DEF 14A

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

SCHEDULE 14A

(Rule

14a-101)

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN

PROXY STATEMENT

SCHEDULE 14A INFORMATION

Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of the

Securities Exchange Act of 1934

(Amendment No. )

Filed by the Registrant

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Filed by a Party other than the Registrant

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Check the appropriate box:

☐	Preliminary Proxy Statement

☐	Confidential, for Use of the Commission Only (as permitted by Rule 14a-6(e)(2))

☒	Definitive Proxy Statement

☐	Definitive Additional Materials

☐	Soliciting Material under §240.14a-12

MicroStrategy Incorporated

(Name of registrant as specified in its charter)

(Name of person(s) filing proxy statement, if other than the registrant)

Payment of Filing Fee (Check all boxes that apply):

☒	No fee required

☐	Fee paid previously with preliminary materials

☐	Fee computed on table in exhibit required by Item 25(b) per Exchange Act Rules 14a-6(i)(1) and 0-11

LOGO

LETTER FROM OUR EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN

April 13, 2023

Dear Fellow Stockholder:

On behalf of the Board of Directors and our entire company, I invite you to attend MicroStrategy’s Annual Meeting of Stockholders on Wednesday, May 24, 2023, at 10:00 a.m., Eastern Daylight Time. This meeting will be held exclusively via live webcast at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/MSTR2023. This means there will not be a physical meeting location, and stockholders will not be able to attend the Annual Meeting in person.

I could not be more enthusiastic about the future for MicroStrategy, our partner organizations, our customers, and our employees. The global pandemic catalyzed a transformation within our organization—and today we have never been stronger and more focused on our corporate strategies: to grow our analytics software business and acquire and hold bitcoin. We will continue to vigorously pursue both strategies. I strongly believe we have the right team of leaders and contributors in place to deliver exceptional value to our customers and extraordinary opportunities for our stockholders.

Our Analytics Software Strategy

Industry leaders trust our platform to serve their businesses with agility and speed—navigating evolving market landscapes with confidence. This past year was the third consecutive year that we’ve seen increasing renewal rates as organizations consolidate legacy tools in favor of the MicroStrategy platform. In addition, growth stemming from annual subscription billings from our Cloud offering continued to yield impressive results year-over-year. Our ongoing investment in research and development has enabled customers to transform how they do business, deploying low-code/no-code personalized applications for myriad use cases, such as retail store management, bank branch operations, and healthcare solutions. We continued to see increased adoption of HyperIntelligence^®, our innovative product that delivers answers directly onto websites and business applications. And our embedded analytics offering continued to expand, thanks to our rich library of APIs and our stellar reputation as a partner organization.

Looking forward, the company is well positioned for growth. We continue to focus on streamlining processes, growing our sales pipeline, and increasing revenues. Following a pandemic-driven hiatus, we are eager to engage potential customers at in-person events and conferences, specifically to highlight the advantages of our cloud offering. New customers are typically cloud-first organizations that can immediately reap the benefits of our managed service. Concurrently, more and more existing on-premises customers have been migrating to the cloud and expanding their MicroStrategy usage to new user groups and departments.

Our Bitcoin Strategy

In August of 2020, MicroStrategy officially adopted bitcoin as our primary treasury reserve asset as part of an innovative corporate treasury strategy. Since then, our commitment to bitcoin, and all that it represents, has not wavered. We have faced market volatility, but I am optimistic we are on the right path forward, and that regulators will inevitably reach the same conclusion we made in the summer of 2020: recognizing bitcoin as an open, secure protocol for an internet-native digital asset and a novel and much-needed addition to the financial ecosystem. To further educate the market, we will host our annual Bitcoin & Lightning for Corporations event this May, held alongside MicroStrategy World 2023 in Orlando, Florida. The in-person event is a dedicated opportunity for business leaders, financial executives, and technology innovators to hear directly from expert voices and experienced practitioners representing institutional-grade organizations.

In addition to acquiring and holding bitcoin, we are pleased with the early results of our Lightning R&D effort. That is why we decided to host a Lightning for Corporations track alongside Bitcoin for Corporations. Operating on top of the Bitcoin Network, the layer 2 Lightning Network is money-over-IP that offers a wide array of opportunities for product innovation and market disruption. It’s impressive what developers can now do with this technology, and it offers a clear solution to the primary criticism lobbied by bitcoin skeptics—that a slow transaction rate on the base chain makes it difficult to envision how billions of individuals could ultimately be served by this technology.

Our Board of Directors continues to play a critical role in efforts to drive sustainable growth and create value for our stockholders. Directors provide assistance and guidance in establishing and implementing our corporate strategies as well as independent oversight of our leadership, operations, and risk management. This high level of Board engagement provides a strong foundation for our success and maintaining the trust of our stockholders.

The accompanying Notice of Annual Meeting and Proxy Statement contain information about the proposals that will be presented at the Annual Meeting and on which you are asked to vote. Whether or not you plan to attend the meeting online, it is important that your shares be represented and voted at the meeting. I encourage you to read the materials carefully and vote promptly. We thank you for your ongoing confidence in MicroStrategy, and we look forward to your participation at the Annual Meeting.

Very truly yours,

Michael J. Saylor

Chairman of the Board & Executive Chairman

LOGO

NOTICE OF 2023 ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS

Date:

Wednesday, May 24, 2023

Time:

10:00 a.m., Eastern Daylight Time (“EDT”)

Place:

Exclusively via live webcast at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/MSTR2023

Record Date:

March 27, 2023. Only stockholders of record at the close of business on the record date are entitled to receive notice of, and to attend and vote at, the Annual Meeting.

A list of registered stockholders as of the close of business on the record date will be available for examination by any stockholder for any purpose germane to the Annual Meeting for a period of at least 10 days prior to the Annual Meeting. The stockholder list will also be available to stockholders of record for examination during the Annual Meeting at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/MSTR2023. To inspect the stockholder list before the Annual Meeting, stockholders can email our Investor Relations department at ir@microstrategy.com. You will need the 16-digit control number included on your Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders, proxy card, or the instructions that accompanied your proxy materials.

Proxy Voting:

Your vote is important. Please vote your shares as soon as possible over the telephone, on the Internet, or by mail by completing, signing, dating, and returning your proxy card or voting instruction form. Submitting your proxy now will not prevent you from voting your shares during the Annual Meeting, as your proxy is revocable at your option. We are requesting your vote as to the matters of business set forth below.

Matters of Business:

elect six (6) directors for the next year;

approve the MicroStrategy Incorporated 2023 Equity Incentive Plan;

approve, on an advisory, non-binding basis, the compensation of the Company’s named executive officers (say-on-pay);

recommend, on an advisory, non-binding basis, holding future executive compensation advisory votes every three years, every two years or every year (say-on-frequency);

ratify the selection of KPMG LLP as the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2023; and

transact such other business as may properly come before the Annual Meeting or any adjournment thereof.

By Order of the Board of Directors,

W. Ming Shao

Senior Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary

Tysons Corner, Virginia

April 13, 2023

TABLE OF CONTENTS


INFORMATION REGARDING THE ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS			1

Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for the Annual Meeting to be Held on May 24, 2023			1

Stockholders Entitled to Vote			1

Votes Required			1

Attending the Annual Meeting			2

How to Submit Questions			2

How to Vote			2

List of Registered Stockholders			3

The Effect of Not Casting Your Vote, Broker Non-votes and Abstentions			3

Changing Your Vote and Revoking Your Proxy			3

Costs of Solicitation			4

Householding of Proxy Materials			4

Stockholder Proposals			4
SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT			5
EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF THE COMPANY			8
PROPOSAL 1—ELECTION OF DIRECTORS			10

Nominees			10
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND ITS COMMITTEES			14

Related Person Transactions Policy and Related Person Transactions			14

Board of Directors			15

Controlled Company			16

Audit Committee			17

Compensation Committee			17

Investments Committee			17

Board Leadership Structure			18

Oversight of Risk			18

Director Candidates			18

Directors’ Attendance at Annual Meeting of Stockholders			19

Communicating with the Board of Directors			19

Delinquent Section 16(a) Reports			19

Code of Ethics			19
EXECUTIVE AND DIRECTOR COMPENSATION			20
Compensation Discussion and Analysis			20

Overview			20

General Philosophy and Compensation Objectives: Performance, Alignment, and Retention			20

Implementing Our Objectives			21

Role of the Compensation Committee and CEO / President & CEO			21

Determining Compensation			21

Employment and Severance Agreements			22

Equity Ownership Guidelines			22

Prohibition on Hedging Transactions			22

Elements Used to Achieve 2022 Compensation Objectives			23

Base Salary			23

Cash Bonuses			24

Equity Awards			27

Perquisites and Other Personal Benefits			29

Change-in-control Agreement			31
Compensation Committee Report			31
Executive Officer Compensation			32

Summary Compensation Table			32

Grants of Plan-based Awards for 2022			34


MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement		i


Outstanding Equity Awards at 2022 Fiscal Year-end			35

Stock Vested in 2022			36

Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change in Control			36
Director Compensation			38
Equity Compensation Plan Information			41
Pay versus Performance			42
CEO Pay Ratio			46
AUDIT COMMITTEE REPORT			47
PROPOSAL 2—APPROVAL OF THE MICROSTRATEGY INCORPORATED 2023 EQUITY INCENTIVE PLAN			48
Introduction			48
New Plan Benefits			48

MicroStrategy Incorporated 2023 Equity Incentive Plan			49
Description of the 2023 Equity Plan			49

Shares Available, Share Counting and Limitations			49

Types of Awards			50

Incentive Stock Options and Non-statutory Stock Options			50

Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units			51

Stock Appreciation Rights			51

Other Stock-Based Awards and Cash-Based Awards			51

Performance Awards			51

Transferability of Awards			52

Eligibility to Receive Awards			52

Administration			52

Acceleration			52

Limitation on Repricing			53

Reorganization Events			53

Amendment of Award			53

Amendment or Termination			53

Clawback			53
Potential Costs, Dilution, and Burn Rate			53
Equity Compensation Plan Information			54
Federal Tax Consequences			54

Incentive Stock Options			54

Non-statutory Stock Options			55

Restricted Stock			55

Restricted Stock Units			56

Stock Appreciation Rights			56

Other Stock-Based / Cash-Based Awards			56

Tax Consequences to the Company			56
Certain Interests of Executive Officers and Directors			56
PROPOSAL 3—APPROVAL, ON AN ADVISORY, NON-BINDING BASIS, OF THE COMPENSATION OF THE COMPANY’S NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS (SAY-ON-PAY)			57
PROPOSAL 4—APPROVAL, ON AN ADVISORY, NON-BINDING BASIS, OF THE FREQUENCY OF FUTURE ADVISORY VOTES ON THE COMPENSATION OF THE COMPANY’S NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS (SAY-ON-FREQUENCY)			58
PROPOSAL 5—RATIFICATION OF THE SELECTION OF KPMG LLP AS THE COMPANY’S INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2023			59
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM FEES AND SERVICES			60

Fees and Services			60

Audit Committee Pre-approval Policies and Procedures			60
OTHER MATTERS			61
APPENDIX A—2023 EQUITY INCENTIVE PLAN			A-1


ii		MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement

INFORMATION REGARDING THE ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS

These proxy materials are furnished in connection with the solicitation of proxies by the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of MicroStrategy Incorporated (the “Company,” “MicroStrategy,” “we,” or “us”) for use at the Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “Annual Meeting”) to be held exclusively via live webcast at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/MSTR2023 on Wednesday, May 24, 2023 at 10:00 a.m., EDT, and at any continuation, postponement or adjournment thereof. This proxy statement summarizes information needed to help you cast an informed vote at the Annual Meeting with respect to the proposals set forth in this proxy statement. We first made available this proxy statement, the Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders, and the proxy card on or about April 13, 2023, to all stockholders entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting. We intend to mail the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials on or about April 14, 2023, to all stockholders of record entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting.

Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for the Annual Meeting to be Held on May 24, 2023

Pursuant to rules adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), we have elected to provide access to our proxy materials on the Internet instead of mailing a printed copy of our proxy materials to all of our stockholders. Accordingly, we are sending a separate Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials to our stockholders of record. All stockholders of record will have the ability to access the proxy materials and our annual report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 (the “Annual Report”) on the website referred to in the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials or request to receive a printed copy of the proxy materials and Annual Report. Instructions on how to access the proxy materials and Annual Report on the Internet or request a printed copy may be found in the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials.

To request a printed copy of our Annual Report, which we will provide to you free of charge, please write to our Investor Relations Department at 1850 Towers Crescent Plaza, Tysons Corner, Virginia 22182, Attention: Investor Relations.

Stockholders Entitled to Vote

If you owned our class A common stock, par value $0.001 per share (“Class A Stock”), or our class B common stock, par value $0.001 per share (“Class B Stock” and collectively with Class A Stock, the “Common Stock”), at the close of business on March 27, 2023 (the “record date”), you are entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting. On the record date, there were an aggregate of 10,974,626 shares of our Class A Stock and 1,964,025 shares of our Class B Stock outstanding and entitled to vote. Each share of Class A Stock entitles the record holder thereof to one (1) vote on each of the matters to be voted on at the Annual Meeting, and each share of Class B Stock entitles the record holder thereof to ten (10) votes on each of the matters to be voted on at the Annual Meeting.

Votes Required

The holders of shares of Common Stock representing a majority of the votes of the outstanding shares of stock entitled to be cast at the Annual Meeting shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at the Annual Meeting. Shares of Common Stock represented in person or by proxy, including shares which abstain or do not vote with respect to one or more of the matters presented for stockholder approval, will be counted for purposes of determining whether a quorum is present at the Annual Meeting. Shares present virtually during the Annual Meeting will be considered shares of Common Stock represented in person at the meeting.

The affirmative vote of a plurality of the votes cast by the holders of Common Stock voting on the matter is required for the election of directors (Proposal 1). The affirmative vote of a majority of the votes cast by the holders of Common Stock voting on the matter is required for (i) the approval of the MicroStrategy Incorporated 2023 Equity Incentive Plan (Proposal 2); (ii) the approval, on an advisory, non-binding basis, of the compensation of our named executive officers as disclosed in this proxy statement (Proposal 3); (iii) the recommendation, on an advisory, non-binding basis, of one of the three frequency options (every three years, every two years or every year) for holding future executive compensation advisory votes (Proposal 4) (if no frequency receives the foregoing vote, we will consider the frequency that received the highest number of votes cast to be the frequency recommended by stockholders); and (iv) the ratification of the selection of KPMG LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2023 (Proposal 5).

All executed proxies will be voted in accordance with the stockholders’ instructions on the matters set forth in the accompanying Notice of Annual Meeting, and if no choice is specified, executed proxies will be voted in accordance with the Board’s recommendations on such matters as set forth in this proxy statement.


MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement		1

Attending the Annual Meeting

As in recent years, we have determined to hold the Annual Meeting in virtual format only, with no physical in-person meeting. Stockholders of record as of the record date, or those that hold a valid proxy, may attend the Annual Meeting online at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/MSTR2023. You will need the 16-digit control number included on your Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders, proxy card, or the instructions that accompanied your proxy materials. If you are not a stockholder of record but hold shares as a beneficial owner in street name, you may be required to provide proof of beneficial ownership, such as your most recent account statement as of the record date, a copy of the voting instruction form provided by your broker, financial institution, or other nominee, or other similar evidence of ownership. Even if you plan to attend the Annual Meeting, we recommend that you vote your shares in advance, so that your vote will be counted if you later decide not to attend the Annual Meeting.

How to Submit Questions

Stockholders of record as of the record date may submit questions in advance of the Annual Meeting at www.proxyvote.com using the 16-digit control number included on your Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders, proxy card, or the instructions that accompanied your proxy materials. Questions must be received by 5:00 p.m., EDT, on May 22, 2023. Questions will not be accepted during the Annual Meeting. We will try to answer as many stockholder-submitted questions that comply with the meeting rules of conduct as time permits. However, we reserve the right to edit profanity or other inappropriate language and to exclude questions that are not pertinent to Annual Meeting matters or that are otherwise inappropriate. If we receive substantially similar questions, we will group such questions together and provide a single response to avoid repetition.

How to Vote

You do not need to attend the Annual Meeting to vote your shares. You may vote by proxy over the telephone, on the Internet, or by mail, and your votes will be cast for you at the Annual Meeting. This process is described below.

Stockholder of Record: Shares Registered in Your Name

If you are a stockholder of record, you may (i) vote online during the Annual Meeting or (ii) vote by proxy. Whether or not you plan to attend the Annual Meeting, we urge you to vote by proxy over the telephone, on the Internet, or by mail as instructed below to help ensure your vote is counted. You may still attend the Annual Meeting and vote during the meeting even if you have already voted by proxy; only your last vote before the close of voting will be counted.


During the Meeting:		To vote online during the Annual Meeting, visit www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/MSTR2023 and vote by Internet as instructed. You will need the 16-digit control number included on your Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders, proxy card, or the instructions that accompanied your proxy materials.

Phone:		To vote by telephone, dial toll-free 1-800-690-6903 using a touch-tone phone and follow the recorded instructions. You will be asked to provide the 16-digit control number included on your Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders, proxy card, or the instructions that accompanied your proxy materials. Your vote must be received by 11:59 p.m., EDT, on May 23, 2023, to be counted.

Internet:		To vote on the Internet, go to www.proxyvote.com to complete an electronic proxy card. You will be asked to provide the 16-digit control number included on your Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders, proxy card, or the instructions that accompanied your proxy materials. Your vote must be received by 11:59 p.m., EDT, on May 23, 2023, to be counted.

Proxy Card:		To vote by mail, simply complete, sign, and date the proxy card and return it promptly in the postage-paid envelope provided or return it to Vote Processing, c/o Broadridge, 51 Mercedes Way, Edgewood, NY 11717. To request a printed copy of the proxy card, follow the instructions found in the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials. If we receive your signed proxy card by May 23, 2023, the designated proxy holders will vote your shares as you direct.


2		MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement

Beneficial Owner: Shares Registered in the Name of Broker, Financial Institution, or Other Nominee

If as of the close of business on March 27, 2023, the record date, your shares were held not in your name, but rather in an account at a brokerage firm, financial institution, or other similar organization, then you are the beneficial owner of shares held in “street name” and these proxy materials are being forwarded to you by that organization. The organization holding your account is considered to be the stockholder of record for purposes of voting at the Annual Meeting.

As a beneficial owner, you have the right to direct your broker or other agent regarding how to vote the shares in your account. You should have received a proxy card and voting instructions with these proxy materials from that organization rather than from us. Simply complete and mail the proxy card and voting instructions to help ensure that your vote is counted. Alternatively, you may vote over the telephone or on the Internet as instructed by your broker, financial institution, or other nominee, if applicable. To vote online during the Annual Meeting, you must obtain a valid proxy from your broker, financial institution, or other nominee. You will need the 16-digit control number included in your proxy card or the instructions that accompanied your proxy materials. Follow the instructions from your broker, financial institution, or other nominee included with these proxy materials, or contact your broker, financial institution, or other nominee to request a proxy.

List of Registered Stockholders

A list of registered stockholders as of the close of business on the record date will be available for examination by any stockholder for any purpose germane to the Annual Meeting for a period of at least ten (10) days prior to the Annual Meeting. The stockholder list will also be available to stockholders of record for examination during the Annual Meeting at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/MSTR2023. To inspect the stockholder list before the Annual Meeting, stockholders can email our Investor Relations department at ir@microstrategy.com. You will need the 16-digit control number included on your Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders, proxy card, or the instructions that accompanied your proxy materials.

The Effect of Not Casting Your Vote, Broker Non-votes and Abstentions

Stockholder of Record. If you do not cast your vote, no votes will be cast on your behalf on any of the matters of business at the Annual Meeting. If you withhold authority to vote for all nominees for Proposal 1 or abstain from voting on any of Proposals 2, 3, 4 or 5, then your shares will not be counted as votes in favor of any of the proposed nominees for Proposal 1 or as shares casting votes on Proposals 2, 3, 4 or 5 and accordingly will have no effect on the voting on such proposals.

Beneficial Owner. Proposals 1, 2, 3, and 4 are “non-discretionary” items. If you withhold authority to vote for all nominees for Proposal 1 or abstain from voting on any of Proposals 2, 3, or 4 and your shares are held in “street name” by brokers or nominees who indicate on their proxies that they do not have discretionary authority to vote your shares on such matter, then your shares will not be counted as votes in favor of any of the proposed nominees for Proposal 1 or in favor of such matter or shares voting on such matter for Proposals 2, 3 or 4. Accordingly, votes withheld and “broker non-votes” will have no effect on the voting on Proposal 1, and abstentions and “broker non-votes” will have no effect on the voting on Proposals 2, 3, and 4. Proposal 5 is a “discretionary” item, and your broker or nominee will be able to vote your shares with respect to Proposal 5, even if you have not given voting instructions to your broker or nominee.

Changing Your Vote and Revoking Your Proxy

Stockholder of Record. You may change your vote at any time prior to the taking of the vote at the Annual Meeting by (i) submitting a new vote over the telephone, on the Internet, or by a properly completed proxy card with a later date, (ii) delivering a written revocation or a subsequently dated proxy card to MicroStrategy’s General Counsel at 1850 Towers Crescent Plaza, Tysons Corner, Virginia 22182, or (iii) voting online during the Annual Meeting.

Beneficial Owner. You may change your vote at any time prior to the taking of the vote at the Annual Meeting by (i) submitting new voting instructions to your broker or nominee by following the instructions they provided or (ii) if you have obtained a legal proxy from your broker or nominee giving you the right to vote your shares, by attending the Annual Meeting online and voting during the meeting using a valid legal proxy.


MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement		3

Costs of Solicitation

All costs of solicitation of proxies will be borne by us. In addition to solicitations by mail, our directors, officers, and employees, without additional remuneration, may solicit proxies by telephone and personal interviews, and we reserve the right to retain outside agencies for the purpose of soliciting proxies. Brokers, custodians, and fiduciaries will be requested to forward proxy soliciting material to the owners of stock held in their names and, as required by law, we will reimburse them for their out-of-pocket expenses in this regard.

Householding of Proxy Materials

The SEC has adopted rules that permit companies and intermediaries (e.g., brokers) to satisfy the delivery requirements for Notices of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials or other annual meeting materials with respect to two or more stockholders sharing the same address by delivering a single copy of the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials or other annual meeting materials addressed to those stockholders. This process, which is commonly referred to as “householding,” is intended to provide extra convenience for stockholders and cost savings for companies.

A number of brokers, financial institutions, and other nominees with account holders who are our stockholders will be householding our proxy materials. Under this practice, a single copy of the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials or other annual meeting materials will be delivered to multiple stockholders sharing an address, unless contrary instructions have been received from the affected stockholders. Once you have received notice from us (if you are a stockholder of record) or from your broker, financial institution, or other nominee (if you are a beneficial owner) that we or they will be householding communications to your address, householding will continue until you are notified otherwise or until you revoke your consent. If, at any time, you no longer wish to participate in householding and would prefer to receive a separate Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials or other annual meeting materials or if you currently receive multiple copies and would like to request householding of your communications, please notify us or your broker, financial institution, or other nominee. You can submit your written request to us at MicroStrategy Incorporated, located at 1850 Towers Crescent Plaza, Tysons Corner, Virginia 22182, Attention: Investor Relations, or by calling 703-848-8600. We will promptly deliver, upon oral or written request, a separate copy of the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials or other annual meeting materials to a stockholder at a shared address to which a single copy of the documents was delivered.

Stockholder Proposals

Proposals of stockholders intended to be presented at the 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, including director nominations described below under the caption “Corporate Governance and the Board of Directors and its Committees—Director Candidates,” must be received by us at our principal offices, 1850 Towers Crescent Plaza, Tysons Corner, Virginia 22182 by December 16, 2023 for inclusion in the proxy materials for the 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. MicroStrategy suggests that proponents submit their proposals by a nationally recognized overnight courier service, addressed to the General Counsel of the Company.

If a stockholder wishes to present a proposal before the 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, but does not wish to have the proposal considered for inclusion in our proxy statement and proxy card, such stockholder must also give written notice to the General Counsel of the Company at the address noted above. The General Counsel must receive such notice by February 29, 2024 and, if a stockholder fails to provide such timely notice of a proposal to be presented at the 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, the proxies designated by the Board will have discretionary authority to vote on any such proposal.

In addition to the above, a stockholder intending to solicit proxies in support of director nominees other than the Company’s nominees in connection with the 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders must comply with the additional requirements of Rule 14a-19 under the Exchange Act, including sending notice, no later than March 25, 2024, setting forth the information required by Rule 14a-19(b) to the Company at the address set forth above.


4		MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement

SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT

The following table sets forth the beneficial ownership of our Common Stock as of March 27, 2023, unless otherwise indicated, by:

•

each person who is known by us to beneficially own more than 5% of any class of our Common Stock;

•

each director or nominee for director;

•

each of our named executive officers as defined in Item 402(a)(3) of Regulation S-K; and

•

all directors and current executive officers as a group.

Except as otherwise indicated below, we believe, based on the information furnished to us, that the persons and entities named in the table have sole voting and investment power with respect to all shares that they beneficially own, subject to any applicable community property laws. Percentages have been calculated based on 10,974,626 shares of Class A Stock and 1,964,025 shares of Class B Stock outstanding as of March 27, 2023. Any shares of Class A Stock subject to outstanding stock options that are currently exercisable or will become exercisable within 60 days after March 27, 2023, any shares of Class A Stock subject to outstanding restricted stock units (“RSUs”) that will vest within 60 days after March 27, 2023, and any shares of Class A Stock issuable upon conversion of Class B Stock are deemed outstanding for the purpose of calculating such director’s or officer’s percentage ownership, but are not deemed outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of any other person.

Except as otherwise indicated, the address of each beneficial owner named below is in care of MicroStrategy Incorporated, 1850 Towers Crescent Plaza, Tysons Corner, Virginia 22182.


	Number of Shares and Percent of Class Owned⁽¹⁾								Beneficial Ownership of Class A Stock (Shares)⁽¹⁾		Beneficial Ownership of Class A Stock (% of Class)⁽¹⁾		Total Voting Power (%)⁽¹⁾
	Class A Stock				Class B Stock
Beneficial Owner	Shares		% of Class		Shares		% of Class
Named Executive Officers and Directors:
Michael J. Saylor⁽²⁾		445,740		3.9		1,961,668		99.9		2,407,408		18.1		64.7
Phong Q. Le⁽³⁾		110,458		1.0		—		—		110,458		1.0		*
Kevin L. Adkisson⁽⁴⁾		15,884		*		—		—		15,884		*		*
Andrew Kang⁽⁵⁾		5,000		*		—		—		5,000		*		*
Timothy E. Lang⁽⁶⁾⁽⁷⁾		17,882		*		—		—		17,882		*		*
W. Ming Shao⁽⁸⁾		34,816		*		—		—		34,816		*		*
Stephen X. Graham⁽⁹⁾		26,700		*		—		—		26,700		*		*
Jarrod M. Patten⁽¹⁰⁾		51,500		*		—		—		51,500		*		*
Leslie J. Rechan⁽¹¹⁾		10,750		*		—		—		10,750		*		*
Carl J. Rickertsen⁽¹²⁾		9,000		*		—		—		9,000		*		*
5% Stockholders:
Capital International Investors⁽¹³⁾		1,539,148		14.0		—		—		1,539,148		14.0		5.0
The Vanguard Group, Inc.⁽¹⁴⁾		926,342		8.4		—		—		926,342		8.4		3.0
BlackRock, Inc.⁽¹⁵⁾		757,146		6.9		—		—		757,146		6.9		2.5
Jane Street Group, LLC ⁽¹⁶⁾		679,116		6.2		—		—		679,116		6.2		2.2
Capital Ventures International⁽¹⁷⁾		606,545		5.5		—		—		606,545		5.5		2.0
All directors and current executive officers as a group (10 persons)⁽¹⁸⁾		727,730		6.2		1,961,668		99.9		2,689,398		19.8		65.0

*	Less than 1.0%.

(1)

The inclusion of any shares of Common Stock deemed owned or beneficially owned does not constitute an admission of beneficial ownership of those shares. The number of shares and percentage of class owned is calculated for the Class A Stock by treating any shares of Class A Stock subject to outstanding stock options that are currently exercisable or will become exercisable within 60 days after March 27, 2023, and any shares of Class A


MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement		5

Stock subject to outstanding RSUs that will vest within 60 days after March 27, 2023 held by each applicable person as outstanding for the purpose of calculating such applicable person’s ownership and percentage ownership of Class A Stock, but shares subject to outstanding stock options and outstanding RSUs are not deemed outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of any other person. The number of shares and percentage of class owned for the Class B Stock reflect only outstanding shares of Class B Stock as there are no outstanding rights to acquire Class B Stock, and accordingly the amounts and percentages of Class B Stock reported as owned are also the amounts and percentages of Class B Stock that are beneficially owned. The number of shares beneficially owned and the beneficial ownership percentage of Class A Stock is calculated on the same basis as the number and percentage of Class A Stock owned, except that the amounts beneficially owned for each applicable person also include any shares of Class A Stock issuable upon conversion of Class B Stock owned by such person, and for the purpose of calculating each applicable person’s beneficial ownership percentage, such shares of Class A Stock issuable upon conversion of Class B Stock are deemed outstanding for purposes of computing the percentage ownership of such person but are not deemed outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of any other person. The percentage of total voting power is calculated by treating the shares of our Class A Stock and Class B Stock together as a single class. Shares of Class A Stock generally have the same rights, including rights to dividends, as shares of Class B Stock, except that shares of Class A Stock have one vote per share while shares of Class B Stock have ten votes per share. Each share of Class B Stock is convertible at any time, at the option of the holder, into one share of Class A Stock.

(2)

Mr. Saylor’s holdings of Common Stock consist of (i) an option exercisable on or within 60 days after March 27, 2023 to purchase 400,000 shares of Class A Stock, (ii) 1,961,668 shares of Class B Stock owned by Alcantara LLC, which is wholly owned by Mr. Saylor, and (iii) 45,740 shares of Class A Stock held by a charitable foundation for which Mr. Saylor serves as the sole trustee and as to which he disclaims beneficial ownership.

(3)	Mr. Le’s holdings of Common Stock consist of (i) 458 shares of Class A Stock held by Mr. Le directly and (ii) options exercisable on or within 60 days after March 27, 2023 to purchase 110,000 shares of Class A Stock.

(4)	Mr. Adkisson’s holdings of Common Stock consist of (i) 259 shares of Class A Stock held by Mr. Adkisson directly and (ii) options exercisable on or within 60 days after March 27, 2023 to purchase 15,625 shares of Class A Stock.

(5)	Mr. Kang’s holdings of Common Stock consist of (i) options exercisable on or within 60 days after March 27, 2023 to purchase 3,750 shares of Class A Stock and (ii) RSUs that will vest on or within 60 days after March 27, 2023 with respect to 1,250 shares of Class A Stock.

(6)	Mr. Lang’s holdings of Common Stock consist of (i) 2,882 shares of Class A Stock held by Mr. Lang directly and (ii) options exercisable on or within 60 days after March 27, 2023 to purchase 15,000 shares of Class A Stock.

(7)	Mr. Lang resigned as Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Technology Officer effective as of April 14, 2023.

(8)	Mr. Shao’s holdings of Common Stock consist of (i) 316 shares of Class A Stock held by Mr. Shao directly and (ii) options exercisable on or within 60 days after March 27, 2023 to purchase 34,500 shares of Class A Stock.

(9)	Mr. Graham’s holdings of Common Stock consist of (i) 200 shares of Class A Stock held by Mr. Graham directly and (ii) options exercisable on or within 60 days after March 27, 2023 to purchase 26,500 shares of Class A Stock.

(10)	Mr. Patten’s holdings of Common Stock consist of options exercisable on or within 60 days after March 27, 2023 to purchase 51,500 shares of Class A Stock.

(11)	Mr. Rechan’s holdings of Common Stock consist of (i) 2,000 shares of Class A Stock held by Mr. Rechan directly and (ii) options exercisable on or within 60 days after March 27, 2023 to purchase 8,750 shares of Class A Stock.

(12)	Mr. Rickertsen’s holdings of Common Stock consist of (i) 4,000 shares of Class A Stock held by Mr. Rickertsen directly and (ii) options exercisable on or within 60 days after March 27, 2023 to purchase 5,000 shares of Class A Stock.

(13)

The number of shares beneficially owned (and other information in this footnote) is as of December 30, 2022, based on a Schedule 13G/A filed on February 13, 2023, with the SEC by Capital International Investors. Capital International Investors beneficially owns 1,539,148 shares of Class A Stock and has sole voting power with respect to all of these shares and sole dispositive power with respect to all of these shares. The address for Capital International Investors is 333 South Hope Street, 55th Fl, Los Angeles, CA 90071.

(14)

The number of shares beneficially owned (and other information in this footnote) is as of December 30, 2022, based on a Schedule 13G/A filed on February 9, 2023, with the SEC by The Vanguard Group, Inc. The Vanguard Group, Inc. beneficially owns 926,342 shares of Class A Stock and has sole dispositive power with respect to 905,164 of these shares, shared voting power with respect to 12,019 of these shares, and shared dispositive power with respect to 21,178 of these shares. The address for The Vanguard Group, Inc. is 100 Vanguard Boulevard, Malvern, PA 19355.

(15)

The number of shares beneficially owned (and other information in this footnote) is as of December 31, 2022, based on a Schedule 13G/A filed on February 3, 2023, with the SEC by BlackRock, Inc. BlackRock, Inc. beneficially owns 757,146 shares of Class A Stock and has sole voting power with respect to 742,546 of these shares and sole dispositive power with respect to 757,146 shares. The address for BlackRock, Inc. is 55 East 52nd Street, New York, NY 10055.

(16)

The number of shares beneficially owned (and other information in this footnote) is as of December 31, 2022, based on a Schedule 13G filed on February 14, 2023, with the SEC by Jane Street Group, LLC (“JSG”), Jane Street Capital, LLC (“JSC”), Jane Street Global Trading, LLC (“JSGT”), and Jane Street Options, LLC (“JSO” and, collectively with JSG, JSC and JSGT, the “Jane Street Persons”) with respect to shares of Class A Stock owned by JSG. JSG beneficially owns 679,116 shares of Class A Stock and has shared voting and dispositive power with respect to all of these shares. JSC may be deemed to beneficially own 679,116 shares of Class A Stock and have shared voting and shared dispositive power with respect to 4,940 shares. JSGT may be deemed to beneficially own 679,116 shares of Class A Stock and have shared voting and shared dispositive power with respect to 8,182 shares. JSO may be deemed to beneficially own 679,116 shares of Class A Stock and have shared voting and shared dispositive power with respect to 665,994 shares. The address for each of the Jane Street Persons is 250 Vesey Street, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10281.

(17)

The number of shares beneficially owned (and other information in this footnote) is as of December 31, 2022, based on a Schedule 13G filed on February 14, 2023, with the SEC by Capital Ventures International (“CVI”), Susquehanna Advisors Group, Inc. (“SAG”), G1 Execution Services, LLC (“G1”), Susquehanna Investment Group (“SIG”), and Susquehanna Securities, LLC (“SS”). G1, SIG, and SS are affiliated independent broker-dealers which, together with CVI and SAG, may be deemed a group. SAG is the investment manager to CVI. CVI beneficially owns 606,545 shares of Class A Stock and has sole voting and dispositive power with respect to 17,449 of these shares, and has shared voting and dispositive power with respect to 606,545 shares. SAG may be deemed to beneficially own 606,545 shares of Class A Stock and have shared voting and dispositive power with respect to all of the shares. G1 may be deemed to beneficially own 606,545 shares of Class A Stock, have sole voting and dispositive power with respect to 316 shares of Class A Stock, and have shared voting and dispositive power with respect to 606,545 shares of Class A Stock. SIG may be deemed to beneficially own 606,545 shares of Class A Stock, have sole voting and dispositive power with respect to 48,700 shares of Class A Stock, and have shared voting and dispositive power with respect to 606,545 shares of Class A Stock. The number of shares reported as beneficially owned by SIG consists of options to buy 48,700 shares. SS may be deemed to beneficially own 606,545 shares of Class A Stock, have sole voting and dispositive


6		MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement

power with respect to 540,080 shares of Class A Stock, and have shared voting and dispositive power with respect to 606,545 shares of Class A Stock. The number of shares reported as beneficially owned by SS includes options to buy 536,300 shares. The address for CVI is P.O. Box 897, Windward 1, Regatta Office Park, West Bay Road, Grand Cayman, KY1-1103, Cayman Islands. The address for G1 is 175 W. Jackson Blvd., Suite 1700, Chicago, IL 60604. The address for SAG, SIG, and SS is 401 E. City Avenue, Suite 220, Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004.

(18)

Shares of Common Stock held by the directors and current executive officers as a group consist of (i) 55,855 shares of Class A Stock, (ii) options exercisable on or within 60 days after March 27, 2023 to purchase an aggregate of 670,625 shares of Class A Stock, (iii) RSUs that will vest on or within 60 days after March 27, 2023 with respect to 1,250 shares of Class A Stock and (iv) 1,961,668 shares of Class B Stock, which are convertible into the same number of shares of Class A Stock at any time at the option of the holder.


MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement		7

EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF THE COMPANY

Our executive officers and their ages and positions as of April 13, 2023, are as follows:


Name	Age	Title
Michael J. Saylor	58	Chairman of the Board & Executive Chairman
Phong Q. Le	46	President & Chief Executive Officer
Kevin L. Adkisson	50	Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer
Andrew Kang	46	Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Timothy E. Lang⁽¹⁾	50	Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Technology Officer
W. Ming Shao	54	Senior Executive Vice President, General Counsel & Secretary

(1)	Mr. Lang resigned as Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Technology Officer effective as of April 14, 2023.

Set forth below is certain information regarding the professional experience of each of the above-named persons. There are no family relationships among any of our executive officers or directors.

Michael J. Saylor has served as Chairman of the Board and Executive Chairman since August 2022 and previously served as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer from November 1989, when he founded MicroStrategy, to August 2022. Mr. Saylor also previously served as President from November 1989 to November 2000, from January 2005 to October 2012, and from January 2016 to July 2020. Prior to that, Mr. Saylor was employed by E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company as a venture manager from 1988 to 1989 and by Federal Group, Inc. as a consultant from 1987 to 1988. Mr. Saylor received an S.B. in Aeronautics and Astronautics and an S.B. in Science, Technology, and Society from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Phong Q. Le has served as a member of the Board and as President & Chief Executive Officer since August 2022 and previously served as President from May 2022 to August 2022, President & Chief Financial Officer from July 2020 to May 2022, Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer & Chief Financial Officer from April 2020 to July 2020, Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer from November 2019 to April 2020, Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer & Treasurer from June 2018 to November 2019, and Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer & Treasurer from August 2015 to June 2018. Prior to joining MicroStrategy, Mr. Le served as the chief financial officer of XO Communications, a privately-held telecommunications company, from August 2014 to August 2015. From March 2010 to August 2014, Mr. Le held senior positions at NII Holdings, a Nasdaq-listed telecommunications company, including vice president of financial planning and analysis, vice president of strategy and business operations, and vice president of strategic finance. Prior to that, Mr. Le worked in the consulting practice at Deloitte from 1998 to 2010, where he held various positions, including senior manager. Mr. Le holds a B.S. in Biomedical and Chemical Engineering from The Johns Hopkins University and an M.B.A. from the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Kevin L. Adkisson has served as Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Revenue Officer since January 2022 and has previously served in various senior sales positions since joining MicroStrategy in October 2016, including Executive Vice President, North America Sales; Vice President and General Manager, North America Sales, Central; and Sales Director. Prior to joining MicroStrategy, Mr. Adkisson served as Senior Vice President, Global Sales at Conduit Global, a provider of Cloud Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS) and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) solutions, from May 2014 to September 2016; as Senior Vice President, Global Sales at Kognitio, an in-memory analytical software platform provider, from June 2012 to May 2014; and as Partner and Vice President of Sales at Crown Partners, a provider of end-to-end digital marketing solutions, from December 2004 to June 2012. Mr. Adkisson also served in various sales roles at several technology companies from 1994 to 2004. Mr. Adkisson received a B.A. in English and Computer Applications from the University of Notre Dame.

Andrew Kang has served as Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer since May 2022. Prior to joining MicroStrategy, Mr. Kang served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Greensky, Inc., a publicly listed financial technology firm specializing in point-of-sale consumer financing from September 2020 until it was acquired by Goldman Sachs in April 2022. Mr. Kang has over 20 years of experience in accounting, treasury, capital markets, asset liability management, financial planning and analysis, and investor relations. Prior to Greensky, Mr. Kang served as Corporate Treasurer for Santander Holdings USA, the U.S. subsidiary of Banco Santander S.A., from April 2018 to September


8		MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement

2020, where he oversaw liquidity, balance sheet and capital management for the $150 billion bank holding company. Mr. Kang has served as Corporate Treasurer at Santander Consumer USA, and Exeter Finance and has held leadership positions at HSBC and Capital One. Mr. Kang also currently serves on the Board of Trustees at The Schenck School, one of the national’s oldest and most highly regarded independent elementary schools for dyslexic students in the U.S. Mr. Kang received a B.A. in Biology and post-baccalaureate certification in Accounting, both from the University of Virginia.

Timothy E. Lang resigned as Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Technology Officer effective as of April 14, 2023. Following such resignation, he will serve in a non-executive employee advisory role through June 30, 2023, after which date he will cease to be employed by MicroStrategy. Mr. Lang has served as Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Technology Officer since November 2014 and previously served as Senior Vice President, Analytics, a position he had held since September 2014. Prior to joining MicroStrategy, Mr. Lang served as the chief product officer for Talemetry Inc., a leading provider of talent generation SaaS solutions, from September 2010 to September 2014 and as vice president, product for SAP SE from January 2008 to September 2010. Prior to that, Mr. Lang held positions at SAP BusinessObjects and Crystal Decisions. Mr. Lang received a B.Soc.Sci. in Information Management from the University of Melbourne.

W. Ming Shao has served as Senior Executive Vice President, General Counsel & Secretary since December 2014 and has previously served in other senior positions, including Executive Vice President & General Counsel, Senior Vice President & General Counsel, and Senior Vice President & Deputy General Counsel, since joining MicroStrategy in February 2000. Prior to that, Mr. Shao was a lawyer practicing at the global law firm Hogan & Hartson L.L.P. (now Hogan Lovells US LLP). Mr. Shao received an A.B. in Government from Cornell University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.


MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement		9

PROPOSAL 1—ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

The Board proposes the election of the persons listed below as directors of the Company. Each current director of the Company has been nominated for re-election. The persons named in the proxy card will vote to elect as directors the six nominees named below, unless authority to vote for the election of any or all of the nominees is withheld by marking the proxy to that effect. All of the nominees have indicated their willingness to serve, if elected, but if any should be unable or unwilling to serve, proxies may be voted for a substitute nominee designated by the Board. Each director will be elected to hold office until the next annual meeting of stockholders and until the election and qualification of his successor or his earlier death, resignation, or removal. The Board may elect additional directors in the future in accordance with the Company’s Amended and Restated By-laws.

Nominees

Set forth below, for each nominee, is his name, age, position with the Company, principal occupation and business experience during at least the past five years, the year of commencement of his term as a director of the Company, and the names of other public companies in which he currently holds directorships or has held directorships during at least the past five years, as applicable. We have also presented information below regarding each nominee’s specific experience, qualifications, attributes, and skills that led our Board to conclude that he should serve as a director.

Michael J. Saylor

Chairman of the Board &

Executive Chairman

Age: 58

Director since: 1989

Board Committees: None

Mr. Saylor has served as Chairman of the Board and Executive Chairman since August 2022 and previously served as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer from November 1989, when he founded MicroStrategy, to August 2022. Mr. Saylor also previously served as President from November 1989 to November 2000, from January 2005 to October 2012, and from January 2016 to July 2020. Prior to that, Mr. Saylor was employed by E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company as a venture manager from 1988 to 1989 and by Federal Group, Inc. as a consultant from 1987 to 1988. Mr. Saylor received an S.B. in Aeronautics and Astronautics and an S.B. in Science, Technology, and Society from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Qualifications: We believe that Mr. Saylor is well-suited to serve on our Board due to his position as our Executive Chairman and his more than 30 years with the Company, including as its founder. In addition to his leadership expertise, Mr. Saylor is regarded as a technology visionary and bitcoin thought leader, and he has deep knowledge of the Company’s history, strategy, technology, and culture, as well as unique insight into the Company’s product development, marketing, finance, and operations.


10		MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement


Phong Le Chief Executive Officer Age: 46 Director since: 2022 Board Committees: None		Mr. Le has served as a member of the Board and as President & Chief Executive Officer since August 2022 and previously served as President from May 2022 to August 2022, President & Chief Financial Officer from July 2020 to May 2022, Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer & Chief Financial Officer from April 2020 to July 2020, Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer from November 2019 to April 2020, Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer & Treasurer from June 2018 to November 2019, and Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer & Treasurer from August 2015 to June 2018. Prior to joining MicroStrategy, Mr. Le served as the chief financial officer of XO Communications, a privately-held telecommunications company, from August 2014 to August 2015. From March 2010 to August 2014, Mr. Le held senior positions at NII Holdings, a Nasdaq-listed telecommunications company, including vice president of financial planning and analysis, vice president of strategy and business operations, and vice president of strategic finance. Prior to that, Mr. Le worked in the consulting practice at Deloitte from 1998 to 2010, where he held various positions, including senior manager. Mr. Le holds a B.S. in Biomedical and Chemical Engineering from The Johns Hopkins University and an M.B.A. from the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Qualifications: We believe that Mr. Le is well-suited to serve on our Board due to his position as our Chief Executive Officer, his more than seven years with the Company, and his outside executive experience.

Stephen X. Graham Independent Director Age: 70 Director since: 2014 Board Committees: Audit (Chair)		Mr. Graham has been a member of the Board since April 2014. Mr. Graham is currently president of CrossHill Financial Group, Inc., a private merchant bank and advisory firm that he founded in 1988, and has been a general partner of CrossHill Georgetown Capital, L.P. since 2000 and CrossHill Debt II, L.P. since 2004 and a manager of CrossHill Georgetown Management, LLC since 2000. Mr. Graham also served as chairman of the board of directors from 2009 until December 2022, and as chief executive officer from 2014 until December 2022, of Meteor Affinity, Inc., a marketing and advertising company, which operated the Official NASCAR Members Club and which served as a portfolio company of CrossHill Debt II, L.P. Meteor was voluntarily dissolved on December 15, 2022. Prior to that, Mr. Graham was a principal with Kidder, Peabody & Co. and held positions with Merrill Lynch & Co. and Arthur Young & Co. (which later became part of Ernst & Young LLP). Mr. Graham was a member of the board of directors of TNS, Inc., a former New York Stock Exchange-listed global data communications and interoperability solutions company, from 2003 until the company’s acquisition by Siris Capital Group, LLC in 2013. While a member of the board of directors of TNS, Inc., Mr. Graham served as chairman of the audit committee from 2003 to 2013 and as chairman of the board of directors from 2012 to 2013. Mr. Graham also served as a member of the board of directors of Speedus Corp. from 2009 to 2011. Mr. Graham also previously served from 1995 to 2001 as a member of the board of directors of Credit Management Solutions, Inc., a former Nasdaq-listed credit processing software company, and several private companies. Mr. Graham received a B.S.B.A. from Georgetown University and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
		Qualifications: We believe that Mr. Graham is well-suited to serve on our Board due to his substantial executive experience and his experience as an outside director and audit committee member, which provides the Board with important perspectives on financial matters.


MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement		11



Jarrod M. Patten Independent Director Age: 51 Director since: 2004 Board Committees: Audit, Compensation		Mr. Patten has been a member of the Board since November 2004. Mr. Patten founded RRG, a global real estate consulting and advisory firm, and has served as the firm’s president and chief executive officer since its inception in 1996. RRG is an international consulting firm specializing in the development and implementation of enterprise-wide audit and cost control strategies that heighten operational controls, lower operating costs, increase transparency, and extend cost accountability for RRG’s geographically diverse client base. Mr. Patten received a B.S. in Biology and a B.A. in Biological Anthropology and Anatomy from the Trinity College of Arts and Sciences at Duke University. Qualifications: We believe that Mr. Patten is well-suited to serve on our Board due to his leadership and management expertise as a chief executive officer, his international business, finance, and corporate compliance experience, and his extensive knowledge of cost and operational controls.

Leslie J. Rechan Independent Director Age: 61 Director since: 2018 Board Committees: Compensation		Mr. Rechan has been a member of the Board since March 2018. Mr. Rechan founded Rechan Consulting Group LLC, a CXO services firm, and has served as the firm’s chief executive officer since its inception in February 2022. Mr. Rechan has also served as chief growth officer since February 2022 and as a board advisor since January 2017 at JASCI Software, a privately-held next generation warehouse management system company. Mr. Rechan also served as a board advisor and board member at Cognitive Scale, a trusted AI development platform company, from October 2014 through December 2022. Mr. Rechan served as chief operating officer of PROS Holdings, Inc., a publicly-traded cloud software company, from May 2020 to February 2022. From September 2017 to May 2020, Mr. Rechan served as president and chief executive officer and a director of Solace Corp., a privately-held smart data movement solutions company. Prior to that, Mr. Rechan served as president and chief executive officer and a director of Halogen Software, a cloud-based talent management software provider, from May 2015 to May 2017. Previously, he served as general manager from November 2011 to April 2014 and as vice president, sales, solutions, and services from February 2008 to October 2011 of IBM Business Analytics, a software group at IBM Corp. He also served as chief operating officer of Cognos Inc. from 2006 to 2008. Prior to Cognos, Mr. Rechan worked at Siebel Systems, Inc. and then Oracle Corporation upon its acquisition of Siebel Systems in 2006. From March 2006 to May 2006, Mr. Rechan served as senior vice president and global general manager, CRM strategy at Oracle. From 2004 to 2006, Mr. Rechan served as senior vice president and general manager of Americas sales of Siebel Systems and served in the same capacity for the global manufacturing and distribution industries business unit of Siebel Systems. Mr. Rechan served as senior vice president and general manager of North American worldwide field operations of Cadence Design Systems Inc. from 2003 to 2004. He served as president and chief operating officer of Onyx Software Corp. from 2001 to 2002. Prior to 2001, Mr. Rechan held several leadership positions at IBM across field sales, systems engineering, services, solutions, development, and general management in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific. From May 2015 to May 2020, Mr. Rechan served on the board of directors and audit committee of PROS Holdings, Inc. Mr. Rechan received a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and a B.A. in Organizational Behavior from Brown University and an M.A. in Management from Northwestern University. Qualifications: We believe that Mr. Rechan is well-suited to serve on our Board due to his expertise in corporate strategy and development in the enterprise software sector and his extensive experience in international operations, sales, and services.


12		MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement

Carl J. Rickertsen

Independent Director

Age: 63

Director since: 2002

Board Committees:

Compensation (Chair), Audit

Mr. Rickertsen has been a member of the Board since October 2002. Mr. Rickertsen is currently managing partner of Pine Creek Partners LLC and Iris Partners LLC, each a private equity investment firm, positions he has held since January 2004. From January 1998 to January 2004, Mr. Rickertsen was chief operating officer and a partner at Thayer Capital Partners, a private equity investment firm. From September 1994 to January 1998, Mr. Rickertsen was a managing partner at Thayer. Mr. Rickertsen was a founding partner of three Thayer investment funds totaling over $1.4 billion and is a published author. Mr. Rickertsen has served as a member of the boards of directors and audit committees of Apollo Senior Floating Rate Fund Inc. and Apollo Tactical Income Fund Inc., each of which is a closed-end management investment company, since 2011 and 2013, respectively. He has also served as a member of the board of directors and audit and compensation committees of Berry Global Inc., a global manufacturer and marketer of value-added plastic consumer packaging and engineered materials, since January 2013. He has also served as a member of the board of directors of Hut 8 Mining Corp., a digital asset mining company, since December 2021. From April 2012 to October 2016, Mr. Rickertsen was a member of the board of directors and compensation committee of Noranda Aluminum Holding Corporation, an integrated producer of value-added primary aluminum products and rolled aluminum coils. From April 2003 to January 2010, Mr. Rickertsen was a member of the board of directors and audit committee of Convera Corporation, a publicly-traded search-engine software company. From March 2004 to September 2008, Mr. Rickertsen was a member of the board of directors and compensation committee of UAP Holding Corp., a distributor of farm and agricultural products. Mr. Rickertsen received a B.S. from Stanford University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

Qualifications: We believe that Mr. Rickertsen is well-suited to serve on our Board due to his finance and capital markets experience across various industries and his experience as an outside director of several public companies, which provides the Board with important perspectives on corporate governance matters.

The Board Recommends a Vote “FOR” Each of the Nominees

Named Herein for Election as Director.

_✔


MICROSTRATEGY \| 2023 Proxy Statement		13

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND ITS COMMITTEES

Related Person Transactions Policy and Related Person Transactions

We have adopted a formal written policy and procedure for the review, approval, and ratification of related person transactions, as defined under the rules and regulations promulgated by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). The policy covers any transaction in which we were or are to be a participant, the amount involved exceeds $120,000, and any related person had or will have a direct or indirect material interest. For purposes of the policy, a related person is defined to be any of the following: (i) a director, director nominee, or executive officer of the Company since the beginning of the Company’s last fiscal year; (ii) a beneficial owner of more than 5% of any class of the Company’s voting securities; (iii) a member of a foregoing person’s immediate family; and (iv) any entity in which one or more of the foregoing persons, individually or in the aggregate, has or had a greater than 10% ownership interest. The policy generally requires any proposed related person transaction to be reported to our General Counsel and reviewed and approved by the Audit Committee of the Board (the “Audit Committee”) prior to effectiveness or consummation of the transaction, whenever practical. If the General Counsel determines that advance approval of a related person transaction is not practical under the circumstances, the Audit Committee must review the transaction and, in its discretion, may ratify the related person transaction at its next meeting. For transactions arising between meetings of the Audit Committee, the Chair of the Audit Committee can approve the transaction, subject to ratification by the Audit Committee at its next meeting. If the General Counsel first learns of a related person transaction after such transaction has already taken place, the Audit Committee must review the transaction and, in its discretion, may ratify the related person transaction at its next meeting. Related person transactions involving compensation of executive officers must be reviewed and approved in accordance with the Company’s then-existing executive compensation policies or procedures as approved by the Board or an independent committee thereof.

The Audit Committee may approve or ratify a related person transaction only if the Audit Committee determines that, under the circumstances, the transaction is in our best interests. The Audit Committee may impose conditions on the related person transaction as it deems appropriate. In making such determination, the Audit Committee reviews and considers the following, among other factors:

•

the related person’s interest in the related person transaction;

•

the approximate dollar value of the amount involved in the related person transaction;

•

the approximate dollar value of the amount of the related person’s interest in the transaction without regard to the amount of any profit or loss;

•

whether the transaction was undertaken in the ordinary course of business;

•

whether the transaction with the related person is proposed to be, or was, entered into on terms no less favorable to us than terms that could have been reached with an unrelated third party;

•

the purpose of, and the potential benefits to us of, the transaction; and

•

any other information regarding the related person transaction or the related person in the context of the proposed transaction that would be material to investors in light of the circumstances of the particular transaction.

Any related person transaction previously approved by the Audit Committee or otherwise already existing that is ongoing in nature is reviewed by the Audit Committee annually.

In addition to the procedures set forth in the policy, we have multiple processes for reporting conflicts of interest, including related person transactions, to the Audit Committee. Under our Code of Conduct, all employees are required to report any transaction, relationship, or other circumstance that constitutes a conflict of interest for such employee to the General Counsel or to the Audit Committee, as appropriate. We also annually distribute questionnaires to our executive officers and members of the Board requesting certain information regarding, among other things, their immediate family members, employment, and beneficial ownership interests, which information is then reviewed for any conflict of interest under the Code of Conduct and for any related person transaction under the policy.

As previously disclosed, in June 2021, the Company determined not to renew its directors’ and officers’ (“D&O”) liability insurance due to the Company’s inability to obtain acceptable terms due to market trends toward higher premiums and the novelty of the Company’s bitcoin acquisition strategy. Instead, Mr. Saylor agreed with the Company to personally provide


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coverage substantially equivalent to such a policy for up to a one-year period by entering into an indemnification agreement with the Company (the “Original Agreement”). Pursuant to the Original Agreement, the Company paid Mr. Saylor a fee of $388,945 for the initial 90-day term. During the third and fourth quarters of 2021 and the first quarter of 2022, pursuant to the terms of the Original Agreement, the Company elected to extend the term of the Original Agreement for additional 90-day periods and paid Mr. Saylor $388,945 for each such extension.

On June 12, 2022, Mr. Saylor and the Company entered into a renewed indemnification agreement (the “Renewed Agreement”) for an initial term of 90 days, which became effective upon the expiration of the final 90-day extension of the Original Agreement. In return, the Company paid Mr. Saylor a one-time fee of $388,945 for the initial 90-day term (the “Renewal Payment”).

On June 24, 2022, the Company bound D&O liability insurance policies (the “Initial Commercial Policies”) with several third-party carriers for $30 million in coverage. Concurrently, Mr. Saylor and the Company also entered into (i) an indemnification agreement (the “Excess Agreement”) for Mr. Saylor to provide $10 million in excess indemnity coverage payable only after the exhaustion of the Initial Commercial Policies, and (ii) an indemnification agreement (the “Tail Agreement”) for Mr. Saylor to provide $40 million in indemnity coverage for claims made at any time based on actions or omissions occurring prior to the inception date of the Initial Commercial Policies. The Company paid Mr. Saylor $600,000 for a one-year term under the Excess Agreement, and $150,000 for a 90-day term under the Tail Agreement. At the option of the Company, the Company may elect to extend the term under the Tail Agreement for up to a total of twenty-three additional 90-day periods, for $150,000 per additional 90-day term. In connection with the execution of the Initial Commercial Policies and the release of his obligations under the Renewed Agreement, Mr. Saylor refunded the Company $337,086, which is the pro rata portion of the Renewal Payment attributable to the period from the date of the Initial Commercial Policies through the end of the original term of the Renewed Agreement.

On August 30, 2022, the Company bound additional D&O liability insurance policies (the “Excess Commercial Policies”) with third-party carriers for $10 million in excess coverage payable only after the exhaustion of the Initial Commercial Policies. Effective as of the same date, the Company and Mr. Saylor executed an amendment (the “Amendment”) to the Excess Agreement to limit Mr. Saylor’s obligation to provide indemnification under the Excess Agreement to claims made during the term of the Excess Agreement which arise from wrongful acts occurring upon or after the commencement of the Excess Agreement but prior to the effective date of the Amendment. In connection with the Amendment, Mr. Saylor refunded $489,863 to the Company, representing the pro rata portion of the $600,000 originally paid by the Company to Mr. Saylor under the Excess Agreement attributable to the period from the date of the Amendment through the end of the original term of the Excess Agreement. During the third and fourth quarters of 2022 and the first quarter of 2023, pursuant to the terms of the Tail Agreement, the Company elected to extend the term of the Tail Agreement for additional 90-day periods and paid Mr. Saylor $150,000 for each such extension.

Under the Excess Agreement and Tail Agreement, Mr. Saylor will provide, during the term of each agreement, from his personal funds, indemnity coverage to the Company for the benefit of the D&Os of the Company and its subsidiaries in the event such coverage is not provided by the Initial Commercial Policies, the Excess Commercial Policies or indemnifiable by the Company. The Excess Agreement and the Tail Agreement expressly supersede the Original Agreement and the Renewed Agreement.

Except as may be the case with respect to the indemnification arrangements discussed in the preceding paragraphs and as may otherwise be disclosed in “Executive and Director Compensation—Executive Officer Compensation” or “Executive and Director Compensation—Director Compensation,” there have been no related person transactions required to be reported pursuant to rules or regulations promulgated by the Exchange Act since the beginning of 2022.

Board of Directors

Our Board is currently comprised of Messrs. Saylor, Le, Graham, Patten, Rechan, and Rickertsen. During 2022, the Board met nine times and acted by unanimous written consent six times. During 2022, (i) Mr. Saylor attended six of the nine meetings of the Board (the three meetings which Mr. Saylor did not attend related to the Company’s indemnification arrangements with Mr. Saylor and Mr. Saylor recused himself from those meetings—see “Related Person Transactions Policy and Related Person Transactions”), (ii) Mr. Le attended all four meetings of the Board following his election to the Board, and (iii) all other Board members attended all the meetings of the Board. The Board has determined that each of the Company’s non-employee directors is an independent director as defined in Rule 5605(a)(2) of the Nasdaq Stock Market,


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Inc. (“Nasdaq”) Marketplace Rules. Neither Mr. Saylor nor Mr. Le is an independent director under Rule 5605(a)(2) because they are our Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”), respectively. Independent directors collectively constituted during 2022, currently constitute, and following the Annual Meeting will constitute a majority of the Board.

The independent members of the Board regularly meet in executive sessions without any employee director or other members of management in attendance.

The Company’s certificate of incorporation and by-laws require the Company to indemnify its directors and officers to the fullest extent permitted by Delaware law. As discussed above, in 2021, the Company determined not to renew its directors’ and officers’ liability insurance policy due to the Company’s inability to obtain acceptable terms due to market trends toward higher premiums and the novelty of the Company’s bitcoin acquisition strategy. Instead, Mr. Saylor agreed with the Company to personally provide coverage substantially equivalent to such a policy for up to a one-year period, and the other members of the Board were third-party beneficiaries thereof. As further discussed above, in 2022, the Company entered into additional agreements with Mr. Saylor, who continued to personally provide coverage substantially equivalent to a directors’ and officers’ liability insurance policy to the extent the Company had not obtained replacement liability insurance policies at the desired level of coverage. In order to assess the independence of its non-employee directors, the Board considered the indemnification agreements that the Company entered into with Mr. Saylor relating to the indemnification of directors and officers. The Board concluded that because such arrangements are governed by binding agreements with the Company as to which Mr. Saylor does not have unilateral discretion to perform, and because they are intended to replace an ordinary course insurance policy, those agreements would not impair the independent judgment of the other non-employee members of the Board.

Controlled Company

We are a “controlled company” as defined in Rule 5615(c)(1) of the Nasdaq Marketplace Rules because more than 50% of the voting power of the Company is controlled by our Chairman of the Board & Executive Chairman, Michael J. Saylor.

Because we qualify as a controlled company, we are not required to have a majority of our Board be comprised of independent directors. Additionally, our Board is not required to have an independent compensation or nominating committee or to have the independent directors exercise the nominating function. We are also not required to have the compensation of our executive officers be determined by a compensation committee of independent directors or a majority of the independent members of our Board. In addition, we are not required to empower our Compensation Committee of the Board (the “Compensation Committee”) with the authority to engage the services of any compensation consultants, legal counsel, or other advisors or to have the Compensation Committee assess the independence of compensation consultants, legal counsel, or other advisors that it engages. Neither the Company nor the Compensation Committee engaged a third-party compensation consultant to help determine or provide input regarding the determination of the 2022 compensation for our Executive Chairman, CEO, or other executive officers. The Compensation Committee engaged Willis Towers Watson US LLC (“WTW”) in May 2022 to review and assist the Company in developing a compensation peer group, and to review the Company’s executive and Board compensation to inform the Compensation Committee’s determination of compensation levels for 2023. The Compensation Committee reviewed analyses prepared by WTW in making compensation determinations with respect to the President & CEO’s base salary and cash bonus target for 2023 and changes to compensation of non-employee directors to be effective in 2023, and expects to review analyses prepared by WTW in determining the structure and amounts of equity compensation to be paid to all executive officers in 2023. The Company also engaged WTW to advise on equity compensation matters generally. WTW did not provide any other services to us or our affiliates during 2022 and the work of WTW for the Compensation Committee did not result in any conflicts of interest.

In light of our status as a controlled company, our Board has determined not to establish an independent nominating committee or have its independent directors exercise the nominating function and has elected instead to have the Board be directly responsible for nominating members of the Board. As mentioned above, the majority of our Board is currently comprised of independent directors, and our Board has established a Compensation Committee comprised entirely of independent directors. For more information regarding how we determine our executive compensation in light of our status as a controlled company, please see “Executive and Director Compensation—Compensation Discussion and Analysis” below.


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Audit Committee

The Board has established a standing Audit Committee in accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Exchange Act and adopted the Amended and Restated Charter for the Audit Committee, which is publicly available on the Corporate Governance section of our website, www.microstrategy.com/en/investor-relations. The Audit Committee reviews our accounting and financial reporting processes, the internal and external audits of our financial statements, and the effectiveness of our controls over financial reporting, provides the opportunity for direct contact between our independent registered public accounting firm and the Board, and provides information about significant financial matters to the Board.

The Audit Committee is currently comprised of Messrs. Graham (Chair), Patten, and Rickertsen. During 2022, the Audit Committee met eight times and acted by unanimous written consent three times. All members attended all the meetings of the Audit Committee in 2022.

The Board has determined that each member of the Audit Committee meets the Nasdaq Marketplace Rules’ definition of an independent director for audit committee purposes, as well as the independence requirements of Rule 10A-3 under the Exchange Act. The Board has designated Mr. Graham as an audit committee financial expert, as defined in Item 407(d)(5)(ii) of Regulation S-K. Additional information regarding the Audit Committee and its functions and responsibilities is included in this proxy statement under the caption “Audit Committee Report.”

Compensation Committee

The Board has established a standing Compensation Committee and adopted the Third Amended and Restated Charter for the Compensation Committee, which is publicly available on the Corporate Governance section of our website, www.microstrategy.com/en/investor-relations. The Compensation Committee determines the compensation arrangements of our Executive Chairman and President & CEO, equity awards, including awards under the MicroStrategy Incorporated 2013 Stock Incentive Plan (the “2013 Equity Plan”) and, if approved by stockholders at the Annual Meeting, awards under the MicroStrategy Incorporated 2023 Equity Incentive Plan (the “2023 Equity Plan”), and arrangements relating to certain perquisites and personal benefits provided to our executive officers, and performs other functions related to compensation matters. The Compensation Committee may delegate any of its responsibilities to (i) a subcommittee comprised of one or more members of the Compensation Committee, (ii) the Board of Directors or (iii) members of management.

The Compensation Committee is currently comprised of Messrs. Rickertsen (Chair), Patten, and Rechan. During 2022, the Compensation Committee met one time and acted by unanimous written consent nine times. All members attended the meeting of the Compensation Committee in 2022.

The Board has determined that each member of the Compensation Committee meets the Nasdaq Marketplace Rules’ definition of an independent director for compensation committee purposes, as well as the independence requirements of Rule 10C-1 under the Exchange Act. Each member of the Compensation Committee is also a non-employee director, as defined in Rule 16b-3 under the Exchange Act. Additional information regarding the Compensation Committee and its functions and responsibilities is included in this proxy statement under the captions “Executive and Director Compensation—Compensation Discussion and Analysis” and “Executive and Director Compensation—Compensation Committee Report.”

Investments Committee

The Board has established a standing Investments Committee of the Board (the “Investments Committee”). The Investments Committee has been delegated authority to acquire, dispose of, and manage alternative assets owned by the Company, including bitcoin. Management regularly consults with the Investment Committee regarding the execution of the Company’s bitcoin acquisition strategy.

The Investments Committee is currently comprised of Messrs. Saylor (Chair) and Graham. During 2022, the Investments Committee did not meet, but acted by unanimous written consent five times.

In August 2022, in connection with his transition to serving as the Company’s Executive Chairman, Mr. Saylor assumed the role of Chair of the Investments Committee, a position in which he provides oversight of the Company’s execution of its bitcoin acquisition strategy.


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Board Leadership Structure

Mr. Saylor is the Chairman of the Board and is our Executive Chairman. Mr. Le is our President & CEO. Our Board has determined that separating the CEO and Chairman roles, as effected by the August 2022 transition when Mr. Le became our CEO and Mr. Saylor became our Executive Chairman, is appropriate as it allows the CEO to implement our corporate strategies and to lead and manage our day-to-day operations, while enabling the Chairman of the Board to focus on innovation and our long-term corporate strategy, while continuing to provide oversight of the Company’s bitcoin acquisition strategy as the chairman of the Investments Committee. Having served as the Company’s Chief Executive Officer for more than 30 years, Mr. Saylor continues to be extremely knowledgeable about the Company’s business and strategy and, therefore, we believe it continues to be appropriate for him to serve as the Chairman of the Board. In addition, Mr. Saylor’s service as Chairman of the Board allows him to provide strategic input on the type and number of issues proposed for Board consideration by helping to set and approve agendas for meetings and helping to ensure appropriate discussion of Board level issues.

We do not have a lead independent director or a presiding director. However, the independent directors regularly meet in executive sessions of the Board. In light of our status as a controlled company, we believe that the structure of our Board provides an appropriate balance of management leadership and non-management oversight.

Oversight of Risk

Our Board oversees our risk management processes directly and through its committees. Our management is responsible for risk management on a day-to-day basis. The role of our Board and its committees is to oversee the risk management activities of management. They fulfill this duty by discussing with management the policies and practices utilized by management in assessing and managing risks and providing input on those policies and practices. In general, our Board oversees risk management activities relating to business strategy, capital allocation, organizational structure, and certain operational risks. Our Audit Committee oversees risk management activities relating to financial controls and legal and compliance risks, our Compensation Committee oversees risk management activities relating to the Company’s compensation policies and practices, and our Investment Committee analyzes and considers investment and financial risks in connection with the execution of our bitcoin strategy. In addition, since risk issues often overlap, committees from time to time can request that the full Board discuss particular risk issues.

Director Candidates

As noted above, we do not have a standing nominating committee and the functions of evaluating and selecting directors are performed by the Board as a whole. The Board will, from time to time, evaluate biographical information and background materials relating to potential candidates and interview selected candidates.

In considering whether to nominate any particular candidate for election to the Board, the Board uses various criteria to evaluate each candidate, including each candidate’s integrity, business acumen, knowledge of our business and industry, experience, diligence, conflicts of interest, and ability to act in the interests of our stockholders. In addition, the Board has adopted a Board Diversity Policy, under which the pool of candidates from which Board nominees are chosen is required to include candidates who are diverse with respect to gender, race, ethnicity and/or membership in a historically underrepresented group, and we are required, in selecting Board nominees, to consider candidates from both corporate positions beyond the executive suite and non-traditional environments, including government, academic, and nonprofit organizations. The Board will assess the effectiveness of its Board Diversity Policy whenever the Board next considers adding one or more new directors by subjectively considering the extent to which candidates who are diverse with respect to gender, race, ethnicity and/or membership in a historically underrepresented group were identified for consideration in accordance with the Board Diversity Policy. The Board also considers whether a potential nominee would satisfy the Nasdaq Marketplace Rules’ definition of an independent director and the SEC’s definition of an audit committee financial expert. The Board does not set specific minimum qualifications or assign specific weights to particular criteria and no particular criterion is a prerequisite for a prospective nominee.

Due to our status as a controlled company under Nasdaq Marketplace Rules, we do not have a formal policy with respect to the consideration of director candidates recommended by our stockholders. Stockholder recommendations relating to director nominees or other proposals may be submitted in accordance with the procedures set forth above under “Information Regarding the Annual Meeting of Stockholders—Stockholder Proposals.” Any stockholder nominations proposed for consideration should include the nominee’s name and qualifications. Such nominations will be evaluated in


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the same manner as nominations by members of the Board, management, or other parties. Stockholders may also send communications to the Board in accordance with the procedures set forth below under “Corporate Governance and the Board of Directors and its Committees—Communicating with the Board of Directors.”

Directors’ Attendance at Annual Meeting of Stockholders

Although we do not have a policy with respect to directors’ attendance at our Annual Meeting, all directors are encouraged to attend the Annual Meeting. All five members of the Board, constituting the entire Board at the time of the 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, attended the 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, which was held in virtual format only.

Communicating with the Board of Directors

Stockholders who wish to send communications to the Board may do so by writing to the General Counsel of MicroStrategy, c/o MicroStrategy Incorporated, 1850 Towers Crescent Plaza, Tysons Corner, Virginia 22182. The mailing envelope must clearly indicate that the enclosed letter is a “Stockholder-Board Communication.” All such letters must identify the author as a stockholder and include the stockholder’s full name, address, and a telephone number. If the letter is intended for a specific Board member, the name of such Board member should be noted in the communication. The General Counsel will forward any such correspondence to the intended recipient. However, prior to doing so, the General Counsel or his designee will review such correspondence and, in his or her discretion, may not forward communications that relate to ordinary business affairs, communications that are primarily commercial in nature or personal grievances, or communications that relate to an improper or irrelevant topic or are otherwise inappropriate for the Board’s or any individual Board member’s consideration.

Delinquent Section 16(a) Reports

Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act requires our directors, officers, and holders of more than 10% of our Class A Stock to file reports of their ownership and changes in ownership of our Class A Stock with the SEC. Based solely on our review of the reports filed during 2022 and written representations from our directors and officers that no other reports were required, all Section 16(a) filing requirements were satisfied with respect to 2022, except that a Form 3 for Kevin Adkisson that was due on January 11, 2022 was filed late on January 12, 2022.

Code of Ethics

The Board, through its Audit Committee, has adopted a Code of Ethics that applies to MicroStrategy’s principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller, or persons performing similar functions and such other personnel of MicroStrategy or its majority-owned subsidiaries as may be designated from time to time by the Chair of the Audit Committee. The Code of Ethics, as amended, is publicly available on the Corporate Governance section of our website, www.microstrategy.com/en/investor-relations. We intend to disclose any amendments to the Code of Ethics or any waiver from a provision of the Code of Ethics on the Corporate Governance section of our website, www.microstrategy.com/en/investor-relations.


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EXECUTIVE AND DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

Compensation Discussion and Analysis

Overview

This section explains our executive compensation philosophy and objectives, how our objectives are implemented, the elements of our executive compensation program, and the decisions made with respect to 2022 regarding the compensation of each of our executive officers who served in 2022. We refer to the following individuals in our Compensation Discussion and Analysis as our “executive officers”:

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SEC Form DEF 14A filed by MicroStrategy Incorporated