UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549


Form 10-Q

(Mark One)

QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the Quarterly Period Ended September 30, 2015

or

TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from              to              

 


Press Ganey Holdings, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

 

Delaware

001-37398

20‑0259496

(State or other jurisdiction of
incorporation or organization)

(Commission File Number)

(I.R.S. Employer
Identification No.)

 

401 Edgewater Place

 

 

Suite 500

 

 

Wakefield, Massachusetts 01880

 

 

(Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code)

 

 

(781) 295‑5000

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

 


 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.      Yes     No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).      Yes      No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non‑accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b‑2 of the Exchange Act.

 

 

 

 

Large accelerated filer 

Accelerated filer 

Non‑accelerated filer 
(Do not check if a
smaller reporting company)

Smaller reporting company 

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12-b2 of the Exchange Act).      Yes       No

 

 

There were 52,698,465 shares of common stock outstanding as of November 3, 2015.

 

 

 

 

 


 

PRESS GANEY HOLDINGS, INC.

 

INDEX TO FORM 10-Q

 

September 30, 2015

 

 

 

 

 

    

Page

PART I—FINANCIAL INFORMATION

 

 

Item 1. 

Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

 

 

 

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of September 30, 2015 (unaudited) and December 31, 2014

 

 

Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2015 and 2014

 

 

Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Shareholders’ Equity for the nine months ended September 30, 2015

 

 

Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the nine months ended September 30, 2015 and 2014

 

 

Unaudited Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

 

Item 2. 

Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

 

15 

Item 3. 

Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk

 

27 

Item 4. 

Controls and Procedures

 

27 

 

 

 

 

PART II—OTHER INFORMATION

 

 

Item 1. 

Legal Proceedings

 

27 

Item 1A. 

Risk Factors

 

27 

Item 2. 

Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds

 

27 

Item 6. 

Exhibits

 

28 

 

 

 

 

SIGNATURES 

 

29 

 

 

 

 


 

PART I — FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Item 1. Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

 

Press Ganey Holdings, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets

(Thousands of dollars, except share amounts)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

September 30, 

 

December 31, 

 

 

 

2015

 

2014

 

 

 

(Unaudited)

 

 

 

 

ASSETS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Current assets:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cash

 

$

23,793

 

$

6,962

 

Accounts receivable, net of allowances of $749 and $531 at September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, respectively

 

 

50,381

 

 

44,444

 

Other receivables

 

 

2,661

 

 

1,782

 

Prepaid expenses and other assets

 

 

5,815

 

 

2,741

 

Income taxes receivable

 

 

5,445

 

 

2,916

 

Total current assets

 

 

88,095

 

 

58,845

 

Property and equipment, net

 

 

61,503

 

 

59,610

 

Deferred financing fees, net

 

 

945

 

 

810

 

Intangible assets, net

 

 

366,890

 

 

375,391

 

Goodwill

 

 

410,517

 

 

402,934

 

Total assets

 

$

927,950

 

$

897,590

 

LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Current liabilities:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Current portion of long-term debt

 

$

9,250

 

$

4,279

 

Current portion of capital lease obligations

 

 

4,187

 

 

4,373

 

Accounts payable

 

 

7,206

 

 

13,232

 

Accrued payroll and related liabilities

 

 

13,507

 

 

11,704

 

Accrued expenses and other liabilities

 

 

1,755

 

 

1,581

 

Deferred income taxes

 

 

1,099

 

 

712

 

Deferred revenue

 

 

37,146

 

 

26,208

 

Total current liabilities

 

 

74,150

 

 

62,089

 

Long-term debt, less current portion

 

 

173,418

 

 

402,888

 

Capital lease obligations, less current portion

 

 

6,373

 

 

6,779

 

Equity-based compensation liability

 

 

 —

 

 

19,423

 

Deferred income taxes

 

 

119,505

 

 

125,767

 

Total liabilities

 

 

373,446

 

 

616,946

 

Commitments and contingencies

 

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Common stock, $0.01 par value; 350,000,000 and 44,800,000 shares authorized, and 52,661,538 and 43,313,200 shares issued and outstanding as of September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, respectively

 

 

527

 

 

433

 

Additional paid-in capital

 

 

594,271

 

 

270,847

 

Retained earnings (accumulated deficit)

 

 

(40,294)

 

 

9,364

 

Total shareholders' equity

 

 

554,504

 

 

280,644

 

Total liabilities and shareholders' equity

 

$

927,950

 

$

897,590

 

 

The accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements are an integral part of these statements.

1


 

Press Ganey Holdings, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations

(In thousands, except per share amounts)

(Unaudited)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Three Months Ended

 

Nine Months Ended

 

 

 

 

September 30, 

 

September 30, 

 

 

 

    

2015

    

2014

    

2015

    

2014

    

 

Revenue

 

$

80,730

 

$

71,713

 

$

233,079

 

$

205,482

 

 

Operating expenses:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cost of revenue

 

 

34,772

 

 

30,618

 

 

109,311

 

 

87,342

 

 

General and administrative

 

 

22,720

 

 

17,918

 

 

120,123

 

 

52,306

 

 

Depreciation and amortization

 

 

10,528

 

 

8,779

 

 

30,624

 

 

25,825

 

 

Loss (gain) on disposal of property and equipment

 

 

1

 

 

504

 

 

(30)

 

 

1,595

 

 

Total operating expenses

 

 

68,021

 

 

57,819

 

 

260,028

 

 

167,068

 

 

Income (loss) from operations

 

 

12,709

 

 

13,894

 

 

(26,949)

 

 

38,414

 

 

Other income (expense):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Interest expense, net

 

 

(1,567)

 

 

(4,706)

 

 

(9,921)

 

 

(15,136)

 

 

Extinguishment of debt

 

 

(1,112)

 

 

(8)

 

 

(1,750)

 

 

(2,894)

 

 

Management fee of related party

 

 

 —

 

 

(230)

 

 

(553)

 

 

(690)

 

 

Total other income (expense), net

 

 

(2,679)

 

 

(4,944)

 

 

(12,224)

 

 

(18,720)

 

 

Income (loss) before income taxes

 

 

10,030

 

 

8,950

 

 

(39,173)

 

 

19,694

 

 

Provision for income taxes

 

 

2,614

 

 

4,174

 

 

1,254

 

 

9,185

 

 

Net income (loss)

 

$

7,416

 

$

4,776

 

$

(40,427)

 

$

10,509

 

 

Earnings (net loss) per share:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Basic

 

$

0.14

 

$

0.11

 

$

(0.85)

 

$

0.24

 

 

Diluted

 

$

0.14

 

$

0.11

 

$

(0.85)

 

$

0.24

 

 

Weighted average shares of common stock outstanding:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Basic

 

 

52,620

 

 

43,313

 

 

47,616

 

 

43,313

 

 

Diluted

 

 

52,950

 

 

43,313

 

 

47,616

 

 

43,313

 

 

 

The accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements are an integral part of these statements.

 

2


 

Press Ganey Holdings, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Statement of Shareholders’ Equity

(Thousands of dollars, except share amounts)

(Unaudited)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    

 

 

 

 

    

 

 

    

Retained

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Additional

 

Earnings

 

Total

 

 

 

Common Stock

 

Paid-in

 

(Accumulated

 

Shareholders'

 

 

 

Shares

    

Amount

 

Capital

 

Deficit)

 

Equity

 

Balance at January 1, 2015

 

43,313,200

 

$

433

 

$

270,847

 

$

9,364

 

$

280,644

 

Sales of equity interests

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

 

100

 

 

 —

 

 

100

 

Purchase of equity interests

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

 

(731)

 

 

(731)

 

Equity-based compensation

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

 

79,735

 

 

 —

 

 

79,735

 

Impact of liquidation of PG Holdco, LLC

 

(1,028,122)

 

 

(10)

 

 

10

 

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

Conversion of equity-based compensation liability

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

 

21,008

 

 

 —

 

 

21,008

 

Vesting of restricted stock

 

189,651

 

 

2

 

 

(1)

 

 

 —

 

 

1

 

Cancellation of shares

 

(7,365)

 

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

Taxes paid for net settlements of restricted stock vesting

 

(40,826)

 

 

 —

 

 

(11,763)

 

 

 —

 

 

(11,763)

 

Distribution payments

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

 

(8,500)

 

 

(8,500)

 

Initial public offering of common stock, net of issuance costs

 

10,235,000

 

 

102

 

 

234,335

 

 

 —

 

 

234,437

 

Net loss

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

 

 —

 

 

(40,427)

 

 

(40,427)

 

Balance at September 30, 2015

 

52,661,538

 

$

527

 

$

594,271

 

$

(40,294)

 

$

554,504

 

 

The accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements are an integral part of these statements.

3


 

Press Ganey Holdings, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows

(Thousands of dollars)

(Unaudited)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nine Months Ended

 

 

 

September 30, 

 

 

    

2015

    

2014

 

Operating activities

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Net income (loss)

 

$

(40,427)

 

$

10,509

 

Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by operating activities:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Depreciation and amortization

 

 

30,624

 

 

25,825

 

Amortization of deferred financing costs and debt discount

 

 

511

 

 

694

 

Equity-based compensation

 

 

81,466

 

 

7,565

 

Extinguishment of debt

 

 

1,750

 

 

2,894

 

Provision for doubtful accounts

 

 

421

 

 

329

 

Loss (gain) on disposal of property and equipment

 

 

(30)

 

 

1,595

 

Deferred income taxes

 

 

(5,875)

 

 

(90)

 

Changes in assets and liabilities:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Accounts receivable

 

 

(5,020)

 

 

(3,400)

 

Other receivables

 

 

2

 

 

(280)

 

Prepaid expenses and other assets

 

 

(3,071)

 

 

(2,034)

 

Accounts payable

 

 

(2,363)

 

 

(3,832)

 

Accrued payroll and related liabilities

 

 

1,497

 

 

565

 

Accrued expenses and other liabilities

 

 

174

 

 

4

 

Deferred revenue

 

 

9,185

 

 

1,675

 

Income taxes receivable

 

 

(2,529)

 

 

(2,485)

 

Net cash provided by operating activities

 

 

66,315

 

 

39,534

 

Investing activities

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Acquisitions of businesses, net of cash acquired

 

 

(11,721)

 

 

(27,846)

 

Purchases of property and equipment

 

 

(20,904)

 

 

(12,178)

 

Net cash used in investing activities

 

 

(32,625)

 

 

(40,024)

 

Financing activities

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Proceeds from the issuance of long-term debt

 

 

185,000

 

 

41,825

 

Payments on long-term debt

 

 

(408,456)

 

 

(63,592)

 

Deferred financing payments

 

 

(3,441)

 

 

(508)

 

Payments on capital lease obligations

 

 

(3,505)

 

 

(1,328)

 

Proceeds from sale of equity interests

 

 

100

 

 

250

 

Purchases of equity interests

 

 

(731)

 

 

(3,543)

 

Taxes paid for net settlements of restricted stock vesting

 

 

(11,763)

 

 

 —

 

Distribution payments

 

 

(8,500)

 

 

 —

 

Proceeds from the issuance of common stock in initial public offering, net of fees

 

 

234,437

 

 

 —

 

Net cash used in financing activities

 

 

(16,859)

 

 

(26,896)

 

Net increase (decrease) in cash

 

 

16,831

 

 

(27,386)

 

Cash at beginning of period

 

 

6,962

 

 

32,635

 

Cash at end of period

 

$

23,793

 

$

5,249

 

Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cash paid during the period for interest

 

$

9,420

 

$

14,377

 

Cash paid during the period for income taxes

 

 

9,578

 

 

11,321

 

Disposal of property and equipment acquired through capital leases

 

 

333

 

 

 —

 

Property and equipment acquired through capital leases

 

 

3,246

 

 

367

 

Purchase of property and equipment in accounts payable

 

 

2,712

 

 

1,759

 

 

The accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements are an integral part of these statements.

4


 

Press Ganey Holdings, Inc.

Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

(All tables in thousands, except per share amounts)

(Unaudited)

 

1. Basis of Presentation of Interim Financial Information

Press Ganey Holdings, Inc. (the “Company”) is a leading provider of performance measurement, analysis, benchmarking, and quality improvement services primarily to the United States healthcare industry. The consolidated financial statements include the financial statements of Press Ganey Holdings, Inc. and its wholly owned subsidiary, Press Ganey Associates (“Associates”), and Associates’ wholly owned subsidiaries, PatientImpact LLC; Data Advantage LLC; Center for Performance Services, Inc.; Morehead Associates, Inc.; On The Spot Systems, Inc.; Dynamic Clinical Systems, Inc.; and Healthcare Performance Improvement, LLC. All significant intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. Prior to the initial public offering (discussed below), the Company was a wholly owned subsidiary of PG Holdco, LLC (the “Parent”).

Effective May 8, 2015, the name of the Company was changed from PGA Holdings, Inc. to Press Ganey Holdings, Inc.

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“GAAP”) for interim financial information and pursuant to the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements contain all adjustments, consisting of normal and recurring accruals necessary to present fairly the financial statements in accordance with GAAP. Operating results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2015 and 2014 are not necessarily indicative of results to be expected for any other interim period or for the full year. The preparation of the consolidated financial statements in accordance with GAAP requires management to make certain estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues, and expenses. Actual results could materially differ from those estimates.

Initial Public Offering

In May 2015, the Company completed its initial public offering (the “IPO”) of 8,900,000 shares of common stock and, upon the underwriters’ exercise of their option to purchase additional shares, issued an additional 1,335,000 shares for a total of 10,235,000 shares issued at an offering price of $25.00 per share. Proceeds from the IPO were approximately $234.4 million, net of underwriting discounts and commissions and offering-related transaction costs incurred. In connection with the IPO: (i) the Parent was liquidated and its sole asset, the shares of the Company’s common stock, was distributed to the equity holders based on their relative rights under the limited liability company agreement, (ii) the Company recognized $70.4 million of equity-based compensation expense for the modification of certain units of the Parent, (iii) the Company paid a one-time transaction advisory fee of $8.5 million to Vestar, and (iv) the Company recognized a loss on extinguishment of debt of $638,000 related to the write-off of deferred financing fees, loss on original issue discount and lender fees as a result of the partial repayment of its term loan facility with the net proceeds of the IPO.

Stock Split

On May 8, 2015, the Company’s common stock was split at a 2,800-for-one ratio. The authorized shares were increased to 350.0 million. Accordingly, all references to numbers of common shares and per-share data in the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been adjusted to reflect the stock split on a retroactive basis.

5


 

Preferred Stock

On May 27, 2015, the Company amended and restated its certificate of incorporation to, among other things, authorize 50.0 million shares of preferred stock with a par value of $0.01.

2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

A complete listing of the Company’s significant accounting policies is discussed in Note 2 – Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in the Company’s prospectus filed with the SEC on May 22, 2015 pursuant to Rule 424(b)(4) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

In May 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (the “FASB”) issued ASU 2014‑09, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606)”. This ASU requires an entity to recognize the amount of revenue to which it expects to be entitled for the transfer of promised goods or services to customers. The ASU will replace most existing revenue recognition guidance in U.S. GAAP when it becomes effective. In August 2015, the FASB deferred the effective date by one year to annual and interim reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017. The FASB is permitting early adoption of the standard, but not until annual and interim reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2016, the original effective date. An entity may choose to adopt this ASU either retrospectively or through a cumulative effect adjustment as of the start of the first period for which it applies the standard. The Company is currently in the process of evaluating the impact that this new guidance will have on its consolidated financial statements and its method of adoption.

In April 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015-05, “Customer’s Accounting for Fees Paid in a Cloud Computing Arrangement”. This ASU provides guidance to customers about whether a cloud computing arrangement includes a software license. If a cloud computing arrangement includes a software license, then the customer should account for the software license element of the arrangement consistent with the acquisition of other software licenses. If a cloud computing arrangement does not include a software license, the customer should account for the arrangement as a service contract. In addition, this update changes the accounting for software licenses to be consistent with other licenses of intangible assets. This standard is effective for annual and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2015, with early adoption permitted. An entity may choose to adopt this ASU either retrospectively or prospectively to all arrangements entered into or materially modified after the effective date. The Company is currently in the process of evaluating the impact the adoption of this standard will have on its consolidated financial statements and its method of adoption.

In April 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015‑03, “Simplifying the Presentation of Debt Issuance Costs”. This ASU requires that debt issuance costs related to a recognized debt liability be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of that debt liability, consistent with debt discounts. This standard is effective for annual and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2015, with early adoption permitted. The Company adopted ASU 2015-03 during the three months ended September 30, 2015 and prior period amounts have been reclassified to conform to the current period presentation. As of December 31, 2014, debt issuance costs of $977,000 were reclassified from deferred financing fees, net to long-term debt, less current portion in the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet. The adoption of ASU 2015-03 did not impact the Company’s consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

 

6


 

In August 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015-15, “Presentation and Subsequent Measurement of Debt Issuance Costs Associated with Line-of-Credit Arrangements”. This ASU added an SEC paragraph addressing the presentation of debt issuance costs related to line-of-credit arrangements since ASU 2015-03 does not address presentation or subsequent measurement of debt issuance costs related to line-of-credit arrangements. Given the absence of authoritative guidance within ASU 2015-03 for debt issuance costs related to line-of-credit arrangements, the SEC staff does not object to an entity deferring and presenting debt issuance costs as an asset and subsequently amortizing the deferred debt issuance costs ratably over the term of the line-of-credit arrangement, regardless of whether there are any outstanding borrowings on the line-of-credit arrangement. The Company adopted ASU 2015-15 during the three months ended September 30, 2015. There were no adjustments to the presentation of debt issuance costs relating to the line-of-credit arrangement and no impact on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows upon adoption of the new standard.

 

In September 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015-16, “Simplifying the Accounting for Measurement-Period Adjustments”. This ASU requires that an acquirer recognize adjustments to provisional amounts that are identified during the measurement period in the reporting period in which the adjustment amounts are determined. The amendments in this ASU require that the acquirer record, in the same period’s financial statements, the effect on earnings of changes in depreciation, amortization, or other income effects, if any, as a result of the change to the provisional amounts, calculated as if the accounting had been completed at the acquisition date. This standard is effective for annual and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2015, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently in the process of evaluating the impact the adoption of this standard will have on our consolidated financial statements.

   

3. Property and Equipment

Property and equipment, net consist of the following:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    

September 30, 

    

December 31,

 

 

 

2015

 

2014

 

Furniture, fixtures, and leasehold improvements

 

$

9,431

 

$

6,249

 

Office equipment

 

 

19,398

 

 

15,214

 

Office equipment held under capital lease

 

 

20,806

 

 

18,531

 

Computer equipment and software

 

 

69,433

 

 

57,389

 

Construction in progress

 

 

15,193

 

 

21,628

 

 

 

 

134,261

 

 

119,011

 

Accumulated amortization of office equipment held under capital leases

 

 

(9,029)

 

 

(6,244)

 

Accumulated depreciation

 

 

(63,729)

 

 

(53,157)

 

 

 

$

61,503

 

$

59,610

 

 

Depreciation and amortization of property and equipment was $6.4 million and $4.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively, and $18.2 million and $14.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively.

4. Fair Value Measurements

The Company measures and reports its financial assets and liabilities on the basis of fair value. Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability (an exit price) in the principal or most advantageous market for the asset or liability in an orderly transaction between market participants on the measurement date.

A three‑level hierarchy for disclosure has been established to show the extent and level of judgment used to estimate fair value measurements, as follows:

Level 1: Quoted market prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.

7


 

Level 2: Significant other observable inputs (quoted prices in active markets for similar assets or liabilities, quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active, or inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the asset or liability).

Level 3: Significant unobservable inputs for the asset or liability. These values are generally determined using pricing models which utilize management estimates of market participant assumptions.

Valuation techniques for assets and liabilities measured using Level 3 inputs may include methodologies such as the market approach, the income approach or the cost approach, and may use unobservable inputs such as projections, estimates and management’s interpretation of current market data. These unobservable inputs are only utilized to the extent that observable inputs are not available or cost‑effective to obtain. The Company had no Level 3 assets or liabilities at September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, except for the Level 3 measurements of the acquired net assets of the business acquired (Note 5).

Financial Instruments

The recorded values of accounts receivable, accounts payable, and other liabilities approximate fair value because of the short maturity of these financial instruments. The recorded values of the variable rate Term Loan and First Lien Term Loan approximate fair value because the interest rates fluctuate with market rates.

5. Business Combination

On September 1, 2015, the Company acquired all of the membership interests of Healthcare Performance Improvement, LLC (“HPI”) in exchange for cash of $11.7 million, net of cash acquired. HPI provides patient safety and reliability consulting and coaching services. The acquisition brings the critical dimension of safety to the Company’s ability to help its clients reduce patient suffering.

The acquisition was accounted for under the purchase method of accounting and the total purchase price was preliminarily allocated to the net tangible and identifiable intangible assets based on their estimated fair values (based on Level 3 measurements) as of September 1, 2015. The excess purchase price over the net tangible and intangible assets was recorded to goodwill. The goodwill balance is primarily attributed to assembled workforce and is expected to be deductible for tax purposes.

The estimated fair values of assets acquired and liabilities assumed are provisional and are based on the information that was available as of the acquisition date to estimate the fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed. The Company believes that information provides a reasonable basis for estimating the fair values of assets acquired and liabilities assumed, but the Company is waiting for additional information necessary to finalize those fair values. Therefore, the provisional measurements of fair value reflected are subject to change and such changes could be significant. The Company expects to finalize the valuation and complete the purchase price allocation as soon as practicable but no later than one year from the acquisition date.

The following table summarizes the preliminary allocation of the fair value of the acquisition:

 

 

 

 

 

Current assets

    

$

2,222

 

Property and equipment

 

 

23

 

Goodwill

 

 

7,583

 

Intangible assets:

 

 

 

 

Trade name

 

 

280

 

Customer relationships

 

 

2,480

 

Other

 

 

1,130

 

Total assets acquired

 

 

13,718

 

Liabilities assumed:

 

 

 

 

Deferred revenue

 

 

(1,753)

 

Other current liabilities

 

 

(244)

 

Net assets acquired

 

$

11,721

 

8


 

 

Transaction expenses of $277,000 relating to the purchase are included in general and administrative expenses for both the three and nine months ended September 30, 2015.

6. Goodwill and Intangible Assets

Goodwill

Goodwill represents the excess of costs over fair value of net assets of businesses acquired. Goodwill and intangible assets acquired in connection with business combinations accounted for as a purchase and determined to have indefinite lives are not amortized, but are instead tested for impairment at least annually. Intangible assets with estimable useful lives are amortized over their respective estimated useful lives and reviewed for impairment when impairment indicators are present. The Company believes that no such impairment indicators existed during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2015 and 2014.

Intangible Assets

Intangible assets consist of the following:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

September 30, 2015

 

December 31, 2014

 

 

    

Gross

    

 

 

    

Net

    

Gross

    

 

 

    

Net

 

 

 

Carrying

 

Accumulated

 

Carrying

 

Carrying

 

Accumulated

 

Carrying

 

 

 

Amount

 

Amortization

 

Amount

 

Amount

 

Amortization

 

Amount

 

Trade name (indefinite life)

 

$

200,000

 

$

 —

 

$

200,000

 

$

200,000

 

$

 —

 

$

200,000

 

Trade names (finite life)

 

 

2,410

 

 

(1,432)

 

 

978

 

 

2,130

 

 

(1,167)

 

 

963

 

Customer relationships

 

 

237,780

 

 

(91,588)

 

 

146,192

 

 

235,300

 

 

(82,010)

 

 

153,290

 

Proprietary technology

 

 

32,240

 

 

(14,048)

 

 

18,192

 

 

32,240

 

 

(11,645)

 

 

20,595

 

Other

 

 

3,220

 

 

(1,692)

 

 

1,528

 

 

2,090

 

 

(1,547)

 

 

543

 

 

 

$

475,650

 

$

(108,760)

 

$

366,890

 

$

471,760

 

$

(96,369)

 

$

375,391

 

 

Intangible asset amortization expense for the three months ended September 30, 2015 and 2014 was $4.1 million and $4.2 million, respectively. Intangible asset amortization expense for the nine months ended September 30, 2015 and 2014 was $12.4 million and $11.8 million, respectively. The Company cannot reliably determine the pattern for which it consumes the benefit of its customer relationship intangible assets. As such, the Company amortizes its customer relationship intangible assets using the straight‑line method over the estimated lives based upon the Company’s historical customer retention and recurring revenue base.

The remaining estimated intangible asset amortization expense is $4.2 million in 2015, $16.5 million in 2016, $15.5 million in 2017, $14.0 million in 2018, $13.4 million in 2019 and $103.3 million thereafter. These amounts are based upon intangible assets recorded as of September 30, 2015 and actual amortization expense could differ from these estimates as a result of future acquisitions and other factors.

 

9


 

7. Revolving Line of Credit and Long‑Term Debt

As of September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, the Company’s long‑term debt consisted of the following:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    

September 30, 

    

December 31, 

 

 

 

2015

 

2014

 

Term Loan

 

$

185,000

 

$

 —

 

First Lien Term Loan

 

 

 —

 

 

408,456

 

Unamortized deferred financing fees

 

 

(2,332)

 

 

(977)

 

Unamortized original issue discount

 

 

 —

 

 

(312)

 

 

 

 

182,668

 

 

407,167

 

Less current portion

 

 

(9,250)

 

 

(4,279)

 

Long-term debt

 

$

173,418

 

$

402,888

 

 

Unamortized deferred financing fees related to the Company’s Revolver and Revolving Credit Facility (as defined below) were $945,000 and $810,000 at September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, respectively, and are classified as deferred financing fees, net in the condensed consolidated balance sheets.

 

2015 Credit Agreement

On July 31, 2015, the Company entered into a new credit agreement (“2015 Credit Agreement”). The 2015 Credit Agreement consists of a five-year $185.0 million term loan (“Term Loan”) and a five-year $75.0 million revolving credit facility (“Revolver”). The Company used the proceeds from the Term Loan to repay the outstanding First Lien Term Loan (as defined below) balance of $183.2 million, which resulted in a loss on extinguishment of debt of $1.1 million, consisting of unamortized deferred financing fees of $995,000 and a loss on original issue discount of $117,000.

At the discretion of the Company, interest accrues on outstanding borrowings under the 2015 Credit Agreement at either the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) plus an applicable margin, currently 1.75%, or the adjusted base rate (“ABR”) plus an applicable margin, currently 0.75%. The applicable margins for both the LIBOR and ABR are variable based upon stipulated ranges of the secured net leverage ratio, as defined in the agreement. The Company is required to repay the outstanding principal amount of the Term Loan in equal quarterly amounts of $2.3 million, commencing on December 31, 2015. The remaining Term Loan balance and any outstanding balances on the Revolver will be due upon maturity on July 31, 2020. The Term Loan and Revolver are secured by substantially all of the assets of the Company.

There were no borrowings outstanding on the Revolver at September 30, 2015; however, the Company had a letter of credit outstanding of approximately $65,000 at September 30, 2015, which reduced the borrowing capacity of the Revolver to $74.9 million. The Company is charged a loan commitment fee, currently 0.375%, for unused amounts on the Revolver.

The 2015 Credit Agreement contains certain restrictive and financial covenants which the Company must comply with on a quarterly basis, including a maximum secured net leverage ratio, as defined in the agreement. The Company is also limited in its ability to incur additional indebtedness or liens; pay dividends or make certain other restricted payments, enter into certain transactions with affiliates, merge or consolidate with another entity; or sell, assign, transfer, convey, or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of its assets. The Company was in compliance with these restrictive and financial covenants as of September 30, 2015.

First and Second Lien Credit Agreements

Prior to the 2015 Credit Agreement, the Company was party to a First Lien Credit Agreement (the “First Lien Agreement”) and a Second Lien Credit Agreement (the “Second Lien Agreement”). The First Lien Agreement consisted of a $30 million revolving credit facility (the “Revolving Credit Facility”) and a $345 million term loan (the “First Lien

10


 

Term Loan”), which was issued at an original issue discount of $3.5 million. The Second Lien Agreement consisted of a $95 million term loan (the “Second Lien Term Loan”), which was issued at an original issue discount of $950,000.

On May 9, 2013, the Company amended the First Lien Agreement to borrow an additional $50 million, lower interest rates, and adjust certain financial covenants. Proceeds from the additional borrowings were used to pay down the principal balance of the Second Lien Term Loan.

On May 9, 2014, the Company amended the First Lien Agreement to borrow an additional $35 million in the form of an incremental term loan increase. Proceeds from the additional borrowings and $10 million of cash were used to pay off the remaining balance of the Second Lien Term Loan. The transactions resulted in a loss on extinguishment of debt of $2.9 million, consisting of unamortized deferred financing fees of $1.5 million, payments of fees to lenders of $497,000 and loss on original issue discount of $921,000, which are recorded as extinguishment of debt in other expense, net, in the consolidated statement of operations for the nine months ended September 30, 2014.

During the second quarter of 2015, the Company used proceeds from the IPO to pay down $223.0 million of the principal balance of the First Lien Term Loan. The transactions resulted in a loss on extinguishment of debt of $638,000, consisting of unamortized deferred financing fees of $489,000 and loss on original issue discount of $149,000, which are recorded as extinguishment of debt in other expense, net, in the consolidated statement of operations for the nine months ended September 30, 2015.

At the discretion of the Company, interest accrued on borrowings on the First Lien Term Loan and Revolving Credit Facility at either LIBOR plus an applicable margin or the ABR plus an applicable margin, each as defined in the First Lien Agreement. LIBOR had a floor of 1.00% plus an applicable margin for outstanding borrowings under the First Lien Term Loan. The Company was required to make quarterly principal payments of $863,000 from June 2012 through March 31, 2013, payments of $979,000 from June 30, 2013 through March 31, 2014, and payments of $1.1 million from June 30, 2014 through April 20, 2018, when the First Lien Agreement was to mature, and to make interest payments. There were no borrowings outstanding under the Revolving Credit Facility at December 31, 2014. The Company was charged a loan commitment fee of 0.50% for unused amounts on the Revolving Credit Facility.

The First Lien Agreement contained certain restrictive and financial covenants which the Company was required to comply with on a quarterly basis, including a maximum net leverage ratio and a minimum interest coverage ratio, as defined in the agreement. The Company was in compliance with these restrictive and financial covenants as of December 31, 2014.

8. Income Taxes

For the three months ended September 30, 2015, the Company recorded income tax expense of $2.6 million compared to expense of $4.2 million for the three months ended September 30, 2014. The Company’s effective tax rate was 26.1% for the three months ended September 30, 2015 compared to 46.6% for the three months ended September 30, 2014. The lower effective tax rate for the three months ended September 30, 2015 was primarily due to adjustments to reduce tax liabilities after a review of the Company’s future required tax payments and the impact of nondeductible equity-based compensation.

For the nine months ended September 30, 2015, the Company recorded income tax expense of $1.3 million compared to expense of $9.2 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2014. The Company’s effective tax rate was 3.2% for the nine months ended September 30, 2015 compared to 46.6% for the nine months ended September 30, 2014. The lower effective tax rate for the nine months ended September 30, 2015 primarily reflects the inability to realize a tax benefit from the nondeductible equity-based compensation expense incurred in connection with the modification of equity awards as a result of the Company’s IPO.

11


 

9. Segment Information

An operating segment is a component of an enterprise that engages in business activities and has discrete financial information that is regularly reviewed by the enterprise’s chief operating decision maker to assess performance of the individual component and make decisions about allocating resources to the component. The Company produces one set of financial information at the enterprise level that is regularly reviewed by the Company’s chief operating decision maker. Discrete financial information is not produced or reviewed by the Company’s chief operating decision maker at a level lower than the enterprise level. As such, the Company has one operating segment as of September 30, 2015 and 2014.

The Company’s identifiable assets are located in the United States and over 99% of the Company’s revenues are located in the United States.

10. Related Party Transactions

The Company was charged an annual management fee that was payable quarterly to its majority shareholder, Vestar Capital Partners, LLC (“Vestar”). The annual management fee is no longer required after the effective date of the IPO. The Company incurred management fees of $0 and $230,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively, and $553,000 and $690,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively.

In connection with the IPO, the Company paid a one-time transaction advisory fee to Vestar of $8.5 million. This fee was reflected as a distribution payment on the condensed consolidated statement of cash flows for the nine months ended September 30, 2015, and reduced retained earnings on the condensed consolidated balance sheet as of September 30, 2015.

11. Equity-Based Compensation

The Company measures its stock-based compensation costs based on the grant date fair value of the awards and recognizes these costs in the consolidated financial statements over the requisite service or performance vesting period.

Total equity-based compensation expense recorded in the condensed consolidated statements of operations for the periods indicated is as follows:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Three Months Ended

 

Nine Months Ended

 

 

 

September 30, 

 

September 30, 

 

 

    

2015

    

2014

    

2015

    

2014

 

Cost of revenue

 

$

1,075

 

$

726

 

$

12,431

 

$

2,090

 

General and administrative

 

 

5,394

 

 

1,932

 

 

69,035

 

 

5,475

 

Total equity-based compensation expense

 

$

6,469

 

$

2,658

 

$

81,466

 

$

7,565

 

 

Parent Equity-Based Compensation Plan

 

The Company’s former parent company, PG Holdco, LLC, had adopted an equity-based compensation plan (the “Parent Plan”), which authorized the granting of various equity awards of the Parent’s Preferred units, Class A common units, Class B common units, and Class C common units to employees and directors of the Company. The awards of the Parent were recorded as compensation expense in the accounts of the Company because the recipients are employees and directors of the Company.

12


 

In connection with the closing of the IPO, the Parent was liquidated and its sole asset, shares of the Company’s common stock, were distributed to its equity holders based on their relative rights under its limited liability agreement. The equity holders of the Parent received the number of shares of the Company’s common stock in the liquidation of the Parent that they would have held in the Company’s common stock directly immediately before the distribution, with no issuance of additional shares by the Company. Vested units of the Parent converted to shares of the Company’s common stock in the distribution. Unvested common units of the Parent that were subject to time-vesting conditions were converted to 1,028,122 unvested restricted shares of the Company’s common stock in the distribution and will continue to vest based on the amended vesting schedule of the respective unit class.

 

The liquidation and distribution of the Parent resulted in $70.4 million of equity-based compensation expense for the nine months ended September 30, 2015 due to the following outstanding award modifications:

 

·

Performance-based Class A and Class C common units of the Parent – vesting of $40.4 million triggered by achievement of performance threshold as a result of the IPO

·

Class A common units of the Parent – modification of $19.4 million due to change from cliff-vesting awards to quarterly-vesting awards with resulting change from liability treatment to equity treatment

·

Preferred, Class A and Class B common units purchased with loans – modification of $9.1 million due to repayment of the loan, which was a cancellation of option treatment and replacement with new awards with resulting change from liability treatment to equity treatment

·

Loan forgiveness – modification of $1.5 million due to forgiveness of loans used to purchase units with resulting change from liability treatment to equity treatment

 

The total liability outstanding associated with the Parent Plan equity-based compensation awards not classified in equity but as liabilities was $0 and $19.4 million at September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, respectively.

 

2015 Incentive Award Plan

 

The Company’s 2015 Incentive Award Plan (the “2015 Plan”) provides for the grant of stock options, restricted stock, dividend equivalents, stock payments, restricted stock units, stock appreciation rights, and other stock or cash based awards. The 2015 Plan authorized 7,120,000 shares of common stock for issuance pursuant to awards under the plan.

 

Restricted Stock

 

On May 21, 2015, the Company granted shares of restricted stock with vesting terms summarized as follows:

 

 

 

 

 

4-year service vesting (20% for years 1-2, 30% for years 3-4)

    

807,000

 

3-year performance vesting (cliff)

 

807,000

 

2-year service vesting (quarterly)

 

120,000

 

1-year service vesting

 

20,000

 

 

 

1,754,000

 

 

13


 

During the nine months ended September 30, 2015, the Company granted the following restricted stock with various performance and time vesting conditions:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    

 

    

Weighted

 

 

 

 

 

Average

 

 

 

 

 

Fair Value

 

 

 

 

 

at Grant

 

 

    

Shares

    

Date

 

Nonvested at January 1, 2015

 

 —

 

$

 —

 

Converted from liquidation of Parent

 

1,028,122

 

 

25.00

 

Granted

 

1,806,120

 

 

25.14

 

Vested

 

(189,651)

 

 

25.00

 

Forfeited

 

(33,134)

 

 

25.00

 

Nonvested at September 30, 2015

 

2,611,457

 

$

25.10

 

 

As of September 30, 2015, $51.3 million of total unrecognized compensation costs related to outstanding nonvested restricted stock was expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 2.8 years.

 

Stock Options

 

The Company granted options to purchase 19,088 shares of the Company’s common stock during the nine months ended September 30, 2015. Options to purchase shares of common stock were granted with exercise prices equal to the fair value of the common stock on the date of grant. The fair value of the stock options granted was estimated using a Black-Scholes valuation model. The weighted average fair value of the options granted during the nine months ended September 30, 2015 is estimated at $13.97 per share on the date of grant using the following weighted average assumptions: risk-free interest rate of 1.5%; an expected term of approximately 5 years; expected volatility of 35.15%; and dividend yield of 0.0% over the expected life of the option. The risk-free interest rate assumptions were based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of grant. The expected volatility was based on historical monthly price changes of the Company’s common stock based on the expected life of the options at the date of grant. The expected life of options is the average number of years the Company estimates that options will be outstanding.

 

Earnings (Net Loss) Per Share

 

For the three months ended September 30, 2015, 330,000 common stock equivalents comprising restricted stock calculated using the treasury stock method were included in the computation of diluted earnings per share. For the nine months ended September 30, 2015, aggregate stock options and restricted stock awards of approximately 2,630,545 shares were excluded from the computation of diluted net loss per share, as they are anti-dilutive because of the loss for the period. For the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2014, there were no outstanding unvested stock options or restricted stock awards to include in the computation of diluted earnings per share.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

14


 

Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

 

Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations as well as other sections of this report on Form 10-Q contain forward-looking statements. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a safe harbor for forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts, but instead represent only our beliefs, assumptions, expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections regarding future events, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside our control. These statements include statements other than historical information or statements of current condition and may relate to our future plans and objectives and results. By identifying these statements for you in this manner, we are alerting you to the possibility that our actual results and financial condition may differ, possibly materially, from the anticipated results and financial condition indicated in these forward-looking statements.

The forward-looking statements contained in this report on Form 10-Q are based on assumptions that we have made in light of our industry experience and our perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors we believe are appropriate under the circumstances. As you read and consider the information in this report, you should understand that these statements are not guarantees of performance or results. They involve risks, uncertainties (many of which are beyond our control) and assumptions. Although we believe that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, you should be aware that many factors could affect our actual operating and financial performance and cause our performance to differ materially from the performance anticipated in the forward-looking statements. We believe these factors include those described under “Risk Factors” included in our prospectus filed with the SEC on May 22, 2015 pursuant to Rule 424(b)(4) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of these assumptions prove incorrect, our actual operating and financial performance may vary in material respects from the performance projected in these forward-looking statements.

Any forward-looking statement made by us speaks only as of the date on which we make it. Factors or events that could cause our actual operating and financial performance to differ may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of them. We undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as may be required by law.

Executive Overview

We are a leading provider of patient experience measurement, performance analytics and strategic advisory solutions for healthcare organizations across the continuum of care. Our mission is to help healthcare organizations reduce patient suffering and improve clinical quality, safety and the patient experience. We provide our clients with innovative, technology‑based solutions that capture the perspectives of patients, physicians, nurses and other healthcare employees, which enable our clients to benchmark, analyze and improve the patient’s care experience. We support clients in achieving the “Triple Aim” of improving the patient experience, managing their population’s health and controlling costs through improved patient engagement and experience of care. We believe we offer a powerful value proposition to the healthcare industry, as we help drive transformational change through greater performance transparency, better care coordination and sustainable performance improvements.

15


 

Factors Affecting our Financial Performance

We believe that the financial performance of our business and our continued success are primarily dependent upon the following:

Client Penetration and Growth.  We believe that we have opportunities to continue to grow our revenue from our comprehensive suite of solutions due to the trends we see affecting the healthcare industry. We expect an increasing percentage of our recurring and new revenues to be the result of increased focus by healthcare providers on measuring and reporting on, and bearing financial risk for, clinical outcomes and the patient experience. Our future growth will depend on our ability to expand sales of our suite of solutions to our existing client base and identify and execute upon new opportunities and attract new clients. Our expansion activities consist of focusing on growing healthcare settings, including hospitals, medical practices and post‑acute care settings, and servicing new markets and increasing engagement of existing clients impacted by expanded regulatory requirements. We plan to continue to invest in the development of innovative and value‑added solutions and continue to market our proprietary platform.

Continued Change in the U.S. Healthcare Industry.  Healthcare spending represents a significant and growing component of GDP of the United States and the average annual growth in health care spending is expected to exceed average annual GDP growth from 2013 to 2023. As healthcare costs rise and providers, patients and payment models focus on value‑based and patient‑centric care, the healthcare industry has increasingly focused attention on improving efficiency and transparency, standardizing care around best practices, and driving better clinical and operational outcomes. This has resulted in increasing demand for solutions designed to improve the efficiency and quality of care, safety and the patient experience. We believe this shift in the industry will continue to impact our business for the foreseeable future.

Selective Acquisitions.  We expect to grow through selective acquisitions that complement and grow our existing suite of technologies, services and solutions and increase the number of clients we serve. Our acquisitions are integrated within our overall solutions suite and brand to strengthen our comprehensive offerings. As the U.S. healthcare industry continues to evolve, we expect that there will be attractive investment opportunities given the large number of complementary businesses in the industry. Any acquisition could have a material impact on our financial position and results of operations.

Macro‑Economic Conditions.  Our clients are affected by macro‑economic trends such as general economic conditions, inflation and unemployment. Macro‑economic trends have various effects on our business, and on occasion have resulted in the slowing of the decision‑making processes by existing and prospective clients. In recent years, changes in macro‑economic trends have increased demand for our solutions as our clients strive to improve their clinical and operating performance, while reducing costs and moving to a value‑based care model.

Initial Public Offering

On May 27, 2015, we completed our Initial Public Offering (the “IPO”) of 8,900,000 shares of common stock and, upon the underwriters’ exercise of their option to purchase additional shares, issued an additional 1,335,000 shares for a total of 10,235,000 shares issued at an offering price of $25.00 per share. Proceeds from the IPO were approximately $234.4 million, net of underwriting discounts, commissions and offering-related transaction costs incurred. Our common stock is currently traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “PGND”. In connection with the IPO: (i) PG Holdco, LLC, our former parent, was liquidated and its sole asset, the shares of our common stock, was distributed to the equity holders based on their relative rights under the limited liability company agreement, (ii) we recognized $70.4 million of equity-based compensation expense for the modification of certain units of PG Holdco, LLC, (iii) we paid a one-time transaction advisory fee of $8.5 million to our majority shareholder, and (iv) we recognized a loss on extinguishment of debt of $638,000 related to the write-off of deferred financing fees, loss on original issue discount and lender fees as a result of the partial repayment of our term loan facility with the net proceeds of the IPO.

16


 

Refinancings

We completed refinancings to lower our interest expense, reduce principal balances, and amend certain financial covenants. In May 2014, we borrowed an additional $35.0 million under the First Lien Term Loan and used such funds, together with $10.0 million of cash on hand, to repay in full all amounts outstanding under, and terminate, our Second Lien Term Loan. In May 2015, we repaid $223.0 million of principal on our First Lien Term Loan using the net proceeds from our IPO. In July 2015, we repaid the remaining principal balance of $183.2 million on our First Lien Term Loan with proceeds from a new $185 million Term Loan and replaced our $30 million Revolving Credit Facility with a $75 million Revolver under our 2015 Credit Agreement. See Note 7 – Revolving Line of Credit and Long-Term Debt in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for additional details. These refinancings resulted in losses on the extinguishment of debt consisting of write offs of unamortized deferred financing fees and losses on original issue discount in the applicable periods.

Acquisitions

We completed one acquisition during the nine months ended September 30, 2015, and two acquisitions during the year ended December 31, 2014 to expand capabilities and complement our suite of solutions. On September 1, 2015, we acquired all of the membership interests of Healthcare Performance Improvement, LLC (“HPI”), a leading patient safety and reliability consulting and coaching firm, for a purchase price of $11.7 million, net of cash acquired. During 2014, we acquired all of the capital stock of Dynamic Clinical Systems, Inc. (“DCS”), which provides patient reported outcomes services and solutions for a purchase price of $3.3 million, net of cash acquired. We also purchased all of the assets of The National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators (“NDNQI”) for a purchase price of $24.9 million. NDNQI is a leading quality improvement and nurse engagement tool. All of these acquisitions were financed with cash on hand.

The results of operations of the acquired businesses have been included in our consolidated financial statements from the applicable date of acquisition.

Results of Operations

The following table sets forth our results of operations and our results of operations as a percentage of revenue for the periods indicated (in thousands):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Three Months Ended September 30, 

 

 

Nine Months Ended September 30, 

 

 

 

 

 

 

% of

 

 

 

 

 

% of

 

 

 

 

 

% of

 

 

 

 

 

% of

 

 

 

2015

 

revenue

 

 

2014

 

revenue

 

 

2015

 

revenue

 

 

2014

 

revenue

 

Revenue

    

$

80,730

    

100.0

%

 

$

71,713

    

100.0

%

 

$

233,079

    

100.0

%

 

$

205,482

    

100.0

%

Operating expenses:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cost of revenue

 

 

34,772

 

43.1

 

 

 

30,618

 

42.7

 

 

 

109,311

 

46.9

 

 

 

87,342

 

42.5

 

General and administrative

 

 

22,720

 

28.1

 

 

 

17,918

 

25.0

 

 

 

120,123

 

51.5

 

 

 

52,306

 

25.5

 

Depreciation and amortization

 

 

10,528

 

13.0

 

 

 

8,779

 

12.2

 

 

 

30,624

 

13.1

 

 

 

25,825

 

12.6

 

Loss (gain) on disposal of property and equipment

 

 

1

 

 —

 

 

 

504

 

0.7

 

 

 

(30)

 

 —

 

 

 

1,595

 

0.8

 

Total operating expenses

 

 

68,021

 

84.3

 

 

 

57,819

 

80.6

 

 

 

260,028

 

111.6

 

 

 

167,068

 

81.3

 

Income (loss) from operations

 

 

12,709

 

15.7

 

 

 

13,894

 

19.4

 

 

 

(26,949)

 

(11.6)

 

 

 

38,414

 

18.7

 

Other income (expense):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Interest expense, net

 

 

(1,567)

 

(1.9)

 

 

 

(4,706)

 

(6.6)

 

 

 

(9,921)

 

(4.3)

 

 

 

(15,136)

 

(7.4)

 

Extinguishment of debt

 

 

(1,112)

 

(1.4)

 

 

 

(8)

 

 —

 

 

 

(1,750)

 

(0.8)

 

 

 

(2,894)

 

(1.4)

 

Management fee of related party

 

 

 —

 

 —

 

 

 

(230)

 

(0.3)

 

 

 

(553)

 

(0.2)

 

 

 

(690)

 

(0.3)

 

Total other expense, net

 

 

(2,679)

 

(3.3)

 

 

 

(4,944)

 

(6.9)

 

 

 

(12,224)

 

(5.2)

 

 

 

(18,720)

 

(9.1)

 

Income (loss) before income taxes

 

 

10,030

 

12.4

 

 

 

8,950

 

12.5

 

 

 

(39,173)

 

(16.8)

 

 

 

19,694

 

9.6

 

Provision for income taxes

 

 

2,614

 

3.2

 

 

 

4,174

 

5.8

 

 

 

1,254

 

0.5

 

 

 

9,185

 

4.5

 

Net income (loss)

 

$

7,416

 

9.2

%

 

$

4,776

 

6.7

%

 

$

(40,427)

 

(17.3)

%

 

$

10,509

 

5.1

%

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Non-GAAP Financial Measures:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Adjusted EBITDA (a)

 

$

30,910

    

38.3

%

 

$

26,459

    

36.9

%

 

$

87,381

 

37.5

%

 

$

75,561

    

36.8

%


(a)For an explanation of Adjusted EBITDA as a measure of the Company’s operating performance and a reconciliation to net income (loss), see “Non-GAAP Financial Measures”.

17


 

Three Months Ended September 30, 2015 compared to Three Months Ended September 30, 2014

Revenue

Revenue increased $9.0 million, or 12.6%, from $71.7 million for the three months ended September 30, 2014 to $80.7 million for the three months ended September 30, 2015. Revenue growth consisted of 11.6% organic growth and 1.0% acquisition growth. The acquisition of HPI contributed revenue of $726,000 in the third quarter of 2015. Organic growth was comprised of increased sales of patient experience solutions to new and existing clients and to a lesser extent sales of engagement and consulting solutions.

Operating Expenses

Cost of Revenue. Cost of revenue increased $4.2 million, or 13.6%, from $30.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2014 to $34.8 million for the three months ended September 30, 2015. As a percentage of revenue, cost of revenue increased from 42.7% in the 2014 period to 43.1% in the 2015 period.

Cost of revenue included stock-based compensation expense of $726,000 in the three months ended September 30, 2014 and $1.1 million in the three months ended September 30, 2015. The increase in stock-based compensation reflects the issuance of equity incentive grants as part of our IPO. Cost of revenue also included $60,000 of expenses associated with the discontinuance of certain clinical solutions and software applications in the 2014 period and $705,000 of severance in the 2015 period. Excluding these amounts, cost of revenue decreased as a percentage of revenue from 41.4% in the 2014 period to 40.9% in the 2015 period. The decrease was primarily the result of a higher proportion of lower cost electronic surveys for our patient experience solutions.

General and Administrative Expense.  General and administrative expense increased $4.8 million, or 26.8%, from $17.9 million for the three months ended September 30, 2014 to $22.7 million for the three months ended September 30, 2015. As a percentage of revenue, general and administrative expense increased from 25.0% in the 2014 period to 28.1% in the 2015 period.

General and administrative expense included stock-based compensation expense of $1.9 million in the three months ended September 30, 2014 and $5.4 million in the three months ended September 30, 2015. The increase in stock-based compensation primarily reflects the issuance of equity incentive grants as part of our IPO. General and administrative expense also included $264,000 and $116,000 of expenses associated with completed and potential acquisitions in the 2014 and 2015 periods, respectively, and $382,000 of expenses associated with preparations for our IPO and capital structure and strategic corporate planning in 2015. Excluding these amounts, general and administrative expenses decreased as a percentage of revenue from 21.8% in the 2014 period to 20.8% in the 2015 period. The decrease was primarily the result of the leveraging of general and administrative resources as a result of 11.6% organic growth.

Depreciation and Amortization Expense.  Depreciation and amortization expense increased $1.7 million, or 19.9%, from $8.8 million for the three months ended September 30, 2014 to $10.5 million for the three months ended September 30, 2015. Amortization expense associated with acquired intangible assets from business combinations was $4.2 million in the 2014 period and $4.1 million in the 2015 period. The increase was largely the result of depreciation of previously capitalized software development costs and new assets acquired under capital leases.

Loss (Gain) on Disposal of Property and Equipment.  We recorded a net loss on disposal of property and equipment of $504,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2014 and a nominal net loss for the three months ended September 30, 2015. The losses for the 2014 and 2015 periods were primarily the result of write-offs of certain software development projects.

18


 

Other Income (Expense)

Interest expense, net.  Interest expense, net decreased $3.1 million, or 66.7%, from $4.7 million for the three months ended September 30, 2014 to $1.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2015. The $3.1 million decrease was primarily due to lower average borrowings in 2015 as a result of principal repayments from the proceeds of our IPO, which resulted in interest savings of approximately $2.4 million, and lower average interest rates on our borrowings as a result of our debt refinancings, which resulted in interest savings of approximately $700,000.

Extinguishment of debt.  During the three months ended September 30, 2015, we repaid the remaining principal balance of $183.2 million on our First Lien Term Loan with proceeds from the new Term Loan under the 2015 Credit Agreement. The transaction resulted in a loss on extinguishment of debt of $1.1 million consisting of unamortized deferred financing fees of $995,000 and loss on original issue discount of $117,000.

Management fee of related party.  We paid a management fee of $230,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2014 to our majority shareholder. The management fee was no longer required after the effective date of the IPO in May 2015.

Provision for Income Taxes

Provision for income taxes decreased $1.6 million, or 37.4%, from $4.2 million for the three months ended September 30, 2014 to $2.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2015. The provision for income taxes for the three months ended September 30, 2015 and 2014 represents federal and state income tax expense for the periods.

For the three months ended September 30, 2014, our effective income tax rate was 46.6% as compared to 26.1% for the three months ended September 30, 2015. Our federal statutory income tax rate and state statutory rate, net of federal benefit, is approximately 42%. The 2014 effective tax rate of 46.6% is primarily due to nondeductible equity-based compensation expense. The 2015 effective tax rate of 26.1% reflects adjustments to reduce tax liabilities after a review of our future required tax payments and the impact of nondeductible equity-based compensation expense incurred in connection with the modification of equity awards as a result of our IPO (see Note 11 – Equity-Based Compensation in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for additional details).

Nine Months Ended September 30, 2015 compared to Nine Months Ended September 30, 2014

Revenue

Revenue increased $27.6 million, or 13.4%, from $205.5 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2014 to $233.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015. Revenue growth consisted of 10.7% organic growth and 2.7% acquisition growth. The acquisitions of HPI, NDNQI and DCS contributed incremental revenue of $5.7 million in 2015. Organic growth was comprised of increased sales of patient experience solutions to new and existing clients and to a lesser extent sales of engagement and consulting solutions.

Operating Expenses

Cost of Revenue.  Cost of revenue increased $22.0 million, or 25.2%, from $87.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2014 to $109.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015. As a percentage of revenue, cost of revenue increased from 42.5% for the 2014 period to 46.9% for the 2015 period.

19


 

Cost of revenue included stock-based compensation of $2.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2014 and $12.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015. The increase in stock-based compensation is primarily due to $10.1 million of stock-based compensation from the equity-based compensation modification related to the IPO (see Note 11 – Equity-Based Compensation in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for additional details). Cost of revenue also included $446,000 of expenses associated with the discontinuance of certain clinical solutions and software applications in 2014 and $705,000 of severance in 2015. Excluding these amounts, cost of revenue increased as a percentage of revenue from 41.1% for the 2014 period to 41.3% for the 2015 period. The change was primarily the result of increases in benefit costs and expenses associated with growing our consulting solutions. 

General and Administrative Expense.  General and administrative expense increased $67.8 million, or 129.7%, from $52.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2014 to $120.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015. As a percentage of revenue, general and administrative expense increased from 25.5% for the 2014 period to 51.5% for the 2015 period.

General and administrative included stock-based compensation expense of $5.5 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2014 and $69.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015. The increase in stock-based compensation is primarily due to $60.3 million of stock-based compensation from the equity-based compensation modification related to the IPO (see Note 11 – Equity-Based Compensation in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for additional details). General and administrative also included $332,000 and $319,000 of expenses associated with completed and potential acquisitions in 2014 and 2015, respectively, and $605,000 and $1.2 million of expenses associated with preparations for our IPO and capital structure and strategic corporate planning in 2014 and 2015, respectively. Excluding these amounts, general and administrative expenses decreased as a percentage of revenue from 22.3% for the 2014 period to 21.2% for the 2015 period. The decrease was primarily the result of the leveraging of general and administrative resources as a result of 10.7% organic growth.

Depreciation and Amortization Expense.  Depreciation and amortization expense increased $4.8 million, or 18.6%, from $25.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2014 to $30.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015. Amortization expense associated with acquired intangible assets from business combinations was $11.8 million for the 2014 period and $12.4 million for the 2015 period. The increase was largely the result of depreciation of previously capitalized software development costs and new assets acquired under capital leases.

Loss (Gain) on Disposal of Property and Equipment.  We recorded a loss on disposal of property and equipment of $1.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2014 and a net gain of $30,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2015. The loss in the 2014 period was the result of the consolidation of office locations and the write-off of certain software development projects. The net gain in the 2015 period was primarily the result of early termination of certain capital leases for equipment.

Other Income (Expense)

Interest expense, net.  Interest expense, net decreased $5.2 million, or 34.5%, from $15.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2014 to $9.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015. The $5.2 million decrease was primarily due to lower average borrowings in 2015 as a result of principal repayments from the proceeds of our IPO, which resulted in interest savings of approximately $3.0 million, and the payoff of our Second Lien Term Loan in May 2014, which resulted in interest savings of $1.3 million. Also contributing to the decrease were lower average interest rates on our borrowings as a result of our debt refinancings, which resulted in interest savings of approximately $700,000.

20


 

Extinguishment of debt.  During the nine months ended September 30, 2014, we repaid the remaining balance of our Second Lien Term Loan. The transaction resulted in a loss on extinguishment of debt of $2.9 million consisting of the write off of unamortized deferred financing fees of $1.5 million, payments of fees to lenders of $497,000 and loss on original issue discount of $921,000. During the nine months ended September 30, 2015, we prepaid $223.0 million of the principal balance on our First Lien Term Loan with proceeds from the IPO and then repaid the remaining principal balance of $183.2 million with proceeds from the new Term Loan under the 2015 Credit Agreement. The transactions resulted in a loss on extinguishment of debt of $1.7 million consisting of unamortized deferred financing fees of $1.5 million and loss on original issue discount of $265,000.

Management fee of related party.  We paid a management fee to our majority shareholder of $690,000 and $553,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2014 and 2015, respectively. The management fee was no longer required after the effective date of the IPO in May 2015.

Provision for Income Taxes

Provision for income taxes decreased $7.9 million, or 86.3%, from $9.2 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2014 to $1.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015. The provision for income taxes for the nine months ended September 30, 2015 and 2014 represents federal and state income tax expense for the periods.

For the nine months ended September 30, 2014, our effective income tax rate was 46.6% as compared to an effective income tax rate of 3.2% for the nine months ended September 30, 2015. Our federal statutory income tax rate and state statutory rate, net of federal benefit, is approximately 42%. The 2014 effective tax rate of 46.6% is primarily due to nondeductible equity-based compensation expense. The 2015 effective tax rate of 3.2% primarily reflects our expected net loss position for the full year of 2015 and the inability to realize a tax benefit from the nondeductible equity-based compensation expense incurred in connection with the modification of equity awards as a result of our IPO (see Note 11 – Equity-Based Compensation in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for additional details).

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

We define Adjusted EBITDA as net income (loss) before interest expense, net, income taxes and depreciation and amortization, with further adjustments to add back (i) items that terminated in connection with the IPO, (ii) non-cash charges, (iii) items that are not indicative of the underlying operating performance of the business and (iv) items that are solely related to changes in our capital structure, and therefore are not indicative of the underlying operating performance of the business.

Management uses Adjusted EBITDA (i) to compare our operating performance on a consistent basis, (ii) to calculate incentive compensation for our employees, (iii) for planning purposes, including the preparation of our internal annual operating budget, (iv) to evaluate the performance and effectiveness of our operational strategies and (v) to assess compliance with various metrics associated with the agreements governing our indebtedness. We also believe that Adjusted EBITDA is useful to investors in assessing our financial performance because this measure is similar to the metrics used by investors and other interested parties when comparing companies in our industry that have different capital structures, debt levels and/or income tax rates. Accordingly, we believe that Adjusted EBITDA provides useful information to investors and others in understanding and evaluating our operating performance in the same manner as our management.

21


 

Adjusted EBITDA is not determined in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, and should not be considered in isolation or as an alternative to net income, income from operations, net cash provided by operating, investing or financing activities or other financial statement data presented as indicators of financial performance or liquidity, each as presented in accordance with GAAP. The table below presents information for the periods indicated about our Adjusted EBITDA. A reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures is provided in the table below (in thousands).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Three Months Ended

 

Nine Months Ended

 

 

 

September 30, 

 

September 30, 

 

 

 

2015

    

2014

    

2015

    

2014

 

Net income (loss)

  

$

7,416

  

$

4,776

  

$

(40,427)

  

$

10,509

 

Interest expense

 

 

1,567

 

 

4,706

 

 

9,921

 

 

15,136

 

Income tax expense

 

 

2,614

 

 

4,174

 

 

1,254

 

 

9,185

 

Depreciation and amortization

 

 

10,528

 

 

8,779

 

 

30,624

 

 

25,825

 

EBITDA 

 

$

22,125

 

$

22,435

 

$

1,372

 

$

60,655

 

Equity-based compensation(a) 

 

 

6,469

 

 

2,658

 

 

81,466

 

 

7,565

 

Extinguishment of debt(b) 

 

 

1,112

 

 

8

 

 

1,750

 

 

2,894

 

Management fee to related party(c) 

 

 

 —

 

 

230

 

 

553

 

 

690

 

Acquisition expenses(d) 

 

 

116

 

 

264

 

 

319

 

 

332

 

Severance(e) 

 

 

705

 

 

 —

 

 

705

 

 

 —

 

Loss (gain) on disposal of property and equipment

 

 

1

 

 

504

 

 

(30)

 

 

1,595

 

Other non-comparable items(f)

 

 

382

 

 

360

 

 

1,246

 

 

1,830

 

Adjusted EBITDA 

 

$

30,910

 

$

26,459

 

$

87,381

 

$

75,561

 

 


(a)Equity-based compensation expense associated with (i) the modification of existing equity awards and forgiveness of loans associated with certain equity awards in connection with our IPO and the liquidating distribution of PG Holdco, LLC, and (ii) equity awards at the time of our IPO and subsequent equity awards granted to attract and retain employees. See Note 11 – Equity-Based Compensation in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for classification of equity-based compensation on the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations for the periods indicated.

(b)Write‑off of unamortized deferred financing fees, loss on original issuance discount and lender fees in connection with debt refinancings. See “Refinancings.”

(c)Fees paid to our majority owner under a management agreement prior to our IPO. The management agreement was terminated upon the closing of the IPO. See Note 10 – Related Party Transactions in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for additional details.

(d)Transaction costs incurred in connection with completed and potential acquisitions. See “Acquisitions.”

(e)Expense associated with executive separation agreements and targeted employee headcount reductions.

(f)Other non‑comparable items include costs incurred in connection with our IPO, professional fees incurred in connection with capital structure and strategic corporate planning and revenue credits and expenses related to client retention due to the discontinuation of certain clinical solutions and software applications. We believe that these expenses are not comparable as they relate to individual projects and initiatives. As a result, we believe they should be excluded from Adjusted EBITDA in order to enable investors and other interested parties to more effectively assess our period‑over‑period and ongoing operating performance.

22


 

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Overview

Our principal uses of cash are to meet working capital requirements, fund debt obligations, finance capital expenditures and fund strategic acquisitions. In addition, we expect to use cash to support our growth strategy and expenses that we expect to incur as a public company. Our principal sources of funds are cash flows from operating activities and available borrowings under our Revolver.

As of September 30, 2015, we had cash of $23.8 million and $74.9 million of available borrowings under our Revolver (after giving effect to a $65,000 letter of credit outstanding under our Revolver). As of September 30, 2015, we had $193.2 million of outstanding indebtedness (which includes capital leases).

We believe that our cash flows from operations, cash on hand and available borrowings under our Revolver will be sufficient to meet our liquidity needs during the next twelve months and beyond. We anticipate that to the extent that we require additional liquidity, it will be funded through the incurrence of indebtedness, including borrowings under our Revolver, equity financings or a combination thereof. It is not guaranteed that we will be able to obtain this additional liquidity on reasonable terms, or at all. Our liquidity and our ability to meet our obligations and fund our capital requirements are also dependent on our future financial performance, which is subject to general economic, financial and other factors that are beyond our control. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that our business will generate sufficient cash flow from operations or that future borrowings will be available under our senior secured credit facilities or otherwise to meet our liquidity needs. If we decide to pursue one or more significant acquisitions, we may incur additional debt or sell additional equity to finance such acquisitions.

Cash Flows

The following table presents a summary of our cash flow for the periods indicated (in thousands):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nine months ended September 30, 

 

 

 

2015

 

2014

 

Net cash provided by operating activities

  

$

66,315

  

$

39,534

 

Net cash used in investing activities

 

 

(32,625)

 

 

(40,024)

 

Net cash used in financing activities

 

 

(16,859)

 

 

(26,896)

 

Net increase (decrease) in cash

 

$

16,831

 

$

(27,386)

 

Operating Activities

Cash provided by operating activities consisted of net income adjusted for certain non‑cash items, including depreciation and amortization, equity‑based compensation, extinguishment of debt, and deferred income taxes, as well as the effect of changes in working capital and other activities.

For the nine months ended September 30, 2014 and 2015, cash provided by operating activities amounted to $39.5 million and $66.3 million, respectively. In 2014, cash provided by operations primarily resulted from net earnings after adding back non-cash items offset by an increase in net working capital of $9.8 million. In 2015, cash provided by operations primarily resulted from net earnings after adding back non-cash items offset by an increase in net working capital of $2.1 million. The increase in cash flow from operations in 2015 as compared to the same period in 2014 is due to an increase in profitability after adjusting for non-cash expenses, a decrease in cash interest expense as a result of repayment of principal using proceeds from our IPO and refinancing our credit facilities at lower interest rates and to a lesser extent an improvement in net working capital. Net working capital improved because of an increase in deferred revenue as a result of revenue growth. We typically bill and receive funds from clients in advance of services provided.

23


 

Investing Activities

Our primary investing activities relate to acquisitions and purchases of property and equipment, which includes investments in capitalized computer software development costs, facilities and equipment.

For the nine months ended September 30, 2014 and 2015, cash used in investing activities amounted to $40.0 million and $32.6 million, respectively. Cash paid for acquisitions, net of cash acquired was $27.8 million in 2014 and included the acquisitions of NDNQI and DCS and $11.7 million in 2015 and included the acquisition of HPI. In 2014, purchases of property and equipment were $12.2 million and included $10.7 million of capitalized software development costs and $1.5 million of equipment and facilities. In 2015, purchases of property and equipment were $20.9 million and included $20.1 million of capitalized software development costs and $820,000 of equipment and facilities. Capitalized software development costs increased in 2015 from greater investments in software development and technology projects.

Financing Activities

Our primary financing activities consisted of borrowings under our credit facilities, payments on our long‑term debt and capital leases, repurchases of equity interests and proceeds from sales of equity units by our parent to employees, which were subsequently contributed to our equity. Additionally, financing activities include proceeds from our IPO, distributions related to our IPO and withholding of shares to satisfy employee tax withholding related to vested restricted stock units.

For the nine months ended September 30, 2014 and 2015, cash used in financing activities amounted to $26.9 million and $16.9 million, respectively. In 2014, we used borrowings and our cash balances to fund operations after investing activities of $490,000, payments on indebtedness of $63.6 million and other financing activities related primarily to equity-related expenses and payments on capital leases. In 2015, we used cash generated from operations after investing activities of $33.7 million along with $234.4 million raised from our IPO in May 2015 primarily to reduce our borrowings and to fund minimum employee tax withholdings for accelerated vesting of employee equity incentives as a result of our IPO, a final IPO-related distribution payment to our majority shareholder and payments on capital lease obligations. In 2015, we also incurred fees and payments related to entering into a new secured credit facility and used borrowings under this credit facility to retire our previous credit facility.

Credit Facilities

See Note 7 – Revolving Line of Credit and Long-Term Debt in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for a description of our credit facilities.

Contractual Obligations and Commitments

Our contractual obligations and commitments as of September 30, 2015 are summarized in the table below (in thousands).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2015

 

2016

 

2017

 

2018

 

2019

 

Thereafter

 

Total

 

Long-term debt(a) 

  

$

3,242

  

$

12,840

  

$

12,645

  

$

12,460

  

$

12,275

  

$

147,367

  

$

200,829

 

Capital lease obligations

 

 

2,043

 

 

5,147

 

 

3,052

 

 

788

 

 

477

 

 

40

 

 

11,547

 

Operating lease obligations(b) 

 

 

738

 

 

3,076

 

 

2,366

 

 

1,221

 

 

1,129

 

 

695

 

 

9,225

 

Total

 

$

6,023

 

$

21,063

 

$

18,063

 

$

14,469

 

$

13,881

 

$

148,102

 

$

221,601

 

 


(a)Represents the principal amount of our long‑term debt, including current portion, and the expected cash payments for interest based on the interest rates in place and amounts outstanding as of September 30, 2015.

(b)For a more detailed description of our operating leases, see Note 9 – Leases in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in our prospectus filed with the SEC on May 22, 2015 pursuant to Rule 424(b)(4) under the Securities Act.

24


 

Off‑Balance Sheet Arrangements

As of September 30, 2015, we do not have any off‑balance sheet transactions or interests.

Application of Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations is based upon our Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements, which have been prepared using accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. Our significant accounting policies are discussed in Note 2 – Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in our prospectus filed with the SEC on May 22, 2015 pursuant to Rule 424(b)(4) under the Securities Act, and in Note 2 – Summary of Significant Accounting Policies, in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements included in Item 1. The preparation of these financial statements requires management to make estimates and assumptions that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions. If actual amounts are ultimately different from previous estimates, the revisions are included in our results of operations for the period in which the actual amounts become known.

An accounting policy is deemed to be critical if it requires an accounting estimate to be made based on assumptions about matters that are highly uncertain at the time the estimate is made, and if different estimates that reasonably could have been used, or if changes in the accounting estimates that are reasonably likely to occur periodically, could materially impact the financial statements. Management believes its critical accounting policies that reflect its more significant estimates and assumptions relate to revenue recognition, property and equipment, goodwill and intangible assets, and equity-based compensation. See “Critical Accounting Policies” in Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations included in our prospectus filed with the SEC on May 22, 2015 pursuant to Rule 424(b)(4) under the Securities Act.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

In May 2014, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2014 09 (“ASU 2014-09”), “Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606).” ASU 2014-09 requires an entity to recognize the amount of revenue to which it expects to be entitled for the transfer of promised goods or services to customers. ASU 2014-09 will replace most existing revenue recognition guidance under GAAP when it becomes effective. In August 2015, the FASB deferred the effective date by one year to annual and interim reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017. The FASB is permitting early adoption of the standard, but not until annual and interim reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2016, the original effective date. An entity may choose to adopt ASU 2014-09 either retrospectively or through a cumulative effect adjustment as of the start of the first period for which it applies the standard. We are currently in the process of evaluating the impact that this new guidance will have on our consolidated financial statements and our method of adoption.

In April 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015-05, “Customer’s Accounting for Fees Paid in a Cloud Computing Arrangement”. This ASU provides guidance to customers about whether a cloud computing arrangement includes a software license. If a cloud computing arrangement includes a software license, then the customer should account for the software license element of the arrangement consistent with the acquisition of other software licenses. If a cloud computing arrangement does not include a software license, the customer should account for the arrangement as a service contract. In addition, this update changes the accounting for software licenses to be consistent with other licenses of intangible assets. This standard is effective for annual and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2015, with early adoption permitted. An entity may choose to adopt this ASU either retrospectively or prospectively to all arrangements entered into or materially modified after the effective date. We are currently in the process of evaluating the impact the adoption of this standard will have on our consolidated financial statements and our method of adoption.

25


 

In April 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015-03, “Simplifying the Presentation of Debt Issuance Costs.” This ASU requires that debt issuance costs related to a recognized debt liability be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of that debt liability, consistent with debt discounts. This standard is effective for annual and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2015, with early adoption permitted. We adopted ASU 2015-03 during the three months ended September 30, 2015 and prior period amounts were reclassified to conform to the current period presentation. As of December 31, 2014, debt issuance costs of $977,000 were reclassified from deferred financing fees, net to long-term debt, less current portion on the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet. The adoption of ASU 2015-03 did not impact our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In August 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015-15, “Presentation and Subsequent Measurement of Debt Issuance Costs Associated with Line-of-Credit Arrangements”. This ASU added an SEC paragraph addressing the presentation of debt issuance costs related to line-of-credit arrangements since ASU 2015-03 does not address presentation or subsequent measurement of debt issuance costs related to line-of-credit arrangements. Given the absence of authoritative guidance within ASU 2015-03 for debt issuance costs related to line-of-credit arrangements, the SEC staff does not object to an entity deferring and presenting debt issuance costs as an asset and subsequently amortizing the deferred debt issuance costs ratably over the term of the line-of-credit arrangement, regardless of whether there are any outstanding borrowings on the line-of-credit arrangement. We adopted ASU 2015-15 during the three months ended September 30, 2015. There were no adjustments to the presentation of debt issuance costs relating to the line-of-credit arrangement and no impact on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows upon adoption of the new standard.

In September 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015-16, “Simplifying the Accounting for Measurement-Period Adjustments”. This ASU requires that an acquirer recognize adjustments to provisional amounts that are identified during the measurement period in the reporting period in which the adjustment amounts are determined. The amendments in this ASU require that the acquirer record, in the same period’s financial statements, the effect on earnings of changes in depreciation, amortization, or other income effects, if any, as a result of the change to the provisional amounts, calculated as if the accounting had been completed at the acquisition date. This standard is effective for annual and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2015, with early adoption permitted. We are currently in the process of evaluating the impact the adoption of this standard will have on our consolidated financial statements.

Emerging Growth Company

We qualify as an “emerging growth company” pursuant to the provisions of the JOBS Act and we could remain an “emerging growth company” until as late as December 31, 2020. For as long as we are an emerging growth company, we may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies, including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our annual reports and proxy statements.

In addition, the JOBS Act provides that an emerging growth company can take advantage of an extended transition period for complying with new or revised accounting standards. We have irrevocably elected not to avail ourselves of this exemption and, therefore, we will be subject to the same new or revised accounting standards as other public companies that are not emerging growth companies.

26


 

Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk

Interest Rate Risk

We are subject to interest rate risk in connection with our long‑term indebtedness. Our primary interest rate exposure relates to loans outstanding under our Term Loan and Revolver. All outstanding indebtedness under the Term Loan and Revolver bears interest at a variable rate. Each quarter point change in interest rates on such indebtedness under our Term Loan would result in a change of $468,000 to our interest expense on an annual basis, based on our outstanding balance of $185.0 million (exclusive of the deferred financing fees) at September 30, 2015. There were no borrowings under the Revolver at September 30, 2015. Assuming the $74.9 million of current borrowing capacity were drawn under the Revolver, a hypothetical quarter point change in interest rates on such variable rate debt would change our annual interest expense by $187,000.

 

Item 4. Controls and Procedures

Disclosure Controls and Procedures

Under the direction of our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, we evaluated our disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting and concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of the end of the period covered by this report.

Changes in Internal Control

There have been no changes in our internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the fiscal quarter to which this report relates that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

 

PART II—OTHER INFORMATION

Item 1. Legal Proceedings

From time to time, we may be involved in various legal proceedings and subject to claims that arise in the ordinary course of business. Although the results of litigation and claims are inherently unpredictable and uncertain, we are not currently a party to any legal proceedings the outcome of which, if determined adversely to us, are believed to, either individually or taken together, have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, cash flows or financial condition. Regardless of the outcome, litigation has the potential to have an adverse impact on us because of defense and settlement costs, diversion of management resources, and other factors.

 

Item 1A. Risk Factors

There have been no material changes to the risk factors previously disclosed in “Risk Factors” included in our prospectus filed with the SEC on May 22, 2015 pursuant to Rule 424(b)(4) under the Securities Act.

 

Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds

Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities

None.

27


 

Use of Proceeds from Registered Securities

On May 27, 2015, we completed our IPO of 8,900,000 shares of common stock and, upon the underwriters’ exercise of their option to purchase additional shares, issued an additional 1,335,000 shares for a total of 10,235,000 shares issued at an offering price of $25.00 per share. Proceeds from the IPO were approximately $234.4 million, net of underwriting discounts and commissions and offering-related transaction costs incurred. All of the shares were sold pursuant to our registration statement on Form S-1, as amended (File No. 333-203248), that was declared effective by the SEC on May 20, 2015. Our common stock is currently traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “PGND”.

There has been no material change in the planned use of proceeds from our initial public offering as described in our final prospectus filed with SEC on May 22, 2015 pursuant to Rule 424(b)(4) under the Securities Act. We used a portion of the additional proceeds from the underwriters’ option to purchase additional shares from us to repay $48.0 million in principal of borrowings outstanding under our First Lien Term Loan.

 

Item 6. Exhibit Index

 

 

 

 

Exhibit
Number

 

Description of Exhibit

 

10.1*

 

Credit Agreement dated July 31, 2015, by and among Press Ganey Holdings, Inc., Barclays Bank PLC, as administrative agent and collateral agent, and the other lenders party thereto (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on August 3, 2015)

 

10.2 

 

Letter Agreement dated August 21, 2015, by and between Press Ganey Holdings, Inc. and Matthew W. Hallgren

 

10.3 

 

Employment Agreement effective August 31, 2015, by and between Press Ganey Holdings, Inc. and Breht T. Feigh

 

31.1 

 

Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

 

31.2 

 

Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

 

32.1 

 

Certifications of Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer pursuant to U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

 

101.INS

 

XBRL Instance Document

 

101.SCH

 

XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document

 

101.CAL

 

XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document

 

101.DEF

 

XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document

 

101.LAB

 

XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document

 

101.PRE

 

XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document

 

* Previously filed.

 

28


 

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.

 

 

 

 

PRESS GANEY HOLDINGS, INC.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 5, 2015

 

By:

/S/ PATRICK T. RYAN

 

 

Name:

Patrick T. Ryan

 

 

Title:

Chief Executive Officer

 

 

 

 

November 5, 2015

 

By:

/S/ BREHT T. FEIGH

 

 

Name:

Breht T. Feigh

 

 

Title:

Chief Financial Officer

 

29




EXHIBIT 10.2

Picture 1

 

August 21, 2015

 

Mr. Matthew Hallgren

One North Franklin, Suite 3400

Chicago, IL 60606

 

Dear Matt:

 

This letter (the “Letter Agreement”) will confirm our agreement regarding your employment with Press Ganey Holdings, Inc. (the “Company”).

 

As you may be aware, in connection with the commencement of your employment, you were provided with an offer letter, dated March 28, 2014, as supplemented by a written confirmation of a salary increase dated July 20, 2014 and a written confirmation of promotion dated October 28, 2014 (collectively, the “Offer Letter”). Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Offer Letter, (x) effective August 31, 2015, your title will be Senior Vice President, Finance and you will be reporting to the Chief Financial Officer and (y) your base salary will be $200,000 annually (the “Base Salary”). With respect to each full calendar year while employed by the Company, you will be eligible to earn an annual target bonus award of up to thirty percent (30%) of your Base Salary (the “Target Bonus”), based upon and subject to the achievement of performance goals, which bonus, if any, is payable in accordance with and subject to the terms and conditions of the Company’s bonus plan.

 

In addition to the foregoing, in the event that your employment is terminated by the Company without Cause (as defined below) (other than due to death or disability) on or prior to August 31, 2016, subject to(x) your continued compliance with the restrictive covenants by which you are bound, (y) your returning on the date of your employment termination any and all property of the Company or its affiliates in your possession or control and (z) your execution and delivery of a general release of claims against the Company and its affiliates in a form acceptable to the Company (“Release”), on or prior to the sixtieth (60th ) day following the date of your termination of employment and your non-revocation of such Release within the time period provided therein (clauses (x), (y) and (z), collectively, the “Conditions”), the Company shall pay you an aggregate gross amount equal to $100,000 in the manner set forth below, which amount is equal to six (6) months of your current annual base salary (the “Severance Payment”), less any applicable withholding or other taxes.

 

The first installment of the Severance Payment, which amount is payable in twelve (12) equal installments in accordance with the Company’s usual payroll practices, will be paid to you on the first regular payroll date that occurs immediately following the date of termination; provided, however, that the Company shall have the right to cease making such payments and you shall be obligated to repay to the Company any such amounts already paid if (i) you fail to execute and deliver the Release within the time period provided therein or, after timely delivery, you revoke the Release within the time period specified in such Release, or (ii) you breach your obligations under any agreement containing restrictive covenants by which you are bound.

 

 

 

 

 


 

 

For purposes of this Letter Agreement, the term “Cause” shall mean (i) the commission by you of an act of fraud or embezzlement, (ii) your indictment or conviction for or plea of guilty or nolo contendere to (x) a felony or (y) a crime involving moral turpitude, (iii) negligence or willful or intentional misconduct by you in the performance of your duties, including any willful or intentional misrepresentation or willful or intentional concealment by you on any report  submitted to the Company (or any of its affiliates) which the Chief Executive Officer of the Company (the “CEO”) in his reasonable discretion determines is materially detrimental to the best interests of the Company and its affiliates, (iv) the violation by you of a company policy regarding substance abuse, sexual harassment or discrimination or any other material policy of the Company or any of its affiliates regarding employment that the CEO in his reasonable discretion determines is materially detrimental to the best interests of the Company and its affiliates, (v) your willful or intentional refusal or repeated failure, following notice from the Company, to render services to the Company or any of its affiliates in accordance with your employment (other than as a result of incapacity due to physical or mental illness), (vi) your willful or intentional refusal or repeated failure, following notice from the Company, to comply with reasonable directives of the Board of Directors of the Company, the Board of Directors of any affiliate of the Company, the CEO or the General Counsel of the Company consistent with your duties, (vii) any act or omission that constitutes a material breach by you of any of the provisions of any agreement between you, on the one hand, and the Company or an affiliate of the Company, on the other hand, or (viii) any other willful or intentional misconduct by you which is materially injurious to the financial condition or business reputation of, or is otherwise, materially injurious to the Company or any of its affiliates.

 

In addition to the Severance Payment, subject to the Conditions, should you timely elect to continue coverage under the Company’s group health plans pursuant to the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985, as amended (“COBRA”), the Company agrees to pay the COBRA premiums for your medical, dental and vision coverage for a period of six (6) months from the termination date (such payment, the “COBRA Payment” and such period, the “COBRA Reimbursement Period”), in order for you to maintain health insurance coverage that is substantially equivalent to your coverage immediately prior to the termination date. Should you obtain employment with  an  employer  who provides health insurance benefits during the COBRA Reimbursement Period, the Company’s obligation to provide you the COBRA Payment shall forever cease upon the expiration of the waiting period (if any) for entitlement to insurance coverage through your new employer. You agree to notify the Company in writing in the event that you obtain employment before the end of the COBRA Reimbursement Period. In any event, and notwithstanding any provision to the contrary herein, the Company shall have no obligation to make any payments for COBRA premiums paid for health insurance coverage beyond the expiration of the COBRA Reimbursement Period. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the Company determines that it cannot provide the COBRA Payment without potentially violating applicable law or incurring an excise tax, the Company shall in lieu thereof provide you a taxable monthly payment in an amount equal to the monthly COBRA premium that you would be required to pay to continue your and your covered dependents’ group medical, dental and visions coverage in effect on the date of termination (which amount shall be based on the premium for the first month of COBRA coverage), which payment shall commence in the month following the month in which the date of termination occurs and shall end on the earliest of (X) the last day of the COBRA Reimbursement Period, (Y) the date that you and/or your covered dependents become no longer eligible for COBRA and (Z) the date you becomes eligible to receive health insurance coverage from a subsequent employer.

 

Upon termination of your employment for any reason, you (or your estate) will be entitled to receive (i) any unpaid Base Salary earned through the date of termination, (ii) any expenses owed to you pursuant to the Company’s business expense reimbursement policy and (iii) any amounts accrued and arising from your participation in or benefits accrued under any employee benefit plan, program or arrangement, subject to and payable in accordance with the terms and conditions of such employee benefit plans, programs or arrangements. Except as otherwise required by law, the payments described in this Letter Agreement will be the only payments and benefits you will receive upon or following a termination of your employment, and you  agree you are not entitled to any additional payments, rights or benefits not otherwise described in this Letter Agreement. You hereby acknowledge and agree that you are not eligible to be a participant in any severance plan of the Company. Any payments received under this Letter Agreement will not be taken into account for purposes of determining benefits under any employee benefit plan of the Company, except to the extent required by law, or as otherwise expressly provided by the terms of such plan.

2


 

 

 

Notwithstanding any other provision of this Letter Agreement, any payments hereunder will be subject to the withholding of such amounts, if any, relating to tax and other payroll deductions as the Company reasonably determines it should withhold pursuant to any applicable law or regulation.

 

This Letter Agreement is intended to comply with Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (“Section 409A”) and will be interpreted accordingly. References under this Letter Agreement to your termination of employment shall be deemed to refer to the date upon which you experienced a “separation from service” within the meaning of Section 409A (a “Separation from Service”). Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, if any payment of money or benefits due to you hereunder could cause the application of an accelerated or additional tax under Section 409A, such payments or benefits shall be deferred if deferral will make such payment or benefits compliant under Section 409A, or otherwise such payment or benefits shall be restructured, to the extent possible, in a manner determined by the Company that does not cause such an accelerated or additional tax. To the extent any reimbursements or in-kind benefits due to you under this Letter Agreement constitute “non- qualified deferred compensation” under Section 409A, any such reimbursements or in-kind benefits shall be paid to you in a manner consistent with Treasury Regulation Section 1.409A-3(i)(1)(iv). For purposes of Section 409A, each payment made under this Letter Agreement will be designated as a “separate payment” within the meaning of Section 409A. Notwithstanding anything in herein to the contrary, if you are deemed by the Company at the time of your Separation from Service to be a  “specified employee” for purposes of Section 409A, to the extent delayed commencement of any portion of the benefits to which you are entitled under this Letter Agreement is required in order to avoid a prohibited distribution under Section 409A, such portion of your benefits shall not be provided to you prior to the earlier of (i) the expiration of the six-month period measured from the date of your Separation from Service or (ii) the date of your death. Upon the first business day following the expiration of the foregoing period, all payments deferred pursuant to the preceding sentence shall be paid in a lump sum to you (or your estate or beneficiaries), and any remaining payments due to you under this Letter Agreement will be paid as otherwise provided herein. The Company shall consult with you in good faith regarding the implementation of the provisions of this paragraph; provided that neither the Company nor any of its employees or representatives shall have any liability to you with respect to thereto.

 

This Letter Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between you and the Company and supersedes all other prior agreements between the parties related to the subject matter contained herein.

 

The validity, interpretation, construction and performance of this Letter Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Delaware without regard to its principles of conflicts of law that would result in the application of the laws of a jurisdiction other than the State of Delaware.

 

This Letter Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts, each of which will be deemed to be an original but all of which together will constitute one and the same instrument.

 

[The remainder of this page intentionally left blank.]

 

 

3


 

 

If the foregoing terms and conditions are acceptable and agreed to by you, please sign on the line provided below to signify such acceptance and return the executed copy to the undersigned.

 

 

 

  PRESS GANEY ASSOCIATES, INC.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  By:

/s/ DEVIN J. ANDERSON

 

  Name:

Devin J. Anderson

 

  Title:

General Counsel and Corporate Secretary

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  Accepted and agreed:

 

 

 

 

 

  /s/ MATTHEW W. HALLGREN

 

 

  Matthew Hallgren

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4




Exhibit 10.3

 

 

EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT

(Breht T. Feigh)

 

EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT (the Agreement”) dated as of August  6th, between PRESS GANEY ASSOCIATES, INC., an Indiana corporation (the Company”) and BREHT T. FEIGH (the Employee”).

 

WHEREAS, the Company desires to employ the Employee commencing August 31, 2015 (the Effective Date”) and to enter into an agreement embodying the terms of such employment; and

 

WHEREAS, the Employee desires to be employed by the Company and enter into such agreement.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual agreements, provisions and covenants contained herein, and intending to be legally bound hereby, the parties hereto agree as follows:

 

1. Term.

 

(a) The term of the Employee’s employment with the Company under this Agreement shall commence on the Effective Date and shall continue until the fourth (4th) anniversary of the Effective Date (the Expiration Date”) (such period, the Initial Term”);  provided, however, that commencing on the Expiration Date and on each anniversary of the Expiration Date thereafter, unless either party hereto gives the other party at least six (6) weeks’ prior written notice of its or his election not to extend the period of the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, hereunder, the term shall automatically be extended for an additional one-year period on the same terms and conditions set forth herein, unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties hereto (each such extension,  a Renewal Term”);  provided further, however, that the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, under this Agreement may be terminated pursuant to the provisions of Section 4 at any time prior to the expiration of the Initial Term or any then current Renewal Term.  The period commencing on the Effective Date and ending on the date of termination of the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, under this Agreement is referred to herein as the Term”.

 

(b) The Employee agrees and acknowledges that the Company has no obligation to provide for any Renewal Term or to continue the Employee’s employment after expiration of the Initial Term or any then current Renewal Term, and the Employee expressly acknowledges that no promises or understandings to the contrary have been made or reached.

 

2. Duties and Responsibilities.

 

(a) During the Term, the Employee agrees to perform the Employee’s exclusive services for the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, upon the terms and conditions of this Agreement.  The Employee shall render the Employee’s services hereunder as Chief Financial Officer, reporting to the Company’s Chief Executive Officer.  The Employee shall have the duties, responsibilities and authority as are determined from time to time by the Company and the Employee shall perform the services requested from time to time by the Company commensurate with the Employee’s status and consistent with the Employee’s position as in

 

 


 

effect from time to time hereunder.

 

(b) During the Term, the Employee acknowledges that the Employee’s duties and responsibilities shall require the Employee to travel on business to the extent necessary to fully perform the Employee’s duties hereunder.

 

(c) During the Term, the Employee shall devote all of the Employee’s business time, energy and skill to the business of the Company and its affiliates and the performance of the Employee’s duties hereunder, and shall use the Employee’s best efforts to faithfully and diligently serve the Company and its affiliates. During the Term, the Employee shall not, without the prior written consent of the Company, engage in any other business, profession or occupation, whether or not pursued for gain, profit or other pecuniary advantage, and shall not accept employment with, or provide services as a consultant or in any other capacity for, any person or entity other than the Company and its affiliates; provided, however, that the Employee shall be permitted to participate in such charitable and community related services as the Employee may choose, which do not, singularly or in the aggregate, conflict or interfere with the Employee’s duties hereunder and are not in conflict with the interests of the Company and its affiliates or violate Section 6 or 7.

 

3. Compensation and Related Matters.

 

(a) Base Salary. During the Term, for all services rendered under this Agreement, the Company shall pay the Employee a base salary (“Base Salary”), payable in accordance with the Company’s applicable payroll practices, at an annual rate of $300,000, which base salary shall thereafter be subject to annual review and increase (but not decrease) at the discretion of the board of directors of the Company (the Board”).  References in this Agreement to “Base Salary” shall be deemed to refer to the most recently effective annual base salary rate.

 

(b) Incentive Compensation. With respect to the 2015 calendar year and each subsequent full calendar year during the Term (each,  a Bonus Year”), the Employee shall be eligible to earn an annual bonus award (the Annual Bonus”) of up to eighty percent (80%) of Base Salary, based upon and subject to the achievement of performance goals, which goals shall be established in good faith by the compensation committee of the Board within the first three months of each Bonus Year during the Term.    With respect to the 2015 calendar year, the Annual Bonus shall be calculated on a prorated basis based upon the amount of Base Salary paid through December 31, 2015. The Annual Bonus, if any, shall be paid to the Employee during the calendar year immediately following the relevant Bonus Year following the Company’s receipt of the final audited financial statements from the Company’s accounting firm in respect of the relevant Bonus Year, but not later than March 15th of such calendar year or such later date on which bonuses are paid to other senior executives of the Company generally; provided that the Employee is employed by the Company on December 31 of the applicable Bonus Year.  None of the bonuses provided for under this Section 3(b) are guaranteed bonuses or any other form of guaranteed compensation.

 

(c) Benefits and PerquisitesDuring the Term, the Employee shall be provided, in accordance with the terms of the Company’s employee benefit plans as in effect from time to time, with employee benefits and perquisites on the same basis as those benefits are generally made available to other senior executives of the Company.

 

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(d) Expense Reimbursements. During the Term, the Company shall reimburse the Employee for the Employee’s reasonable and necessary business expenses in accordance with its then prevailing policy for senior executives (which shall include appropriate itemization and substantiation of expenses incurred).

 

4. Termination of Services; Obligations Upon Termination.

 

(a) Generally.  The Employee’s employment may be terminated by either party at any time and for any reason, and without any advance notice; provided, however, that the Employee shall be required to give the Company at least six (6) weeks’ advance written notice of any voluntary termination of the Employee’s employment (which, for the avoidance of doubt, shall not include a termination of employment by the Employee for Good Reason).  Following any termination of the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, hereunder, notwithstanding any provision to the contrary in this Agreement, the obligations of the Company to pay or provide the Employee with compensation and benefits under Section 3 shall cease, and except as otherwise expressly provided in this Section 4, the Company shall have no further obligations to the Employee hereunder except (i) payment (within thirty (30) days following the date of the termination of the Employee’s employment hereunder) of any Base Salary accrued through the date of termination, to the extent unpaid, (ii) except in the case of termination of the Employee’s employment by the Company for Cause, payment of any Annual Bonus earned for the Bonus Year prior to the year in which the date of termination of employment occurs, to the extent unpaid, such payment to be made in accordance with Section 3(b), (iii) reimbursement of any unreimbursed business expenses properly incurred by the Employee prior to the date of termination of employment in accordance with Company policy and (iv) as set forth in any benefit plans, programs or arrangements in which the Employee participates (the amounts described in clauses (i) through (iv), as applicable, of this Section 4(a) being referred to herein as the Accrued Rights”).

 

(b) Termination by the Company Without Cause (Other Than Due to Disability or Death) or by the Employee for Good Reason.

 

(i) If the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, hereunder is terminated by (A) the Company for any reason other than (1) Cause, (2) Disability or (3) the Employee’s death or (B) the Employee for Good Reason, then in addition to the Accrued Rights, subject to the Employee’s continued compliance with Sections 6 and 7 and the Employee’s execution and delivery of a general release of claims against the Company and its affiliates in substantially the form attached as Exhibit  B hereto (the Release”), on or after the date of Employee’s termination of employment and not later than the sixtieth (60th) day following the date of the Employee’s termination of employment and his non-revocation of such Release within the time period provided therein, the Company shall pay the Employee (x) an amount equal to the Annual Bonus, if any, earned for the Bonus Year in which the date of termination of employment occurs, which bonus would otherwise be payable to the Employee if his employment had not terminated (as determined following the end of such Bonus Year based on the actual full-year performance of the Company in such Bonus Year), multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which is the number of days the Employee was employed hereunder in such year and the 

 

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denominator of which is 365 (to the extent applicable, the Pro-Rata Bonus”), which amount is payable in accordance with Section 3(b), (y) an amount equal to the sum of (I) the Employee’s Base Salary at the rate in effect on the date of termination and (II) the amount of the Employee’s Annual Bonus, if any, earned (regardless of whether paid), in respect of the Bonus Year immediately preceding the year of termination (the Severance Amount”), which Severance Amount is payable in equal installments in accordance with the Company’s usual payment practices over  a twelve (12) month period commencing on the day immediately following the date of termination (such period, the Severance Period”) and (z) an amount equal to one and a half (1.5) times the Company’s cost of providing, for the Severance Period, coverage for the Employee and his dependents under the Company’s group health plan(s) at the applicable premium rate in effect at the time of the Employee’s termination of employment, which amount is payable in equal installments in accordance with the Company’s usual payment practices over the Severance Period.    Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company shall have the right to cease making such payments and the Employee shall be obligated to repay any such amounts to the Company already paid if the Employee fails to execute and deliver the Release within the time period provided above or, after timely delivery, the Employee revokes it within the time period specified in such Release.

 

(ii) For purposes of this Agreement, “Cause” means:

 

(A) the Employee’s willful and continued failure to perform the Employee’s material, reasonable and lawful duties (other than as a result of incapacity due to physical or mental illness); provided that, the Employee does not cure such failure within 15 days after receipt from the Company of written notice of such failure;

 

(B) the Employee’s negligence or willful misconduct in the course of the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, that the Board in good faith in its reasonable discretion determines has a material, demonstrable and adverse effect on the Company and its affiliates, provided that, to the extent curable, the Employee does not cure such negligence or misconduct within 15 days after receipt from the Company of written notice of such action;

 

(C) the Employee’s indictment of, conviction of, or plea of nolo contendere to (1) a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude or (2) a felony (or the equivalent of a misdemeanor or felony in a jurisdiction other than the United States);

 

(D) the Employee’s material breach of this Agreement, including, without limitation the provisions of Sections 6 and 7, provided that, to the extent curable, the Employee does not cure such breach within 15 days after receipt from the Company of written notice of such breach;

 

(E) the Employee’s violation of lawful Company policies that the Board in good faith in its reasonable discretion determines has a material, demonstrable and adverse effect on the Company and its affiliates, provided that, to the extent curable, the Employee does not cure such violation within 15 days after receipt from the Company of written notice of such violation;

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(F) the Employee’s misappropriation, embezzlement or material misuse of funds or property belonging to the Company or any of its affiliates; or

 

(G) the Employee’s use of alcohol or drugs that either materially interferes with the performance of the Employee’s duties hereunder or adversely affects the integrity or reputation of the Company or its affiliates, their employees or their products or services, as determined by the Board in good faith in its reasonable discretion.

 

(iii) For purposes of this Agreement, “Good Reason” means, without the Employee’s written consent:

 

(A) a material diminution by the Company in the Employee’s duties, authority or responsibilities; opportunity;

 

(B) a reduction in the Employee’s Base Salary or annual bonus

 

(C) a material breach by the Company of this Agreement;

 

(D) a requirement that the Employee relocate his principal place of employment to a location more than thirty miles from the location where the Employee is then principally providing services; or

 

(E) the Sale of the Company (as defined below) to any person or entity if such person or entity fails or refuses to assume, in writing or by operation of law, all obligations under this Agreement at or prior to the time of such sale;

 

provided that, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the foregoing, the Employee shall only have “Good Reason” to terminate employment pursuant to subsection (A), (B) or (C) following the Company’s failure to remedy the act or omission which is alleged to constitute “Good Reason” within fifteen (15) days following the Company’s receipt of written notice from the Employee specifying such act or omission.

 

(iv) For purposes of this Agreement, “Sale of the Company” means, following the Effective Date, the consummation of a transaction, whether in a single transaction or in a series of related transactions, with any other person or persons on an arm’s-length basis, pursuant to which such party or parties (a) acquire (whether by merger, stock purchase, recapitalization, reorganization, redemption, issuance of capital stock or otherwise) more than 50% of the fully diluted units or voting stock of the Company or PGA Holdings, Inc. (“PGA Holdings”) or

 

(v) acquire assets constituting all or substantially all of the assets of PGA Holdings and its subsidiaries on a consolidated basis, except for any transaction with  a wholly owned subsidiary of Vestar Capital Partners V, L.P. or a dissolution of the Company or PGA Holdings pursuant to the Company’s or PGA Holdings’ Articles of Incorporation (other than transactions effected for the purpose of changing the form of organization of PGA Holdings or any of its subsidiaries). For purposes of this Agreement, the Employee shall be deemed to have a “Disability” if the Employee would be entitled to long-term disability benefits under the Company’s long-term disability plan as in effect from time to time, without regard to any waiting or elimination period under such plan and assuming for such purpose that the Employee is actually 

 

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participating in such plan at such time.  If the Company does not maintain a long-term disability plan at the time of the Employee’s termination of employment, “Disability” shall mean the Employee’s inability to perform the Employee’s duties and responsibilities hereunder due to physical or mental illness that is expected to last for at least 6 months.    Any question as to the existence of the Disability of the Employee as to which the Company and the Employee shall not agree shall be determined in writing by a qualified independent physician mutually acceptable to the Employee and the Company (and if the Employee and the Company cannot agree as to a qualified independent physician, each shall appoint a physician and those two physicians shall select a third physician who shall make such determination in writing, which shall be final and conclusive for all purposes of this Agreement).    In connection therewith, the Employee agrees to submit to any medical examination(s) as may be requested and paid for by the Company for such purpose.

 

(c) Termination on Account of Disability or Death. If the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, hereunder is terminated on account of a Disability or as a result of the Employee’s death, then in addition to the Accrued Rights, the Employee (or the Employee’s estate, as the case may be) shall be entitled to receive from the Company the Pro Rata Bonus, if any, for the year in which termination of employment occurs, which amount is payable in accordance with Section 3(b).  Any termination by the Company for Disability shall be communicated by written notice in accordance with Section 20.

 

(d) Termination by the Company for Cause; Voluntary Resignation.   For the avoidance of doubt, if the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, hereunder is terminated by the Company for Cause, or by the Employee (other than for Good Reason or as a result of Disability or death), the Employee shall not be entitled to any compensation or benefits other than the Accrued Rights.    Any voluntary termination of employment by the Employee that occurs during one of the cure periods referenced in Section 4(b)(ii) hereof shall be deemed to be a termination of the Employee’s employment by the Company for Cause. Any termination by the Company for Cause, or voluntary resignation by the Employee, shall be communicated by written notice in accordance with Section 20 (and, in the case of the Employee’s voluntary resignation, in accordance with Section 4(a)).

 

(e) Failure to Renew. In the event either party elects not to extend the Initial Term or any Renewal Term, as applicable, pursuant to Section 1, unless the Employee’s employment is earlier terminated pursuant to paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d) of this Section 4, the termination of this Agreement (whether or not the Employee continues as an employee of the Company thereafter) shall be deemed to occur on the close of business on the day immediately preceding the Expiration Date or the next scheduled anniversary of the Expiration Date, as applicable, and the Employee shall be entitled to receive the Accrued Rights. In addition, if the election not to extend the Initial Term or any Renewal Term is made by the Company, the termination of this Agreement shall be deemed  a termination of the Employee’s employment for a reason other than Cause, Disability or death, and the Employee shall be entitled to receive the payments and benefits described in Section 4(b)(i), subject to the timing and other requirements set forth therein and in Section 24.

 

(f) Additional Payment Provisions.  The payment of any amounts accrued under any benefit plan, program or arrangement in which the Employee participates shall be subject to the 

 

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terms of the applicable plan, program or arrangement, and any elections the Employee has made thereunder.

 

(g) TransitionUpon request of the Company, the Employee shall actively work with the Company during the six (6)-week period following notification to the Company of the Employee’s intent to terminate employment hereunder to recruit the Employee’s successor and shall perform such other duties as may reasonably be required by the Company to assist in the transition process.

 

5. Acknowledgments.

 

(a) The Employee acknowledges that the Company and its affiliates have expended and shall continue to expend substantial amounts of time, money and effort to develop business strategies, customer relationships, employee relationships and goodwill and build an effective organization.  The Employee acknowledges that during the Term, the Employee shall become familiar with the Company’s and its affiliates’ Confidential Information (as defined in Section 6(a)) and that during the Term the Employee shall have access to such Confidential Information.

 

(b) The Employee acknowledges that the Company and its affiliates have a legitimate business interest and right in protecting the Confidential Information, goodwill, employee and customer relationships, and that the Company and its affiliates would be seriously damaged by the disclosure of Confidential Information and the loss or deterioration of its customer and employee relationships. The Employee further acknowledges that the Company is entitled to protect and preserve the going concern value of the Company and its affiliates to the extent permitted by law.

 

(c) The Employee agrees that the covenants contained in this Agreement are reasonable and appropriate in light of the cash and non-cash consideration paid and to be paid, and the equity investment opportunities made and to be made available, by the Company and its affiliates, and to be received by the Employee, under this Agreement and other agreements entered into and to be entered into with the Company and its affiliates. The Employee further acknowledges that, notwithstanding the Employee’s compliance with the covenants contained in this Agreement and other agreements entered into and to be entered into with the Company and its affiliates, the Employee has other opportunities to earn a livelihood and adequate means of support for the Employee and his dependents.

 

6. Confidentiality.

 

(a) The Employee agrees that all Confidential Information is a valuable, special and unique asset of PG Holdco, LLC (“Holdco”), the Company and their respective subsidiaries and affiliates and the Employee agrees that he will not at any time, including following the Term, directly or indirectly, except with the prior written consent of the Company, use, divulge or disclose or communicate, or cause any other person or entity to use, divulge, disclose or communicate, to any person, firm, corporation or entity, in any manner whatsoever, any Confidential Information, other than as necessary for the Employee to perform his duties and responsibilities to the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, as authorized by the Company and its affiliates, as applicable; provided, however, that the foregoing shall not apply to Confidential Information that is required to

 

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be disclosed by a court or regulatory authority of competent jurisdiction.    The foregoing covenants shall apply to each item of information for so long as it remains Confidential Information.  For purposes of this Agreement, “Confidential Information” means all trade secrets, proprietary information and other confidential information of Holdco, the Company and their respective subsidiaries and affiliates, including, without limitation, (i) their methods, techniques, processes, research and development, computer programs, and source codes; (ii) specifications, manuals, software in various stages of development, and other technical data; (iii) customers and prospect lists, details of agreements and communications with customers and prospects, and other customer information including, but not limited, to cost, pricing, reports, analyses or other client data; (iv) sales plans and projections, product pricing information, protocols, acquisition, expansion, marketing, financial and other business information and existing and future products and business plans and strategies; (v) sales proposals, demonstrations systems, sales material; (vi) sources of products, information, or know-how and purchasing, operating and other cost data; (vii) identity of specialized consultants and contractors and proprietary information developed by them for the Company; (viii) employee information (including, but not limited to, personnel, payroll, compensation and benefit data and plans); and (ix) other non-public and patient information furnished to Holdco, the Company and their respective subsidiaries and affiliates and all the other know-how, materials and things pertaining in any respect to Holdco, the Company and their respective subsidiaries and affiliates or clients that are a “trade secret” pursuant to applicable law; provided, however, that “Confidential Information” shall not include information that is generally known in the industry or the public or is or becomes publicly available, in each case, other than as a result of the Employee’s breach of this Agreement.    For the avoidance of doubt, Confidential Information also includes Patient Information.  For purposes of this Agreement, “Patient Information” means information that (x) relates to the past, present or future physical or mental health or condition of an individual; the provision of health care to an individual; or the past, present or future payment for the provision of health care to an individual; and (y) either identifies the individual or reasonably could be used to identify the individual (including, without limitation, the individual’s name and address; diagnosis and treatment information, including the identity of the facility at which such treatment was rendered; and the individual’s medical history, records or charts).  The Employee acknowledges that the Company and its affiliates have a duty under law and by contract to keep Patient Information strictly confidential and that unauthorized use or disclosure of Patient Information may subject the Company and its affiliates to substantial fines, penalties and damages. The Employee shall comply with such policies and procedures relating to the protection of Patient Information and other Confidential Information as the Company and its affiliates may implement from time to time, and shall use reasonable care to avoid the inadvertent disclosure or dissemination of any Patient Information or other Confidential Information.

 

(b) The Employee agrees that upon termination of the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, for any reason, the Employee will return to the Company immediately any and all notes, memoranda, specifications, devices, formulas, records,files, lists, drawings, books, plans, documents, information, letters, data, models, equipment, property, computer, software or intellectual property relating to Holdco’s, the Company’s and their respective subsidiaries’ and affiliates’ business in whatever form (including electronic), and all copies thereof, in any way relating to the business of Holdco, the Company or any of their respective subsidiaries or affiliates. The Employee further agrees that any property 

 

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situated on the Company’s premises and owned by Holdco, the Company or any of their respective subsidiaries or affiliates, including disks and other storage media, filing cabinets or other work areas, is subject to inspection by Company personnel at any time with or without notice. The Employee further agrees that he will not retain or use for his account at any time any trade names, trademark or other proprietary business designation used or owned in connection with the business of Holdco, the Company or any of their respective subsidiaries or affiliates.

 

(c) The Employee represents and warrants that he has not disclosed any of the terms of this Agreement to any person not a party to, or an attorney for or other representative of a party to, this Agreement.    The Employee further agrees that, until such time when this Agreement is disclosed by the Company as a public document, he shall not disclose the terms of this Agreement, except to the Employee’s immediate family and the Employee’s financial and legal advisors, or as may be required by law or ordered by a court or regulatory authority of competent jurisdiction, or as otherwise required herein, provided, however, that the Employee may disclose to any prospective employer the provisions of Sections 5, 6, 7, 9 and 10 hereof.

 

7. Non-Competition; Equitable Relief; Forfeiture of Severance Benefits.

 

(a) As an inducement to the Company to enter into this Agreement, and to reduce the cost to the Company of monitoring and enforcing compliance with confidentiality obligations contained in Section 6, the Employee agrees that he will not, directly or indirectly:

 

(i) own (except passive ownership of less than 2% of a publicly traded company), manage, operate, control, participate in, enter into employment with, or render services or assistance of any kind to any business or organization (other than the Company) which is, in whole or in part, involved in a Restricted Area (as defined below) or undertake activities in the Restricted Area during the Restricted Period (as defined below).  For purposes of this Agreement, “Restricted Area” means (A) the general area of measurement and improvement solutions, (B) data analytics and decision support tools focused on healthcare quality, and (C) products or services related to improvement solutions, educational programs, or taking any actions on, or publishing or reporting results in connection with, the general area of quality and performance, in all cases described in the foregoing clauses (A), (B) and (C), to or about (i) healthcare or related institutions or employees thereof, or (ii) medical or other professionals operating in the health care industry, anywhere, in the case of (i) or (ii), in the United States or any other geographic location in North America where PGA Holdings or any of its subsidiaries operates.  “Restricted Area” also includes (x) consulting services and solutions relating to quality and performance improvement in healthcare or related institutions, or (y) any other business that PGA Holdings or any of its subsidiaries is taking or has taken specific actions in furtherance of engaging in (so long as the Employee knew or reasonably should have known about such actions);

 

(ii) solicit or divert, or assist in soliciting or diverting, (A) the business that any customer of the Company or any of its affiliates conducts or could reasonably be expected to conduct with the Company or any of its affiliates (the Covered Business”) or (B) the Covered Business of any person or entity in respect of which the Employee is reasonably aware that the Company or any of its affiliates has approached or has made significant plans to approach as a prospective customer during the Term, whether on the Employee’s own behalf or on behalf of or in conjunction with any other person, firm, corporation or entity during the Restricted Period;

 

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(iii) (A) encourage, induce, hire or solicit or seek to induce, hire or solicit any person engaged with PGA Holdings or any of its subsidiaries as an employee, agent, independent contractor or otherwise (or any such person that was so engaged during the one-year period immediately preceding such initial inducement or solicitation during the Term)(each,  a Company Employee”) to end his or her engagement or employment with PGA Holdings or any of its subsidiaries or otherwise to participate in any Restricted Area during the Restricted Period or (B) recommend to any person or entity involved in a Restricted Area that such person or entity employ or engage such current or former Company Employee during the Restricted Period;

 

(iv) whether on the Employee’s own behalf or on behalf of or in conjunction with any other person, firm, corporation or entity, (A) solicit (whether by mail, telephone, personal meeting or otherwise), encourage or induce any customer, supplier or client of PGA Holdings or any of its subsidiaries to transact business with any business or organization (other than the Company) involved in a Restricted Area or reduce or refrain from doing any business with PGA Holdings or any of its subsidiaries, (B) interfere with or damage (or attempt to interfere with or damage) any relationship between PGA Holdings or any of its subsidiaries and any of their respective customers, suppliers or clients (or any person or entity in respect of which the Employee is reasonably aware that PGA Holdings or any of its subsidiaries has approached or has made significant plans to approach as a prospective customer, supplier or client), or (C) aid or become associated with other persons or entities involved in any such acts, in each case, during the Restricted Period; or

 

(v) whether in written or oral form, (x) do any act or make any statement whatsoever that may or shall criticize, denigrate, disparage (including, but not limited to, by relative comparison), impair, impugn or negatively reflect upon the name, reputation or business interests of any of the Beneficiaries (as defined below) (including, but not limited to, the methodologies, products, services, activities or results of any of the Beneficiaries, as applicable) with respect to any of their past or present activities or (y) otherwise publish statements that tend to portray any of the Beneficiaries (including, but not limited to, the methodologies, products, services, activities or results of any of the Beneficiaries, as applicable) in an unfavorable light, in each case, at any time, including after the expiration of the Term.

 

For purposes of this Agreement:

 

(A) the term Beneficiaries shall mean, collectively, Holdco, PGA Holdings, the Company and Vestar Capital Partners V, L.P. (together with any predecessor or successor funds) (“Vestar”), together with their respective affiliates, subsidiaries and successors, and their respective employees, officers, directors, members, stockholders and partners; and

 

(B) the term Restricted Period means the period commencing at the Effective Date and ending on the expiration of the twelve (12)- month period following the expiration or termination of the Term.

 

(b) The Employee acknowledges and agrees that any violation of the provisions of Sections 6 or 7(a) would cause the Beneficiaries irreparable damage and that if the Employee 

 

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breaches or threatens to breach such provisions, (i) as of such time the Company shall have no further obligation to make any payments or provide any benefits under this Agreement (including, without limitation, those described in Section 4(a)(ii), 4(b) or 4(c)), provided that if a court of competent jurisdiction renders a final and nonappealable determination that the Employee has breached the provisions of Section 6 or 7(a), and the Company has already paid the Employee all or a portion of such payments and benefits in respect of any period following the date of such breach, the Employee shall be obligated to repay such amounts to the Company, without prejudice to any other remedies available to the Company and its affiliates under this Agreement (and, specifically, without prejudice with respect to any other rights and remedies the Company and its affiliates may have at law or in equity, to obtain specific performance of such covenants through injunction or other equitable relief from a court of competent jurisdiction, without proof of actual damages or inadequacy of available remedies at law and without being required to post bond or other security) and (ii) the Beneficiaries shall be entitled, in addition to any other rights and remedies the Company and its affiliates may have at law or in equity, to obtain specific performance of such covenants through injunction or other equitable relief from  a court of competent jurisdiction, without proof of actual damages or inadequacy of available remedies at law and without being required to post bond or other security.    Notwithstanding anything contained in this Section 7(b) above, the parties expressly do not intend that the remedies authorized herein in the event of the Employee’s breach or threatened breach of Section 6 or 7(a) of this Agreement are the exclusive remedies for such threatened or actual breach(es), and the parties hereto expressly intend that all equitable remedies, including, without limitation, the remedy of injunctive relief, shall remain fully available to the Company and the Beneficiaries.

 

(c) The Restricted Period shall be tolled during (and shall be deemed automatically extended by) any period in respect of which a court of competent jurisdiction renders a final and nonappealable determination that the Employee is or was in violation of any of the provisions hereof limited by reference to the Restricted Period.

 

(d) The Employee hereby agrees that, during the Restricted Period, prior to accepting any position with any other person or entity, the Employee shall provide such person or entity with written notice of the covenants contained in Sections 5, 6, 7, 9 and 10 hereof, with  a copy of such notice delivered simultaneously to the Company.

 

8. Representations and Covenants of the Employee.

 

(a) The Employee represents, warrants and covenants that (i) the Employee has the full right and authority to enter into this Agreement and perform his obligations hereunder,

(ii) the Employee is not bound by any agreement that conflicts with or prevents or restricts the full performance of his duties and obligations to the Company or any of its affiliates, as applicable, hereunder during or after the Term, and (iii) the execution and delivery of this Agreement shall not result in any breach or violation of, or a default under, any existing obligation, commitment or agreement to which the Employee is subject.

 

(b) Prior to execution of this Agreement, the Employee was advised by the Company of his right to seek independent advice from an attorney of the Employee’s own selection regarding this Agreement. The Employee acknowledges that he has entered into this Agreement

 

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knowingly and voluntarily and with full knowledge and understanding of the provisions of this Agreement after being given the opportunity to consult with counsel.  The Employee further represents that in entering into this Agreement, the Employee is not relying on any statements or representations made by any of the Beneficiaries which are not expressly set forth herein, and that the Employee is relying only upon his own judgment and any advice provided by his attorney.

 

9. Intellectual Property Rights.

 

(a) The Employee agrees that the results and proceeds of the Employee’s services for the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, (including any trade secrets, products, services, processes, know-how, designs, developments, techniques, formulas, methods, mask works, developmental or experimental work, improvements, discoveries, inventions, ideas, source and object codes, programs, matters of a literary, musical, dramatic or otherwise creative nature, writings and other works of authorship) resulting from services performed while an employee of or consultant to the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, and any works in progress, whether or not patentable or registrable under copyright or similar statutes, that were made or conceived or reduced to practice or learned by the Employee, either alone or jointly with others resulting from services performed while an employee of or consultant to the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, (collectively,  “Inventions”), shall be works-made-for-hire and the Company (or, if applicable or as directed by the Company, any of the Company’s affiliates) shall be deemed the sole owner throughout the universe of any and all trade secret, patent, copyright, mask work and other intellectual property rights (collectively,  “Proprietary Rights”) of whatsoever nature therein, whether or not now or hereafter known, existing, contemplated, recognized or

developed, with the right to use the same in perpetuity in any manner the Company determines in its sole discretion, without any further payment to the Employee whatsoever.    If, for any reason, any of such results and proceeds shall not legally be a work-made-for-hire and/or there are any Proprietary Rights which do not accrue to the Company (or, as the case may be, any of the Company’s affiliates) under the immediately preceding sentence, then the Employee hereby irrevocably assigns and agrees to assign any and all of the Employee’s right, title and interest thereto, including any and all Proprietary Rights of whatsoever nature therein, whether or not now or hereafter known, existing, contemplated, recognized or developed, to the Company (or, if applicable or as directed by the Company, any of the Company’s affiliates), and the Company or such affiliates shall have the right to use the same in perpetuity throughout the universe in any manner determined by the Company or such affiliates without any further payment to the Employee whatsoever.  As to any Invention that the Employee is required to assign, the Employee shall promptly and fully disclose to the Company all information known to the Employee concerning such Invention.

 

(b) The Employee has set forth on Exhibit  A hereto a complete list of all Inventions that the Employee has, alone or jointly with others, made prior to the commencement of the Employee’s employment or consultancy with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, that the Employee considers to be the Employee’s property or the property of third parties and that the Employee wishes to have excluded from the scope of this Agreement (collectively referred to as Prior Inventions”). If no such disclosure is attached, the Employee represents and warrants that

 

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there are no Prior Inventions. If, while an employee of or consultant to the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, the Employee incorporates a Prior Invention into a Company product or process, the Company is hereby granted and shall have a nonexclusive, royalty-free, irrevocable, perpetual, worldwide license (with rights to sublicense through multiple tiers of sublicensees) to make, have made, modify, use and sell such Prior Invention.    Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Employee agrees that the Employee shall not incorporate, or permit to be incorporated, Prior Inventions in any such Company product or process without the advance written consent of a duly authorized officer of the Company.

 

(c) The Employee agrees that, from time to time, as may be requested by the Company and at the Company’s sole cost and expense, the Employee shall do any and all things that the Company may reasonably deem useful or desirable to establish or document the Company’s exclusive ownership throughout the United States of America or any other country of any and all Proprietary Rights in any such Inventions, including the execution of appropriate copyright and/or patent applications or assignments.  To the extent the Employee has any Proprietary Rights in the Inventions that cannot be assigned in the manner described above, the Employee unconditionally and irrevocably waives the enforcement of such Proprietary Rights. This Section 9(c) is subject to and shall not be deemed to limit, restrict or constitute any waiver by the Company of any Proprietary Rights of ownership to which the Company may be entitled by operation of law by virtue of the Company’s or one of its affiliates’ being the Employee’s

employer. The Employee shall reasonably assist the Company in every proper and lawful way to obtain and from time to time enforce Proprietary Rights relating to Inventions in any and all countries.  To this end, the Employee shall execute, verify and deliver such documents and perform such other acts (including appearances as a witness) as the Company may reasonably request for use in applying for, obtaining, perfecting, evidencing, sustaining, and enforcing such Proprietary Rights and the assignment thereof.    In addition, the Employee shall execute, verify, and deliver assignments of such Proprietary rights to the Company or its designee.  The Employee’s obligation to assist the Company with respect to Proprietary Rights relating to such Inventions in any and all countries shall continue beyond the termination of the Employee’s employment or consultancy with the Company, provided that the Company shall compensate the Employee at a reasonable rate after such termination for the time actually spent by the Employee at the Company’s request on such assistance.

 

(d) In the event the Company is unable for any reason, after reasonable effort, to secure the Employee’s signature on any document required in connection with the actions specified in Section 9(c), the Employee hereby irrevocably designates and appoints the Company and its duly authorized officers and agents as the Employee’s agent and attorney in fact, to act for and in the Employee’s behalf to execute, verify and deliver any such documents and to do all other lawfully permitted acts to further the purposes of Section 9(c) with the same legal force and effect as if executed by the Employee.  The Employee hereby waives and quitclaims to the Company any and all claims, of any nature whatsoever, that the Employee now or may hereafter have for infringement of any Proprietary Rights assigned hereunder to the Company.

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(e) While an employee of or consultant to the Company or any of its affiliates, as applicable, the Employee shall promptly disclose to the Company fully and in writing and shall hold in trust for the sole right and benefit of the Company any and all Inventions.  In addition, the Employee shall disclose to the Company all patent applications filed by the Employee during the two (2) year period after termination of the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable.

 

10. Cooperation. The Employee shall provide reasonable cooperation in connection with any suit, action or proceeding (or any appeal from any suit, action or proceeding) which relates to events occurring during the Employee’s employment with the Company, its affiliates, and their predecessors, provided that the Company shall reimburse the Employee for expenses reasonably incurred in connection with such cooperation.

 

11. No Mitigation; Offset: No Other Severance Benefits.

 

(a) The Employee shall have no duty to attempt to mitigate any amounts payable to the Employee under this Agreement following the termination of the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, by seeking alternative employment or consulting work.

 

(b) The Company may offset any amounts the Employee owes to the Company or its affiliates, as applicable, as of the date of the termination of the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, from any amounts that are payable to the Employee under this Agreement following the termination of Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, under this Agreement.

 

(c) The Employee hereby agrees that in consideration of the payments to be received under this Agreement, the Employee waives any and all rights to any payments or benefits under any severance (but not pension) plans, programs or arrangements of the Company or any of its affiliates.

 

12. Withholding.  The Company may withhold from any amounts payable under this Agreement such Federal, state, local, foreign or other taxes as are required to be withheld pursuant to any applicable law or regulation.

 

13. Assignment.

 

(a) This Agreement is personal to the Employee and without the prior written consent of the Company shall not be assignable by the Employee otherwise than by will or the laws of descent and distribution, and any assignment in violation of this Agreement shall be void.

 

(b) This Agreement shall be binding on, and shall inure to the benefit of, the parties to it and their respective heirs, legal representatives, successors and permitted assigns (including, without limitation, in the event of the Employee’s death, the Employee’s estate and heirs in the case of any payments due to the Employee hereunder).

 

(c) Subject to Section 4(b)(iii)(C), the Company may assign this Agreement and its rights and obligations hereunder to any entity which, by way of merger, consolidation, 

 

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purchase or otherwise, becomes, directly or indirectly, a successor to all or substantially all of the business and/or assets of the Company. The Employee acknowledges and agrees that all of the Employee’s covenants and obligations to the Company, as well as the rights of the Company hereunder, shall run in favor of and shall be enforceable by the Company or one or more of its affiliates, direct or indirect successors and permitted assigns.

 

14. Consent to Jurisdiction: Waiver of Jury Trial.

 

(a) Except as otherwise specifically provided herein, the Employee and the Company each hereby irrevocably submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of federal and state courts in the State of Delaware with respect to any disputes or controversies arising out of or relating to this Agreement.  The parties undertake not to commence any suit, action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement in a forum other than a forum described in this Section 14(a); provided, however, that nothing herein shall preclude the Company from bringing any suit, action or proceeding in any other court for the purposes of enforcing the provisions of Section 14 or enforcing any judgment obtained by the Company and, in such event, the Employee hereby irrevocably submits to the jurisdiction of such other court.

 

(b) The agreement of the parties to the forum described in Section 14(a) is independent of the law that may be applied in any suit, action, or proceeding and the parties agree to such forum even if such forum may under applicable law choose to apply non-forum law.  The parties hereby waive, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any objection which they now or hereafter have to personal jurisdiction or to the laying of venue of any such suit, action or proceeding brought in an applicable court described in Section 14(a), and each party agrees that it shall not attempt to deny or defeat such personal jurisdiction by motion or other request for leave from any such court.  The parties agree that, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law,  a final and non-appealable judgment in any suit, action or proceeding brought in any applicable court described in Section 14(a) shall be conclusive and binding upon the parties and may be enforced in any other jurisdiction.

 

(c) Each party hereto irrevocably consents to the service of any and all process in any suit, action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement by the mailing of copies of such process to such party at such party’s address specified in Section 20.

 

(d) Each party hereto hereby waives, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any right it may have to a trial by jury in respect of any suit, action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement.    Each party hereto (i) certifies that no representative, agent or attorney of any other party has represented, expressly or otherwise, that such party would not, in the event of any action, suit or proceeding, seek to enforce the foregoing waiver and (ii) acknowledges that it and the other party hereto has been induced to enter into this Agreement by, among other things, the mutual waiver and certifications in this Section 14(d).

 

15. Governing Law.  The validity, interpretation, construction, and performance of this Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Delaware without regard to its principles of conflicts of law.

 

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16. Amendment; No Waiver.    No provisions of this Agreement may be amended, modified, waived or discharged except by a written document signed by the Employee and a duly authorized officer of the Company.  The failure of a party to insist upon strict adherence to any term of this Agreement on any occasion shall not be considered a waiver of such party’s rights or deprive such party of the right thereafter to insist upon strict adherence to that term or any other term of this Agreement.

 

17. Severability.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any provisions of this Agreement shall not affect the validity or enforceability of any other provisions of this Agreement, which shall remain in full force and effect to the fullest extent permitted by law. The Employee agrees that in the event that any court of competent jurisdiction shall finally hold that any provision of this Agreement (whether in whole or in part) is void or constitutes an unreasonable restriction against the Employee, such provision shall not be rendered void but shall be deemed to be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make such provision enforceable for the longest duration and the greatest scope as such court may determine constitutes a reasonable restriction under the circumstances.

 

18. Entire Agreement. This Agreement sets forth the entire understanding between the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof.  All oral or written agreements or representations, express or implied, with respect to the subject matter of this Agreement are set forth in this Agreement.    All prior agreements, understandings and obligations (whether written, oral, express or implied) between the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof are terminated as of the date hereof and are superseded by this Agreement.    Notwithstanding the foregoing, for the avoidance of doubt, the Employee’s rights and obligations with respect to any Units or other equity interests held by the Employee shall continue in full force and effect in accordance with their terms.

 

19. Survival of Rights and Obligations.  The rights and obligations of the Employee and the Company under the provisions of this Agreement shall survive, and remain binding and enforceable, notwithstanding the expiration of the Term, the termination of this Agreement, the termination of the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, hereunder or any settlement of the financial rights and obligations arising from the Employee’s employment with the Company and its affiliates, as applicable, hereunder, to the extent necessary to preserve the intended benefits of such provisions.

 

20. Notices.    All notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given when personally delivered, telecopied (with confirmation of receipt), one day after deposit with  a reputable overnight delivery service (charges prepaid) and three days after deposit in the U.S. Mail (postage prepaid and return receipt requested) to the address set forth below or such other address as the recipient party has previously delivered notice to the sending party.

 

16


 

 

 

 

If to the Company:

Press Ganey Associates, Inc. 

404 Columbia Place

South Bend, Indiana 46601 

Attn: Chairman of the Board 

Fax No.:(574) 232-3485

 

 

If to the Employee:

Breht Feigh

c/o his last known address and facsimile number in the personnel records of the Company

 

21. No Third-Party Beneficiaries.    Except as expressly provided herein, this Agreement shall not confer on any person other than the parties hereto any rights or remedies hereunder.

 

22. Headings and References. The headings of this Agreement are inserted for convenience only and neither constitutes a part of this Agreement nor affect in any way the meaning or interpretation of this Agreement.    When  a reference in this Agreement is made to a Section, such reference shall be to a Section of this Agreement unless otherwise indicated.

 

23. CounterpartsThis Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts (including via facsimile), each of which shall be deemed to be an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument and shall become effective when one or more counterparts have been signed by each of the parties and delivered to the other parties.

 

24. Compliance with IRC Section 409A.  This Agreement is intended to comply with Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the Code”) and will be interpreted accordingly.  References under this Agreement to the Employee’s termination of employment shall be deemed to refer to the date upon which the Employee has experienced a “separation from service” within the meaning of Section 409A of the Code.  Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, (i) if at the time of the Employee’s separation from service with the Company or any of its affiliates the Employee is a “specified employee” as defined in Section 409A of the Code (and any related regulations or other pronouncements thereunder) and the deferral of the commencement of any payments or benefits otherwise payable hereunder or payable under any other compensatory arrangement between the Employee and the Company or any of its affiliates as a result of such separation from service is necessary in order to prevent any accelerated or additional tax under Section 409A of the Code, then the Company will defer the commencement of the payment of any such payments or benefits hereunder (without any reduction in such payments or benefits ultimately paid or provided to the Employee) until the date that is six months following the Employee’s separation from service (or the earliest date asis permitted under Section 409A of the Code), at which point all payments deferred pursuant to this Section 24 shall be paid to the Employee in a lump sum and (ii) if any other payments of money or other benefits due to the Employee hereunder could cause the application of an accelerated or additional tax under Section 409A of the Code, such payments or other benefits shall be deferred if deferral will make such payment or other benefits compliant under Section 409A of the Code, or otherwise such payment or other benefits shall be restructured, to the extent possible, in a manner that does not cause such an accelerated or additional tax.  To the extent any reimbursements or in-kind benefits due to the Employee under this Agreement constitute “deferred compensation” under Section 409A of the Code, any such reimbursements or in-kind benefits shall be paid to the Employee in a manner consistent with Treasury Regulation Section 1.409A-3(i)(1)(iv).    Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Employee shall notify the Company if he believes that any provision of this Agreement (or of any award of compensation,

 

17


 

including equity compensation, or benefits) would cause the Employee to incur any additional tax under Code Section 409A and, if the Company concurs with such belief after good faith review or the Company independently makes such determination, then the Company shall use reasonable efforts to reform such provision to comply with Code Section 409A through good faith modifications to the minimum extent reasonably appropriate to conform with Code Section 409A.  For purposes of Section 409A of the Code, each payment made under this Agreement shall be designated as a “separate payment” within the meaning of Section 409A of the Code.

 

25. Section 280G.    In the event that Holdco or PGA Holdings undergoes a “change in ownership or control” (within the meaning of Section 280G of the Code) after Holdco, PGA Holdings or any affiliate of Holdco or PGA Holdings (including the Company) that would be treated, together with Holdco or PGA Holdings, as a single corporation under Section 280G of the Code and the regulations thereunder has stock that is readily tradeable on an established securities market or otherwise (within the meaning of Section 280G of the Code and the regulations thereunder) and all, or any portion, of the payments provided under this Agreement, either alone or together with other payments or benefits which the Employee receives or is entitled to receive from Holdco, the Company or PGA Holdings (collectively, the Total Payments”), could constitute an “excess parachute payment” within the meaning of Section 280G of the Code, then the Employee shall be entitled to receive (i) an amount limited (to the minimum extent necessary) so that no portion of the Total Payments shall be non-deductible for US federal income taxes by reason of Section 280G of the Code (the Limited Amount”), or (ii) if the amount of the Total Payments (without regard to clause (i)) reduced by the excise tax imposed by Section 4999 of the Code (the Excise Tax”) and the amount of all other applicable federal, state and local taxes (with income taxes all computed at the highest applicable marginal rate) is greater than the Limited Amount reduced by the amount of all taxes applicable thereto (with income taxes all computed at the highest marginal rate), the amount of the Total Payments otherwise payable without regard to clause (i). If it is determined that the Limited Amount will maximize the Employee’s after-tax proceeds, the Total Payments shall be reduced to equal the Limited Amount in the following order: (i) first, by reducing cash severance payments that are exempt from Section 409A of the Code, (ii) second, by reducing other payments and benefits that are exempt from Section 409A of the Code and to which Q&A 24(c) of Section 1.280G-1 of the Treasury Regulations does not apply, (iii) third, by reducing all remaining payments and benefits that are exempt from Section 409A of the Code and (iv) finally, by reducing payments and benefits that are subject to Section 409A of the Code, in each case, with all such reductions done on a pro rata basis. All determinations made pursuant this Section 25 will be made at PGA Holdings’ or its affiliates’ expense by an accounting firm or consulting group with experience in performing calculations regarding the applicability of Sections 280G and 4999 of the Code selected by PGA Holdings for such purpose (the Independent Advisors”).  For purposes of such determinations, no portion of the Total Payments shall be taken into account which, in the opinion of PGA Holdings and its legal advisors, (y) does not constitute a “parachute payment” within the meaning of Section 280G(b)(2) of the Code (including by reason of Section 280G(b)(4)(A) of the Code) or (z) constitutes reasonable compensation for services actually rendered, within the meaning of Section 280G(b)(4)(B) of the Code, in excess of the “base amount” (as defined in Section 280G(b)(3) of the Code) allocable to such reasonable compensation.    In the event it is later determined that (A)  a greater reduction in the Total Payments should have been made to implement the objective and 

 

18


 

intent of this Section 25, the excess amount shall be returned immediately by the Employee to the Company or (B)  a lesser reduction in the Total Payments should have been made to implement the objective and intent of this Section 25, the additional amount shall be paid immediately by Holdco, the Company, PGA Holdings or any affiliate of Holdco, the Company or PGA Holdings, as applicable, to the Employee.

 

[The remainder of this page is intentionally left blank.]

 

19


 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement has been executed by the parties as of the date first written above.

 

 

 

 

  PRESS GANEY ASSOCIATES, INC.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  By:

/s/ DEVIN J. ANDERSON

 

  Name:

Devin J. Anderson

 

  Title:

General Counsel and Corporate Secretary

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

/s/ BREHT T. FEIGH

 

  BREHT T. FEIGH

 

 

 

 

 

20


 

EXHIBIT A

 

PRIOR INVENTIONS

 

None

 


 

EXHIBIT B

 

SEPARATION AGREEMENT AND RELEASE

 

This Separation Agreement and Release (“Agreement”) is made by and between Breht Feigh (“Employee”) and Press Ganey Associates, Inc. (the Company”) (collectively, referred to as the Parties or individually referred to as a Party”).    Capitalized terms used but not defined in this Agreement shall have the meanings set forth in the Employment Agreement (as defined below).

 

WHEREAS, the Parties have previously entered into that certain Employment Agreement, dated as of                         ,  2015 (the Employment Agreement”); and

 

WHEREAS, in connection with the Employee’s termination of employment with the Company and its subsidiaries and affiliates, effective                     , 20    , the Parties wish to resolve any and all disputes, claims, complaints, grievances, charges, actions, petitions, and demands (collectively,  “Claims”) that the Employee may have against the Company and any of the Releasees (as defined below), including, but not limited to, any and all claims arising out of or in any way related to Employee’s employment with or separation from the Company or its affiliates but, for the avoidance of doubt, nothing herein will be deemed to release any Claims in connection with Employee’s ownership of vested equity securities or other equity interests of the Company or Holdco or their respective affiliates or successors (including any equity securities or other equity interests of the Company or Holdco or their respective affiliates or successors that vest in connection with Employee’s termination of employment), Employee’s right to indemnification by the Company or any of its affiliates pursuant to contract or applicable law or Directors’ and Officers’ insurance, Employee’s rights under this Agreement, and/or Employee’s rights to any benefit entitlements vested as the date of separation of Employee’s employment, pursuant to written terms of any employee benefit plan of the Company (collectively, the Retained Claims”).

 

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the severance payments described in Section 4(b)(i) of the Employment Agreement, which, pursuant to the Employment Agreement, are conditioned on the Employee’s execution and non-revocation of this Agreement, and in consideration of the mutual promises made herein, the Company and Employee hereby agree as follows:

 

1. Severance Payments; Salary and Benefits. The Company agrees to provide Employee with the severance payments and benefits described in Section 4(b)(i) of the Employment Agreement, payable at the times set forth in, and subject to the terms and conditions of, the Employment Agreement. In addition, to the extent not already paid, and subject to the terms and conditions of the Employment Agreement, the Company shall pay or provide to the Employee all other payments or benefits described in Section 4(a) of the Employment Agreement, subject to and in accordance with the terms thereof.

 

2. Release of Claims. Employee agrees that, other than with respect to the Retained Claims, the foregoing consideration represents settlement in full of all outstanding obligations owed to Employee by the Company, any of its direct or indirect subsidiaries and affiliates, andany of its current and former officers, directors, equity holders, managers, employees, agents, investors, attorneys, shareholders, administrators, affiliates, benefit plans, plan administrators,

 

 


 

insurers, trustees, divisions, and subsidiaries and predecessor and successor corporations and assigns (collectively, the Releasees”). Employee, on his own behalf and on behalf of any of Employee’s affiliated companies or entities and any of their respective heirs, family members, executors, agents, and assigns, other than with respect to the Retained Claims, hereby and forever releases the Releasees from, and agrees not to sue concerning, or in any manner to institute, prosecute, or pursue, any Claim relating to any matters of any kind, whether presently known or unknown, suspected or unsuspected, that Employee may possess against any of the Releasees arising from any omissions, acts, facts, or damages that have occurred up until and including the date Employee executes this Agreement, including, without limitation:

 

(a) any and all claims relating to or arising from Employee’s employment  or service relationship with the Company or any of its direct or indirect subsidiaries or affiliates and the termination of that relationship;

 

(b) any and all claims relating to, or arising from, Employee’s right to purchase, or actual purchase of any shares of stock or other equity interests of the Company or any of its affiliates, including, without limitation, any claims for fraud, misrepresentation, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of duty under applicable state corporate law, and securities fraud under any state or federal law;

 

(c) any and all claims for wrongful discharge of employment; termination in violation of public policy; discrimination; harassment; retaliation; breach of contract, both express and implied; breach of covenant of good faith and fair dealing, both express     and implied; promissory estoppel; negligent or intentional infliction of emotional distress; fraud; negligent or intentional misrepresentation; negligent or intentional interference with contract or prospective economic advantage; unfair business practices; defamation; libel; slander; negligence; personal injury; assault; battery; invasion of privacy; false imprisonment; conversion; and disability benefits;

 

(d) any and all claims for violation of any federal, state, or municipal statute, including, but not limited to, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; the Civil Rights Act of 1991; the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990; the Equal Pay Act; the Fair Credit Reporting Act; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967; the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act; the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974; the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act; the  Family and Medical Leave Act; the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002;

 

(e) any and all claims for violation of the federal or any state constitution;

 

(f) any and all claims arising out of any other laws and regulations relating to employment or employment discrimination;

 

(g) any claim for any loss, cost, damage, or expense arising out of any dispute over the non-withholding or other tax treatment of any of the proceeds received by Employee as a result of this Agreement; and

 


 

 

(h) any and all claims for attorneys’ fees and costs.

 

Employee agrees that the release set forth in this section shall be and remain in effect in all respects as a complete general release as to the matters released.  This release does not release claims that cannot be released as a matter of law, including, but not limited to, Employee’s right to file a charge with or participate in a charge by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, or any other local, state, or federal administrative body or government agency that is authorized to enforce or administer laws related to employment, against the Company (with  the understanding that Employee’s release of claims herein bars Employee from recovering such monetary relief from the Company or any Releasee), claims for unemployment compensation or any state disability insurance benefits pursuant to the terms of applicable state law, claims to continued participation in certain of the Company’s group benefit plans pursuant to the terms and conditions of COBRA, and Employee’s rights under applicable law, and any Retained Claims.

 

3. Acknowledgment of Waiver of Claims under ADEA. Employee understands and acknowledges that Employee is waiving and releasing any rights Employee may have under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (“ADEA”), and that this waiver and release is knowing and voluntary.  Employee understands and agrees that this waiver and release does not apply to any rights or claims that may arise under the ADEA after the date Employee executes this Agreement. Employee understands and acknowledges that the consideration given for this waiver and release is in addition to anything of value to which Employee was already entitled. Employee further understands and acknowledges that Employee has been advised by this writing that: (a) Employee should consult with an attorney prior to executing this Agreement; (b) Employee has 21 days within which to consider this Agreement; (c) Employee has 7 days following Employee’s execution of this Agreement to revoke this Agreement pursuant to written notice to the Secretary of the Company; (d) this Agreement shall not be effective until after the revocation period has expired; and (e) nothing in this Agreement prevents or precludes Employee from challenging or seeking a determination in good faith of the validity of this waiver under the ADEA, nor does it impose any condition precedent, penalties, or costs for doing so, unless specifically authorized by federal law.  In the event Employee signs this Agreement and returns it to the Company in less than the 21 day period identified above, Employee hereby acknowledges that Employee has freely and voluntarily chosen to waive the time period allotted for considering this Agreement.

 

4. Severability.  In the event that any provision or any portion of any provision hereof or any surviving agreement made a part hereof becomes or is declared by a court of competent jurisdiction or arbitrator to be illegal, unenforceable, or void, this Agreement shall continue in full force and effect without said provision or portion of provision.

 

5. No Oral Modification. This Agreement may only be amended in a writing signed by Employee and a duly authorized officer of the Company.

 

6. Consent to Jurisdiction; Waiver of Jury Trial; Governing Law; Severability.  This Agreement shall be subject to the provisions of Sections 14, 15 and 17 of the Employment Agreement, mutatis mutandis.

 

7. Effective Date. Employee has seven days after Employee signs this Agreement to revoke it and this Agreement will become effective on the eighth day after Employee signed this Agreement, so long as it has been signed by the Parties and has not been revoked by Employee before that date.

 


 

8. Voluntary Execution of Agreement. Employee understands and agrees that Employee executed this Agreement voluntarily, without any duress or undue influence on the part or behalf of the Company or any third party, with the full intent of releasing all of Employee’s claims against the Company and any of the other Releasees.    Employee acknowledges that: (a) Employee has read this Agreement; (b) Employee has not relied upon any representations or statements made by the Company that are not specifically set forth in this Agreement; (c) Employee has been represented in the preparation, negotiation, and execution of this Agreement by legal counsel of Employee’s own choice or has elected not to retain legal counsel; (d) Employee understands the terms and consequences of this Agreement and of the releases it contains; and (e) Employee is fully aware of the legal and binding effect of this Agreement.

 

[Signature Page Follows]

 


 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Parties have executed this Agreement on the respective dates set forth below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EMPLOYEE

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dated:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

COMPANY

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dated:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 




Exhibit 31.1

 

Certification pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

 

I, Patrick T. Ryan, certify that:

 

1.  I have reviewed this quarterly report on Form 10-Q of Press Ganey Holdings, Inc.;

 

2.  Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;

 

3.  Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

 

4. The registrant’s other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) for the registrant and have:

 

(a) Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

 

(b) Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant's disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and

(c) Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant's internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant's most recent fiscal quarter (the registrant's fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant's internal control over financial reporting; and

 

5.  The registrant’s other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

 

(a) All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and

 

(b) Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 5, 2015

 

By:

/S/ PATRICK T. RYAN

 

 

Name:

Patrick T. Ryan

 

 

Title:

Chief Executive Officer

 




Exhibit 31.2

 

Certification pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

 

I, Breht T. Feigh, certify that:

 

1.  I have reviewed this quarterly report on Form 10-Q of Press Ganey Holdings, Inc.;

 

2.  Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;

 

3.  Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

 

4. The registrant’s other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) for the registrant and have:

 

(a) Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

 

(b) Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant's disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and

(c) Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant's internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant's most recent fiscal quarter (the registrant's fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant's internal control over financial reporting; and

 

5.  The registrant’s other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

 

(a) All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and

 

(b) Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 5,  2015

 

By:

/S/  BREHT T. FEIGH

 

 

Name:

Breht T. Feigh

 

 

Title:

Chief Financial Officer

 




Exhibit 32.1

 

Certifications pursuant to U.S.C. Section 1350,

as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

 

Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, each of the undersigned officers of Press Ganey Holdings, Inc. (the “Company”) hereby certifies, to such officer’s knowledge, that:

 

 (i)  the accompanying Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of the Company for the quarter ended June 30, 2015 (the “Report”) fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; and

 

(ii)  the information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Company.

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 5,   2015

 

By:

/S/ PATRICK T. RYAN

 

 

Name:

Patrick T. Ryan

 

 

Title:

Chief Executive Officer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 5,   2015

 

By:

/S/  BREHT T. FEIGH

 

 

Name:

Breht T. Feigh

 

 

Title:

Chief Financial Officer

 


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