Exhibit 10.43
SECOND AMENDED AND RESTATED
EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT
This Second Amended and Restated
Employment Agreement (this “Agreement”) is made
effective as of December 16, 2005 by and between Primal Solutions,
Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Employer”), and
Joseph R. Simrell, an individual resident in Coto de Caza,
California (the “Executive”).
RECITALS
The Employer desires to employ the
Executive, and the Executive wishes to accept such employment, upon
the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement. The
Employer and the Executive previously entered into an Amended and
Restated Employment Agreement as of May 17, 2004 (the “Prior
Agreement”). This Agreement amends, restates and
supersedes the Prior Agreement.
The Executive and the Employer
previously entered into an Amended and Restated Change of Control
Agreement as of May 17, 2004 (“Prior Change of Control
Agreement”). Concurrently with this Agreement, the
parties are entering into a Second Amended and Restated Change of
Control Agreement dated as of the date hereof (the “Change of
Control Agreement”) which amends, restates and supersedes the
Prior Change of Control Agreement.
For the purposes of this Agreement,
the terms defined in Section 9 of this Agreement have the meanings
specified or referred to in such Section 9.
AGREEMENT
The parties, intending to be legally
bound, agree as follows:
1.
EMPLOYMENT TERMS AND
DUTIES
1.1
EMPLOYMENT
The Employer hereby employs the
Executive, and the Executive hereby accepts employment by the
Employer, upon the terms and conditions set forth in this
Agreement.
1.2
TERM
The term of the Executive’s
employment under this Agreement will commence on the Effective Date
and continue until December 31, 2007, unless earlier terminated as
provided in Section 5 of this Agreement. No later than
October 31, 2007, the Board of Directors will commence negotiations
with Executive in good faith over the terms of a new employment
agreement which shall contain a clause providing for at least
twelve (12) months’ severance and benefits
continuation. If the Board of Directors negotiates in good
faith and offers a new employment agreement containing such a
severance clause, but the Employer and the Executive are unable to
reach agreement on a new employment agreement, this Agreement shall
expire on December 31, 2007, and the Executive shall receive no
severance compensation but shall be paid
1
his final compensation as provided for in
Section 5.5(b) of this Agreement, except that the Executive shall
receive his Incentive Compensation for the then current Fiscal Year
prorated through December 31, 2007. If the Board of Directors
does not negotiate in good faith or if the employment agreement
offered does not include a clause providing for at least twelve
(12) months’ severance and benefits continuation, this
Agreement will expire on December 31, 2007, and the Executive will
be paid the severance benefits provided for in Sections 5.5(a) and
(e) of this Agreement.
1.3
DUTIES
The Executive will have such duties
as are assigned or delegated to the Executive in writing by the
Board of Directors, and will serve as Chairman of the Board, Chief
Executive Officer and President of the Employer. The
Executive’s job duties shall include those responsibilities
set forth in Exhibit A. The Executive will devote his entire
business time, attention, skill, and energy to the business of the
Employer, will use his best efforts to promote the success of the
Employer’s business, and will cooperate fully with the Board
of Directors in the advancement of the best interests of the
Employer. Nothing in this Section 1.3, however, will prevent
the Executive from engaging in additional activities in connection
with personal investments and community affairs that are not
inconsistent with the Executive’s duties under this
Agreement. The Executive will fulfill his duties as a
director of the Employer or officer of any of Employer’s
affiliates without additional compensation as long as the
Executive’s employment by the Employer continues under this
Agreement.
2.
COMPENSATION
2.1
BASIC COMPENSATION
(a)
Salary
. The Executive will be paid
an annual salary of $200,000 (the “Salary”), subject to
adjustment as provided below, which will be payable in equal
periodic installments according to the Employer’s customary
payroll practices, but no less frequently than monthly. The
Salary will be reviewed by the Board of Directors not less
frequently than annually, and may be adjusted upward in the sole
discretion of the Board of Directors.
(b)
Benefits
. The Executive will, during
the Employment Period, be permitted to participate in such stock
option, restricted stock, pension, profit sharing, bonus, life
insurance, hospitalization, major medical, tuition reimbursement,
medical flexible spending accounts and other employee benefit plans
provided by the Employer that may be in effect from time to time,
at levels made available to other similarly situated executives of
the Employer, and to the extent the Executive is eligible under the
terms of those plans (collectively, the
“Benefits”). The Benefits shall include life
insurance on the Executive’s life in an amount not less than
the Executive’s Salary.
2.2
INCENTIVE COMPENSATION.
As additional compensation (the
“Incentive Compensation”) for the services to be
rendered by the Executive pursuant to this Agreement, the Employer
will pay the Executive with respect to each Fiscal Year during the
Employment Period (including Fiscal Year 2005), an amount not less
than fifty percent (50%) of the Executive’s Salary (the
“Compensation Plan”), if,
2
and only if, the Employer meets or exceeds the
performance goals for the Employer established by the Board of
Directors (the “Employer Performance Goal”). The
Compensation Plan and Employer Performance Goal will be established
by the Board of Directors within 60 days from the beginning of each
Fiscal Year and will be communicated to the Executive in writing
within 30 days of being so established. Incentive
Compensation will be paid to Executive no later than 2-1/2 months
following the close of the calendar year in which the Incentive
Compensation was earned; provided, however, if the Board of
Directors in its discretion determines that the Employer does not
have sufficient available cash to pay such amount on such date, the
Board of Directors may defer, without interest, payment of any or
all of such amount, to not later than December 31 of the calendar
year following the calendar year in which the Incentive
Compensation was earned.
3.
FACILITIES AND EXPENSES
The Employer will furnish the
Executive office space, equipment, supplies, and such other
facilities and personnel as the Employer deems necessary or
appropriate for the performance of the Executive’s duties
under this Agreement. The Employer will pay the
Executive’s dues in such professional societies and
organizations as the Board of Directors deems appropriate, and will
pay on behalf of the Executive (or reimburse the Executive for)
reasonable expenses incurred by the Executive at the request of, or
on behalf of, the Employer in the performance of the
Executive’s duties pursuant to this Agreement, and in
accordance with the Employer’s employment policies, including
reasonable expenses incurred by the Executive in attending
conventions, seminars, and other business meetings, in appropriate
business entertainment activities, and for promotional
expenses. The Executive must file expense reports with
respect to such expenses in accordance with the Employer’s
policies.
4.
VACATIONS AND HOLIDAYS
The Executive will be entitled to
four weeks’ paid vacation each calendar year in accordance
with the vacation policies of the Employer in effect for its
executive officers from time to time. The Executive agrees to
arrange his vacation time with due regard for the circumstances and
needs of the Employer and to minimize disturbance of the
Employer’s operations. The Executive will also be
entitled to the paid holidays set forth in the Employer’s
policies. Any unused vacation days may be carried over to the
subsequent calendar year.
5.
TERMINATION
5.1
EVENTS OF TERMINATION
(a)
Termination
. The Employment Period, the
Executive’s Basic Compensation and Incentive Compensation,
and any and all other rights of the Executive under this Agreement
or otherwise as an employee of the Employer will terminate (except
as otherwise provided in this Section 5 or in the Change of Control
Agreement):
(i)
upon the death of the
Executive;
3
(ii)
upon the disability of the Executive
(as defined in Section 5.2) for 120 consecutive days, or 180 days
during any twelve-month period, immediately upon notice from either
party to the other;
(iii)
for cause (as defined in Section
5.3), immediately upon notice from the Employer to the Executive,
or at such later time as such notice may specify;
(iv)
for Good Reason (as defined in
Section 5.4) upon not less than thirty days’ prior notice
from the Executive to the Employer;
(v)
without cause immediately upon
notice from either party to the other; or
(vi)
upon the expiration of the
Employment Period as provided in Section 1.2.
(b)
Notice of
Termination .
Any termination of the Executive’s employment by the Employer
(or its successor) or by the Executive (other than termination
based on the Executive’s death), pursuant to this Agreement,
shall be communicated by the terminating party in a written notice
to the other party hereto. Such written notice shall (i) set
forth the specific termination provision in this Agreement relied
upon, if applicable, (ii) set forth in reasonable detail the facts
and circumstances claimed to provide a basis for termination of the
Executive’s employment under the provision so indicated, and
(iii) set forth the date the Executive’s employment with the
Employer shall terminate.
5.2
DEFINITION OF DISABILITY
The Executive will be deemed to have
a “disability” if, for physical or mental reasons, the
Executive is unable to perform the essential functions of the
Executive’s duties under this Agreement, with or without
reasonable accommodation. The Executive shall be provided
with short term and long term disability benefits in accordance
with the terms of the Employer’s plans then in
effect.
5.3
DEFINITION OF
“CAUSE”
“Cause” means: (a) an
intentional act which materially injures the Employer; (b) an
intentional refusal or failure to follow lawful and reasonable
directions of the Board of Directors or an individual to whom the
Executive reports (as appropriate); (c) a willful or habitual
neglect of duties; or (d) the conviction of, or the entering
of a guilty plea or plea of no contest by the Executive with
respect to, a felony involving an act of moral
turpitude.
5.4
DEFINITION OF “GOOD
REASON”
“Good Reason” means any
of the following: (a) the Employer’s material breach of this
Agreement or any other agreement between Executive and Employer
concerning Executive’s employment with the Employer;
provided, however, that the Employer shall have ten (10) days to
remedy the breach after receipt of written notice from the
Executive that the breach has occurred if the breach is susceptible
of cure; (b) the assignment of the Executive without his express
and voluntary written consent to a title, status, overall position,
responsibilities, duties, reporting relationship, or general
working environment of a materially lesser status or degree
of
4
responsibility than his title, status, overall
position, responsibilities, duties, reporting relationship, and
general working environment at the Effective Date; (c) the
requirement by the Employer that the Executive relocate the
Executive’s personal residence outside the metropolitan
Orange County, California area; (d) the relocation by the Employer
of the Executive’s office more than 50 miles from its
location as of the Effective Date; (e) any failure by the Employer
to obtain the assumption of any material written agreement between
the Executive and the Employer concerning Executive’s
employment by any successor of the Employer or assignee of
substantially all of the business of the Employer; or (f) any
material change by the Employer in the Benefits or Incentive
Compensation offered to the Executive from those in which the
Executive is participating on the Effective Date, or the taking of
any action by the Employer which would materially and adversely
affect the Executive’s participation in or reduce the
Executive’s benefits under any of the Benefits or Incentive
Compensation plans or deprive the Executive of any fringe benefit
then enjoyed by the Executive; provided, however, that nothing
contained in this subparagraph (f) shall be deemed to permit
termination by the Executive for Good Reason if the Employer offers
a range of benefit plans and programs to the Executive which, taken
as a whole, are at least comparable to the Benefits and Incentive
Compensation in which the Executive is participating on the
Effective Date.
5.5
TERMINATION PAY
Effective upon the termination of
the Executive’s employment, the Employer will be obligated to
pay the Executive (or, in the event of his death, his designated
beneficiary as defined below) only such compensation as is provided
in this Section 5.5, or, if applicable, as provided in the Change
of Control Agreement, and in lieu of all other amounts and in
settlement and complete release of all claims the Executive may
have against the Employer. If the Executive receives payments
under the Change of Control Agreement, then he will not also
receive payments under this Agreement. The Employer may, as a
condition to the Executive receiving any unvested pay or benefits
under this Section 5.5, require the Executive to execute a release
of all claims the Executive may have against the Employer or its
affiliates arising from the Executive’s employment with the
Employer or the termination thereof in a form reasonably
satisfactory to the Employer. Except as set forth herein, all
amounts to be paid under this Section 5.5 shall be paid in equal
periodic installments according to the Employer’s customary
payroll practices, including without limitation any payments of
Incentive Compensation; provided, however that Executive’s
Salary and vacation accrued through the date termination is
effective shall be paid in accordance with California
law.
For purposes of this Section 5.5,
the Executive’s designated beneficiary will be such
individual beneficiary or trust, located at such address, as the
Executive may designate by notice to the Employer from time to time
or, if the Executive fails to give notice to the Employer of such a
beneficiary, the Executive’s estate. Notwithstanding
the preceding sentence, the Employer will have no duty, in any
circumstances, to attempt to open an estate on behalf of the
Executive, to determine whether any beneficiary designated by the
Executive is alive or to ascertain the address of any such
beneficiary, to determine the existence of any trust, to determine
whether any person or entity purporting to act as the
Executive’s personal representative (or the trustee of a
trust established by the Executive) is duly authorized to act in
that capacity, or to locate or attempt to locate any beneficiary,
personal representative, or trustee.
5
(a)
Termination Without Cause or
By the Executive for Good Reason . If Employer terminates the
Executive’s employment without cause or the Executive
terminates his employment for Good Reason, the Employer will pay
the Executive (i) the Executive’s Salary for the remainder,
if any, of the calendar month in which such termination is
effective, and for an additional 12-month period, (ii) 100% of the
Executive’s Incentive Compensation for the Fiscal Year during
which the termination is effective and calculated assuming that
100% of the targets under such bonus plans are achieved, (iii)
accrued vacation through the date of termination, and (iv)
Incentive Compensation accrued and unpaid from the previous Fiscal
Year, if any. If Executive is terminated without cause, in no
event will payments under (i), (ii) and (iv), above extend beyond
2-1/2 months following the close of the calendar year in which
termination under this paragraph occurs, and payments will be
accelerated, if necessary, to prevent such 2-1/2 month period to be
exceeded. If Executive terminates his employment for Good
Reason, in no event will payments under (i), (ii) and (iv) above
commence prior to six months following such separation.
(b)
Termination by the Employer
for Cause or Voluntarily by the Executive
. If the Employer terminates
the Executive’s employment for cause, or the Executive
voluntarily terminates his employment other than for Good Reason or
disability, the Employer will pay the Executive (i) his Salary and
accrued vacation through the date such termination is effective,
and (ii) accrued and unpaid Incentive Compensation, if any, from
the previous Fiscal Year and the then-current Fiscal Year, but the
Executive will only be entitled to Incentive Compensation for the
Fiscal Year during which such termination occurs to the extent it
has been earned ( i.e. targets have been achieved) prior to
such employment termination. Payments of under (ii) above
shall be made no later than 2-1/2 months following the close of the
calendar year in which the Incentive Compensation was earned, and
payments will be accelerated, if necessary, to prevent such 2-1/2
month period to be exceeded.
(c)
Termination upon
Disability .
Upon the disability of the Executive for 120 consecutive days, or
180 days during any twelve month period, the Executive’s
employment may be terminated by either party, and upon such
termination the Employer will pay the Executive (i) that part of
the Executive’s Incentive Compensation, if any, for the
Fiscal Year during which the disability occurs, prorated through
the end of the calendar month during which the disability is deemed
to have occurred under Section 5.2, as described in Section 5.5(f),
(ii) accrued vacation through the date of termination, (iii)
accrued and unpaid Incentive Compensation, if any, from the
previous Fiscal Year, and (iv) his Salary through the date such
termination is effective, subject to an offset for any Salary
payments made or disability insurance benefits received pursuant to
Section 6.1. Payments under (i) and (iii) above will be made
no later than 2-1/2 months following the close of the calendar year
in which termination under this paragraph occurs, and payments will
be accelerated, if necessary, to prevent such 2-1/2 month period to
be exceeded.
(d)
Termination upon
Death .
If Executive’s employment is terminated because of the
Executive’s death, the Employer will pay the
Executive’s designated beneficiary (i) the Executive’s
Salary through the end of the calendar month in which his death
occurs, (ii) accrued vacation through the date of termination,
(iii) accrued and unpaid Incentive Compensation, if any, from the
previous Fiscal Year, and (iv) that part of the Executive’s
Incentive Compensation, if any, for the Fiscal Year during which
his death occurs, prorated through the end of the
6
calendar month during which his death occurs, as
described in Section 5.5(f), and calculated assuming that 100% of
the targets under such bonus plans are achieved.
(e)
Benefits.
(i)
If the Executive’s employment
hereunder is terminated by the Employer without cause or by the
Executive for Good Reason, then the Employer will provide and pay
for continued medical, dental, life, and disability insurance
coverage for the Executive and the Executive’s dependents on
the same terms as in effect at the time of termination of the
Executive’s employment, including general premium increases,
for the period from the date of termination until the Executive
obtains replacement coverage through other employment, or for a
period of 12 months after such employment termination, whichever is
less.
(ii)
If the Executive’s employment
hereunder is terminated by death or disability, then the Employer
will provide and pay for continued medical and dental coverage for
the Executive, if applicable, and the Executive’s dependents,
on the same terms as in effect at the time of termination of the
Executive’s employment, including general premium increases,
for a period of 90 days after the effective date of termination. If
such coverage is pursuant to COBRA, the Employer’s
obligations hereunder will be contingent upon the Executive or his
dependents, as applicable, executing all documents required to
obtain such coverage.
(iii)
Except as set forth in this Section
5.5(e), the Executive’s accrual of, or participation in plans
providing for, the Benefits will cease at the effective date of the
termination of his employment, and the Executive will be
entitled to accrued Benefits pursuant to such plans only as
provided in such plans.
(f)
Incentive
Compensation .
That portion of the Executive’s Incentive Compensation to be
paid pursuant to subsections (c)(i) or (d)(iv) above shall be paid
only if the Employer Performance Goal is met for the Fiscal Year
during which the termination is effective. If such Employer
Performance Goal is met during such Fiscal Year, then the amount
due shall be paid no later than March 15 of the following Fiscal
Year. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the Board of
Directors in its discretion determines that the Employer does not
have sufficient available cash to pay such amount on such date, the
Board of Directors may defer, without interest, payment of any or
all of such amount, to not later than December 31 of the Fiscal
Year following the Fiscal Year in which the Incentive Compensation
was earned; provided , however , that payments to the
Executive may only be deferred if and to the extent that payments
to continuing employees of the Employer entitled to such payments
are def