Frank Leonard runs
it. Founder Palti
still in the lab.
Commercial operator at the top; founding scientist still informing the science behind the technology.
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✦ The bottom line
Frank Leonard — a veteran commercial leader who built NovoCure's U.S. franchise — became CEO and is now overseeing the transition from clinical-stage to multi-product oncology company. Founder Dr. Yoram Palti (the physicist who invented TTFields) remains active in the company's scientific direction.
↓ the brief below
The org · headcount
1,605
FTEs
1,605 employees at year-end 2025, up from 1,488 at year-end 2024 — including 217 sales-force colleagues across the U.S., Germany, France, Japan, and other markets.
Source · 10-K · Item 1 — Human Capital Resources · FY2025 · Filed Feb 26, 2026
NovoCure's leadership history has been commercial-led since IPO. The current CEO transition lines up with the commercial inflection: three approved products selling, three Phase 3 readouts coming, near-breakeven economics. The right time for an operator at the top.
Alignment · stock-based pay tied to milestones
NovoCure's executive compensation is heavily stock-based and tied to regulatory milestones. The $43M one-time share-based compensation charge in Q1 2026 was triggered specifically by the Optune Pax FDA approval — though the underlying grant did not vest and the shares were not distributed.
↳ Translation: management pay was structured to only unlock on a specific FDA approval. The approval came; the accounting fired; but legal vesting required additional conditions that were not met. Investors should still watch how the next tranche is structured.