CGS-authored
Facing a May target for issuing its first stem cell research grants, directors of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine hired professional help Thursday to hunt for a chief executive while its first few staffers settle into temporary headquarters in the East Bay.
The hiring firm, Spencer Stuart, which beat out two other contenders, will charge $150,000, plus expenses, to help anoint California's first full- time stem cell czar, a job expected to pay about $300,000 to $600,000 a year.
The temporary headquarters, to be located in the Emery Station development in Emeryville, will cost essentially nothing, at least for the first seven months of a one-year lease as the institute searches for a permanent base. The owner of the 4 million-square-foot building, Wareham Development, donated 7,416 square feet to win the prestige and goodwill -- as well as tax benefits -- associated with stem cell research.
Created in the November election when California voters passed Proposition 71, the new institute was authorized to spend $3 billion in tax- backed...