Item 5.02. Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain
Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers
On October 25, 2017, the Board of Directors (the Board) of Hercules Capital,
Inc. (the Company) elected Jorge Titinger and Brad Koenig as directors of the Company. There are no arrangements or understandings between Mr. Titinger or Mr. Koenig and any other persons pursuant to which they were elected as
directors of the Company. Both Mr. Titinger and Mr. Koenig will each be entitled to the applicable annual retainer pursuant to the Companys director compensation arrangements, under terms consistent with those previously disclosed by
the Company. They will also be entitled to enter an indemnification agreement with the Company.
Mr. Titingers Board election will be effective
at the time of the 2017 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the Annual Meeting) and will fill the position vacated by Susanne Lyons who will be stepping down at the Annual Meeting. His appointment will be ratified at the Annual Meeting as a
Class I director for a term expiring in 2020. At the time Mr. Titinger joins the Board, he will be appointed to the Compensation Committee and will serve as chairman.
Mr. Koenig will hold office as a Class II director for a term expiring in 2018. He will serve on the Audit Committee and Nominating and Corporate
Governance Committee.
Mr. Koenig brings more than 20 years of technology investment banking experience. Currently, he serves as Founder and CEO of
FoodyDirect.com, an online specialty food marketplace. From 2008 to 2011, he was an Advisor at Oak Hill Capital Management, a private equity firm. Previously, Mr. Koenig was at Goldman Sachs as the Head of Global Technology Investment Banking
from 1990 to 2005, and the
Co-Head
of Global Technology, Media and Telecommunications from 2002 to 2005. He started at Goldman Sachs in 1984.
Mr. Koenig currently serves as an Independent Director for Theragenics Corporation, a medical device company serving the surgical products and prostate
cancer treatment markets, and for NGP/VAN Software, the leading technology provider to political campaigns and
non-profit
organizations.
Mr. Koenig received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Dartmouth College and his Master of Business Administration degree from Harvard Business
School.
Mr. Titinger brings more than 30 years of entrepreneurial and executive experience at privately held technology and semiconductor companies,
and will serve on the Companys Compensation Committee. He currently serves as Principal and Founder of Titinger Consulting, a private consulting and advisory service provider focusing on strategy development and execution, board governance,
operational transformations and culture changes. From 2012 to 2016, he was President and Chief Executive Officer of Silicon Graphics, a leader in high performance computing. Previously, Mr. Titinger was president and chief executive officer of
Verigy, Inc., a provider of advanced automated test systems to the semiconductor industry. Mr. Titinger is a seasoned industry veteran having served in multiple senior executive roles at FormFactor, Inc.,
KLA-Tencor
Corporation, Applied Materials, InSync Systems, Inc., NeTpower, Inc., MIPS Computer Systems/Silicon Graphics, Inc. and Hewlett-Packard Company.
Mr. Titinger currently serves as an Independent Director for Xcerra, a provider of products and services to the semiconductor and electronics
manufacturing industry, CalAmp, a pure-play pioneer in the connected vehicle and IoT marketplace and Transtech Glass Investment Ltd., a specialty glass company for the transportation market.
Mr. Titinger received a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and Engineering
Management and Business, all three from Stanford University.
Additionally, Ms. Lyons notified the Board that she will not stand for reelection as a
director of the Company when her current term expires at the Companys Annual Meeting. Ms. Lyons is expected to continue to serve the remainder of her term until the date of the Annual Meeting. Ms. Lyons decision not to stand
for reelection was not the result of any dispute or disagreement relating to the Companys operations, policies, or practices.
Furthermore, Mr. Manuel Henriquez, Mr. Mark Harris and Mr. Scott Bluestein (each, an
Executive) entered into retention agreements with the Company pursuant to which, if (1) the Executives employment is terminated by the Company without cause or by the Executive for good reason, or (2) the Company becomes
an externally managed business development company and the new external advisor does not make a written offer of employment to the Executive or makes a written offer of employment to the Executive that is not on similar terms to the Executives
current employment with the Company (including, without limitation, authority, responsibilities, base salary, annual bonus opportunity, long term incentive opportunity and retention benefits) and the Executive does not accept such offer then,
subject to the Executives execution of a release of claims in favor of the Company, each Executive shall be entitled to receive the following benefits:
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Mr. Henriquez shall be entitled to receive (a) a lump sum payment in an amount equal to two times the sum of (i) annual base salary and (ii) an amount equal to the three-year average annual bonus
actually earned by and paid to Mr. Henriquez for the three full performance periods immediately prior to the termination date; (b) any unpaid annual bonus earned with respect to a prior performance period and not yet paid as of the date of
termination; (c) a pro rata annual bonus with respect to the performance period in which termination of employment occurs, (d) (x) continued vesting of outstanding equity awards for two years in the case of a termination not in connection
with a change in control of the Company or (y) full vesting of outstanding equity awards in the case of a termination in connection with a change in control of the Company and (e) reimbursement of the full amount of COBRA premiums for
Mr. Henriquez and his eligible dependents for 18 months following termination of employment.
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Mr. Harris shall be entitled to receive (a) a lump sum payment in an amount equal to 1.5 times the sum of (i) annual base salary and (ii) an amount equal to the three-year average annual bonus
actually earned by and paid to Mr. Harris for the three full performance periods immediately prior to the termination date; (b) any unpaid annual bonus earned with respect to a prior performance period and not yet paid as of the date of
termination; (c) a pro rata annual bonus with respect to the performance period in which termination of employment occurs, (d) (x) continued vesting of outstanding equity awards for 1.5 years in the case of a termination not in connection
with a change in control of the Company or (y) full vesting of outstanding equity awards in the case of a termination in connection with a change in control of the Company and (e) reimbursement of the full amount of COBRA premiums for
Mr. Harris and his eligible dependents for 18 months following termination of employment.
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Mr. Bluestein shall be entitled to receive (a) a lump sum payment in an amount equal to 1.75 times the sum of (i) annual base salary and (ii) an amount equal to the three-year average annual bonus
actually earned by and paid to Mr. Bluestein for the three full performance periods immediately prior to the termination date; (b) any unpaid annual bonus earned with respect to a prior performance period and not yet paid as of the date of
termination; (c) a pro rata annual bonus with respect to the performance period in which termination of employment occurs, (d) (x) continued vesting of outstanding equity awards for 1.75 years in the case of a termination not in connection
with a change in control of the Company or (y) full vesting of outstanding equity awards in the case of a termination in connection with a change in control of the Company and (e) reimbursement of the full amount of COBRA premiums for
Mr. Bluestein and his eligible dependents for 18 months following termination of employment.
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The foregoing description of the
retention agreements does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the retention agreements, which are filed as Exhibits 10.1, 10.2 and 10.3 and are incorporated herein by reference.
Item 5.08 Shareholder Director Nominations
2017
Annual Meeting of Stockholders
On October 25, 2017, the Board scheduled the Companys Annual Meeting for December 13, 2017, which date
is more than 30 days from the first anniversary of the date of the Companys 2016 annual meeting of stockholders that was held on July 7, 2016.
Stockholder Proposals and Director Nominations
Stockholders may submit proposals on matters appropriate for stockholder action, including director nominations, at our annual meetings consistent with
regulations adopted by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) and the Companys bylaws. Because the date of the Annual Meeting is more than 30 days from the first anniversary of the date of the 2016 meeting, such
shareholder proposals must be received by the Company within a reasonable time before the Company begins to print and send proxy material for the Annual Meeting. In order to be considered timely, shareholder proposals to be considered for inclusion
in the Companys proxy statement and proxy card relating to the Annual Meeting must have been received by the Company no later than November 5, 2017. Any such proposal must have also met the requirements set forth in the Companys
bylaws and the rules and regulations of the SEC in order to be eligible for inclusion in the proxy materials for the Annual Meeting.