Employment letter agreement with Giles Frith dated August 31, 2016

EX-10.3 4 bsqr-ex103_326.htm EX-10.3 bsqr-ex103_326.htm

 

Exhibit 10.3

 

August 31, 2016

Giles Frith

6927 39th Ave SW

Seattle, WA 98136

Dear Giles:

It is with great pleasure that Bsquare Corporation offers you the position of Vice President Customer Solutions. We look forward to working with you and to the contributions you will make at Bsquare.

You will be reporting to Jerry Chase, Chief Executive Officer. Your start date is scheduled for September 30,  2016, or another mutually agreeable date, and you will be working from our Bellevue office. Your job classification is Executive Exempt; as an exempt employee you will not be entitled to  overtime. Your duties and responsibilities will be as designated by Bsquare. Your offer includes the following compensation & benefits package:

 

•

Base pay of $8,269.23 biweekly, which when annualized is equivalent to $215,000.00 per year; paid bi-weekly consistent with the Company’s payroll practices;

 

•

Monthly cell phone stipend of $150.00. The stipend is a taxable benefit and will be disbursed in the first payroll of the month via payroll;

 

•

You will be eligible to participate in the Company’s Annual Bonus Program (“ ABP” ). Your annual bonus potential will be 35% of your base salary at 100% achievement. The Company’s ABP is structured such that no bonuses are paid until the Company achieves certain financial targets and you achieve individual objectives that you and the CEO will agree upon. Bonuses are paid annually, by March 15 following the close of the Company’s fiscal year, and are payable at the sole discretion of the Compensation Committee of the Board. You must be employed by the Company at the end of the calendar year to be eligible to receive any bonus payout for that calendar year;

 

•

Signing bonus of $40,000.00. This bonus will be paid in two equal installments. The first installment will be paid on your first regular scheduled pay date following your date of hire. The second installment will be paid on the June 2, 2017 paydate. The signing bonus is taxable, and all regular payroll taxes will be withheld. In the unlikely event that you leave Bsquare  Corporation within 12 months of your date of hire, you will be responsible for reimbursing the company for the entire signing bonus. By your signature on this employment agreement, you authorize the company  to withhold this amount  ($40,000.00) from any severance  and other final pay you receive upon termination of   employment;

 

•

Subject to approval and grant by the Bsquare Compensation Committee an option to purchase 80,000 shares of company common stock. Such shares shall be Nonqualified Stock Options, which vest, while you remain actively employed and subject to the Company’s stock option plan, in four equal installments, 25% of granted shares per year, on the anniversary date of the grant. The strike price shall be the closing price of Bsquare stock on the date of grant. The stock options shall expire after 10 years;

 

•

Subject to approval and grant by the Bsquare Compensation Committee to the extent necessary, a grant of 5,000 RSU’s of company common stock. The RSU’s will vest, while you remain actively employed and subject to the Company’s stock option plan, in four equal installments, 25% of granted shares per year, on the anniversary date of the grant;

110 110th Ave. NE., Suite 300, Bellevue, Washington 98004 Toll Free: 888 ###-###-#### Main: +1 ###-###-#### Fax: +1 ###-###-####

 

 

•

Health, vision and dental coverage, a 401(k) pension plan and flexible spending accounts, subject to  plan terms and eligibility;

 

•

Life insurance and short- and long-term disability, subject to applicable waiting periods and eligibility;

 

•

Participation in the Bsquare Employee Assistance Program and Emergency Travel Assistance programs;

 

•

Bsquare will automatically contribute on an annual basis to your Section 125 Unreimbursed Medical account;

 

•

Paid Time Off (PTO) to be initially accrued at 4.62 hours per pay period which is equivalent to 15 days per year; and

 

•

Eight (8) Company-paid holidays and two (2) floating holidays per year.

Except as provided in the next paragraph, if your employment is terminated by the Company when neither “cause” nor “long term disability’’ exists, and provided that you release the Company and its agents from any and all employment-related claims in a signed, written release satisfactory in form and substance to the Company, (i) you will be entitled to receive severance equal to 6 months of your then annual Base Salary; (ii) you shall be eligible for continued COBRA coverage at the Company’s expense for a period of 6 months following your termination date, and (iii) any ABP bonus to which you would have otherwise been entitled as determined at the sole discretion of the Compensation Committee of the Board shall be payable on a pro rata basis as of your termination date. The foregoing severance payments shall be paid out on regular payroll days post termination, subject to legally required and any individually agreed upon payroll deductions. During the period subsequent to your termination date in which you are being paid such severance amounts, you would not be considered an employee and would therefore receive no Paid Time Off accrual, nor would you be entitled to benefits under the Company’s health and welfare plans or retirement savings plan as an active employee, except as otherwise provided herein.

Immediately prior to consummation of a Change of Control, all of your unvested stock options and restricted stock units shall become fully vested and immediately exercisable. In addition, if your employment is terminated by the Company or any successor thereto within 9 months following a Change of Control when neither “cause” nor “long term disability” exists or if you terminate your employment for “good reason,” and provided that you release the Company and any successor thereto and its respective agents from any and all employment-related claims in a signed, written release satisfactory in form and substance to the Company or any successor thereto, you will be entitled to receive a one-time lump sum severance payment equal to (i) 9 months of your then annual Base Salary plus (ii) 66% of your target ABP bonus as may be modified from time to time by the Compensation Committee of the Board (provided the applicable percentage shall be 66% for 2016), and you shall be eligible for continued COBRA coverage at the Company’s expense for a period of 9 months following your termination date . The foregoing severance payments shall be in lieu of the severance payments described in the preceding paragraph, and after expiration of the 6-month period following a Change of Control, you shall continue to be entitled to receive the severance payments described in the preceding paragraph on the terms and conditions set forth therein.

For purposes hereof, “cause,” “good reason” and “Change of Control” are defined on Attachment A hereto, and “long term disability” is defined in the Company’s sponsored Long Term Disability group insurance plan.

No severance shall be payable hereunder unless the release described herein has been signed and become effective within sixty (60) days from the date of termination (the “Release Deadline”). Upon the release becoming effective, any severance payable hereunder will be payable commencing on or as soon as administratively practicable after the Release Deadline. In the event

2

Bsquare Confidential

 

 

the termination occurs at a time during the calendar year when the release could become effective in the calendar year following the calendar year in which your termination occurs, then any payments hereunder that would be considered deferred compensation under Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), and the regulations promulgated thereunder (“Section 409A”) will be paid commencing on the first payroll date to occur during the calendar year following the calendar year in which such termination occurs, or, if later, the Release Deadline.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this Letter Agreement, if at the time of the termination of your employment, you are a “specified employee,” determined in accordance with Section 409A, any payments and benefits provided hereunder that constitute “nonqualified deferred compensation” subject to Section 409A that are provided on account of separation from service shall not be paid until the first payroll date to occur following the six-month anniversary of your termination date (the “Specified Employee Payment Date”). The aggregate amount of any payments that would otherwise have been made during such six-month period shall be paid in a lump sum on the Specified Employee Payment Date without interest, and thereafter, any remaining payments shall be paid without delay in accordance with their original schedule.

The foregoing provisions are intended to comply with the requirements of Section 409A so that none of the benefits to be provided hereunder will be subject to the additional tax imposed under Section 409A, and any ambiguities herein will be interpreted to so comply. You and the Company agree to  work together in good faith to consider amendments to this Letter Agreement and to take such reasonable actions which are necessary, appropriate or desirable to  avoid imposition of any additional tax or  income recognition prior to actual payment to you under Section 409A.

Furthermore, notwithstanding any other provision of this Letter Agreement or any other plan, arrangement or agreement to the contrary, if any of the payments or benefits provided or to be provided by the Company or any successor to you or for your benefit pursuant to the terms of this Letter Agreement or otherwise (“Covered Payments”) constitute parachute payments (“Parachute Payments”) within the meaning of Section 280G of the Code and will be subject to the excise tax imposed under Section 4999 of the Code (or any successor provision thereto) or any interest or penalties with respect to such excise tax (collectively, the “Excise Tax”), then the Company shall pay to you, no later than the time the Excise Tax is required to be paid by you or withheld by the Company, an additional amount (the “Gross-up Payment”) equal to the sum of the Excise Tax payable by you, plus the amount necessary to put you in the same after-tax position (taking into account any and all applicable federal, state, local and foreign income, employment and excise taxes (including the Excise Tax and any income and employment taxes imposed on the Gross-up Payment)) that you would have been in if you had not incurred any tax liability under Section 4999 of the Code . Any determination required under this paragraph, including whether any payments or benefits are Parachute Payments, shall be made by the Company in its sole discretion. You shall provide the Company with such information and documents as the Company may reasonably request in order to make a determination under this paragraph. The Company’s determinations shall be final and binding on the Company and you.

On your first day, you will participate in an orientation given by Human Resources, which will include completing employment forms, reviewing benefits, and touring the premises. Please bring appropriate documentation for the completion of your new hire forms, including proof that you are presently eligible to work in the United States for 1-9 purposes. Failure to provide appropriate documentation within 3 days of hire will result in immediate termination of employment in accordance with the terms of the Immigration Reform and Control Act. Your employment is at-will and accordingly, you or Bsquare Corporation may terminate this employment relationship at any time with or without notice or cause. In addition, this offer is contingent upon completion of successful reference  checks.

3

Bsquare Confidential

 

 

Also enclosed with this offer letter is a Benefits Summary that provides detailed information concerning our benefits program in effect as of your expected start date. If you have any questions concerning the benefits for which you will be eligible, please feel free to contact HR, at ###-###-#### or ***@***.

We look forward to you joining our team and your future contributions to Bsquare.

Sincerely,

 

By:

/s/ Jerry Chase

 

Jerry Chase

 

Chief Executive Officer

 

The provisions of this offer of employment have been read, are understood, and the offer is herewith accepted. I understand that my employment is contingent upon execution of a mutually acceptable Employee Proprietary Rights Agreement.

This offer shall remain open until September 7, 2016. Any acceptance postmarked after this date will be considered invalid.

 

Date:

9/6/2016

Signature:

/s/ Giles Frith

 

4

Bsquare Confidential

 

 

ATTACHMENT A

For purposes of this Letter Agreement, “cause” means and is limited to dishonesty, fraud, commission of a felony or of a crime involving moral turpitude, destruction or theft of Company property, physical    attack to a fellow employee, intoxication at work, use of controlled substances or alcohol to an extent   that materially impairs your performance of your duties, willful malfeasance or gross negligence in the performance of your duties, violation of law in the course of employment that has a material adverse impact on the Company or its employees, your failure or refusal to perform your duties, your failure or refusal to follow reasonable instructions or directions, misconduct materially injurious to the Company, neglect of duty, poor job performance, or any material breach of your duties or obligations to the Company that results in material harm to the Company.

For purposes hereof, “neglect of duty” means and is limited to the following circumstances: (i) you have, in one or more material respects, failed or refused to perform your job duties in a reasonable and appropriate manner (including failure to follow reasonable directives), (ii) the Board, or a duly appointed representative of the Board, has counseled you in writing about the neglect of duty and given you a reasonable opportunity to improve, and (iii) your neglect of duty either has continued at a material level after a reasonable opportunity to improve or has reoccurred at a material level within one year after you were last counseled.

For purposes hereof, “poor job performance”  means and is limited to the following circumstances: (i) you have, in one or more material respects, failed to perform your job duties in a reasonable and appropriate manner, (ii) the Board, or  a duly appointed representative of the Board, has counseled you in writing about the performance problems and given you a reasonable opportunity to improve, and (iii) your performance problems either have continued at a material level after a reasonable opportunity to improve or the same or similar performance problems have reoccurred at a material level within one  year after you were last counseled.

For purposes of this Letter Agreement, “good reason” shall mean the occurrence of any of the following, in each case without your written  consent:

 

(i)

a material reduction in you Base Salary other than a general reduction in Base Salary that affects all similarly situated executives in substantially the same proportions;

 

 

(ii)

a material reduction in your ABP bonus target; or

 

 

(iii)

a material, adverse change in your title, authority, duties or responsibilities (other than as required by applicable law).

 

You cannot terminate your employment for good reason unless you have provided written notice to the Company of the existence of the circumstances providing grounds for termination for good reason within thirty (30) days of the initial existence of such grounds and the Company has had at least thirty (30) days from the date on which such notice is provided to cure such circumstances. If you do not terminate your employment for good reason within ninety (90) days after the first occurrence of the applicable grounds, then you will be deemed to have waived your right to terminate for good reason with respect to such grounds.

Further, for purposes of this Letter Agreement, a “Change of Control” shall  mean:

 

(i)

the acquisition of the Company by another entity by means of merger, consolidation or other transaction or series of related transactions resulting in the exchange of the outstanding shares of the Company for securities of, or consideration issued, or caused to be issued by, the acquiring entity or any of its affiliates, provided, that after such event the shareholders of the Company immediately prior to the event own less than a majority of the outstanding voting equity securities of the surviving entity immediately following the event; or

 

 

(ii)

any sale, lease, exchange or other transfer not in the ordinary course of business (in one transaction or a series of related transactions) of all, or substantially all, of the assets of the Company.

 

5

Bsquare Confidential