride (GaN) field-effect transistors (FETs) for high-voltage power conversion applications — has appointed Kelly Smales to its board of directors.
Ms Smales has significant industry-specific financial experience, with over 30 years as a certified public accountant and serving in senior financial roles across multiple semiconductor companies, including Motorola, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and GlobalFoundries. Most recently, she was chief financial officer at machine-learning hardware and software company KnuEdge Inc (formerly Intellisis). Previously, she was CFO at Advanced Nanotechnology Solutions Inc, a semiconductor manufacturing start-up company. Smales holds a B.S. in Accounting from Arizona State University and an M.B.A. degree from the University of Chicago.
“We are pleased to welcome Kelly as a new independent director and add her proven financial acumen within the semiconductor industry to Transphorm’s board,” says CEO Mario Rivas. “In addition to valuable industry-specific experience working with companies across the supply chain, she brings unique perspective and understanding of the financial challenges and opportunities facing fast-growing, emerging semiconductor companies. With her appointment, along with our other recent appointments, we have expanded the expertise and depth of our board, while also underscoring the company’s commitment to our corporate governance initiatives and board diversification,” he adds. “I look forward to working with Kelly as we continue executing on Transphorm’s strategic growth plan.”
Concurrent with Smales’ appointment, David Kerko resigned from Transphorm’s board, effective 30 June. Transphorm says that his resignation is not due to any disagreement relating to the company’s operations, policies or practices, and specifically relates to his new full-time career commitments.
“Following six years as a member of Transphorm’s board, I want to personally thank David for his time, service, and contributions,” comments Rivas. “Under his tenure, Transphorm has expanded into a global leader in the GaN revolution, and his guidance has been invaluable to the development of our strategic roadmap.”
