DEF 14A

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

SCHEDULE 14A INFORMATION

Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of the

Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Filed by the Registrant

☒

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 Pursuant to §240.14a-12

PAYCOR HCM, INC.

(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 the appropriate box):

☒	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

September 14, 2023

Dear Fellow Stockholders,

We are pleased to invite you to attend the 2023 Annual Meeting of Stockholders of Paycor HCM, Inc. to be held on Tuesday, October 31, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. (ET). The Annual Meeting will be conducted virtually, via live audio webcast. In keeping with Paycor’s virtual-first working environment, and in order to provide our stockholders who would otherwise not be able to attend the meeting the opportunity to do so, we believe a virtual only meeting is advisable. You will be able to attend the meeting online by visiting https://www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/PYCR2023 and entering the 16-digit control number included on the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, your proxy card or the voting instruction form you received from your bank or broker. Once you have logged in to the virtual meeting, you will be able to submit questions and vote your shares electronically during the meeting.

Further details regarding how to attend the virtual Annual Meeting and the business to be conducted at the meeting are described in the attached Notice of Annual Meeting and Proxy Statement.

Your vote is important. Whether or not you plan to attend the Annual Meeting, we urge you to vote your shares as soon as possible. Please refer to the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, your proxy card or the voting instruction form you received for more information about how to vote your shares. Voting by proxy will ensure your representation at the Annual Meeting, regardless of whether you attend the meeting.

Sincerely,

LOGO

Jason Wright

Chair of the Board

LOGO

NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS

TO BE HELD ON OCTOBER 31, 2023

September 14, 2023

The 2023 Annual Meeting of Stockholders of Paycor HCM, Inc. will be conducted virtually, via live audio webcast at https://www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/PYCR2023 on Tuesday, October 31, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. (ET) for the following purposes:

to elect three nominees identified in the accompanying proxy statement to serve as Class II directors, as recommended by the Nominating and Governance Committee of the Board;

to approve, on an advisory and non-binding basis, the compensation of Paycor’s named executive officers, as disclosed in the accompanying proxy statement;

to approve, on an advisory and non-binding basis, the frequency of future stockholder advisory votes on executive compensation;

to ratify the appointment of Ernst & Young LLP as Paycor’s independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024; and

to transact other business as may properly come before the meeting or any adjournment of the meeting.

A list of stockholders entitled to vote at the meeting will be available for examination by any stockholder for any purpose relevant to the meeting during ordinary business hours for at least ten (10) days prior to October 31, 2023, at 4811 Montgomery Road, Cincinnati, Ohio, 45212, and during the virtual meeting, on the virtual meeting platform at https://www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/PYCR2023. To examine the list at our principal executive offices you must be a stockholder as of the record date for the meeting and will be required to provide a copy of your proxy card or voting instruction form bearing your unique 16-digit control number and a copy of a valid picture identification, such as a driver’s license or passport. To examine the list of stockholders, the name on the identification must match the name on the proxy card or voting instruction form.

By Order of the Board of Directors,

LOGO

Alice Geene

Chief Legal Officer and Secretary



				IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING THE AVAILABILITY OF PROXY MATERIALS FOR THE ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS TO BE HELD ON OCTOBER 31, 2023: This Notice of Annual Meeting, the accompanying proxy statement and our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 2023 are available at https://www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/PYCR2023.

PROXY STATEMENT FOR THE

2023 ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS OF

PAYCOR HCM, INC.

The Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Paycor HCM, Inc. (“Paycor,” the “Company,” “we,” “us” or “our”) is soliciting your proxy to vote at the 2023 annual meeting of stockholders to be held on Tuesday, October 31, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. (ET) via live audio webcast at https://www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/pycr2023, and any adjournments, postponements or continuations thereof (the “Annual Meeting”). This proxy statement (this “Proxy Statement”) is dated as of September 14, 2023 and is first being sent or otherwise furnished to our stockholders of record on or about September 15, 2023.

A Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials (“Notice”) will be sent to our stockholders of record who hold their shares in “street name” through brokers, banks or other nominees. Stockholders will have the ability to access our proxy materials on the website referred to in the Notice, or to request a paper or electronic copy of the proxy materials. Instructions on how to request a free paper or electronic copy of the proxy materials may be found in the Notice and on the website referred to in the Notice. There is also an option for stockholders to request paper copies of our proxy materials on an ongoing basis.

TABLE OF CONTENTS


	Page

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE		1

PROPOSAL 1 – ELECTION OF DIRECTORS		5

ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL AND GOVERNANCE FRAMEWORK		15

EXECUTIVE OFFICERS		18

COMPENSATION DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS		20

EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION		30

DIRECTOR COMPENSATION		38

PAY VERSUS PERFORMANCE		39

CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS		43

SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT		45

AUDIT COMMITTEE REPORT		47

PROPOSAL 2 – ADVISORY VOTE ON THE COMPENSATION OF OUR NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS		48

PROPOSAL 3 – ADVISORY VOTE ON THE FREQUENCY OF FUTURE STOCKHOLDER ADVISORY VOTES ON EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION		49

PROPOSAL 4 – RATIFICATION OF THE APPOINTMENT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM		50

COMMONLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT THE ANNUAL MEETING		51

OTHER MATTERS		55

WHERE TO FIND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION		55

COST OF PROXY SOLICITATION		55

HOUSEHOLDING OF PROXY MATERIALS		55


i 2023 Proxy Statement

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Board Composition

Our business and affairs are managed by or under the direction of the Board. The size of the Board is currently fixed at eight directors.

The Company’s Second Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (“Certificate of Incorporation”) provides that the number of directors constituting the Board may be changed only by resolution of the Board. Additionally, so long as the Apax Funds have nomination rights under the Director Nomination Agreement (each as defined and discussed below under “—Director Nomination Agreement”), the Company may not increase or decrease the number of directors constituting the Board without the prior written consent of the Apax Funds.

Our Certificate of Incorporation also provides that the Board will be divided into three classes of directors, with the classes as nearly equal in number as possible. At each annual meeting of stockholders, a class of directors will be elected for a three-year term to succeed the class whose term is then expiring. Subject to the terms of the Director Nomination Agreement and any earlier death, resignation or removal in accordance with the terms of our Certificate of Incorporation, the term of office of our Class II directors will expire at this Annual Meeting, the term of office of our Class III directors will expire at our 2024 annual meeting of stockholders, and the term of office of our Class I directors will expire at our 2025 annual meeting of stockholders.

In addition, our Certificate of Incorporation provides that directors may be removed with or without cause upon the affirmative vote of stockholders representing at least a majority of the voting power of our then outstanding shares of stock entitled to vote thereon (“Voting Stock”), voting together as a single class for so long as the Apax Funds beneficially own in the aggregate (directly or indirectly) at least 40% or more of the voting power of our then outstanding shares of Voting Stock. If the Apax Funds no longer beneficially own in the aggregate (directly or indirectly) 40% or more of the voting power of our then outstanding shares of Voting Stock, then our directors may only be removed for cause and only upon the affirmative vote of stockholders representing at least 66 2/3% of the voting power of our then outstanding shares of Voting Stock.

The following table sets forth the name, class, age (as of September 14, 2023) and term for each of our directors:


Name	Class	Age	Position	Director Since	Current Term Expires	Expiration of Term for Which Nominated

Whitney Bouck	I	57	Director	2020	2025

Scott Miller	I	62	Director	2006	2025

Jason Wright	I	51	Chair of the Board	2018	2025

Kathleen Burke	II	42	Director	2020	2023	2026

Steven Collins	II	58	Director	2019	2023	2026

Jeremy Rishel	II	50	Director	2022	2023	2026

Jonathan Corr	III	56	Director	2021	2024

Raul Villar, Jr.	III	55	Chief Executive Officer and Director	2021	2024

Director Qualifications & Nominating Process

We believe that in order for the Board to effectively guide us to long-term sustainable, dependable performance, it should be comprised of individuals with sophistication and experience in the many disciplines that impact our business. In order to best serve our stockholders, we seek to have a Board, as a whole, that is competent in key corporate disciplines, including accounting and finance, business judgment, cybersecurity, crisis management, governance, leadership, people management, risk management, social responsibility and reputational issues, strategy and strategic planning. Additionally, we desire that the Board have specific knowledge related to our industry, such as expertise in software and technology.

Director Qualifications. The Nominating and Governance Committee believes that all directors must, at a minimum, meet the criteria set forth in our Corporate Governance Guidelines, which specify, among other things, that the Nominating and Governance Committee will consider criteria such as independence, diversity, age, skills, and experience, in the context of the needs of the Board. The Nominating and Governance Committee also will consider a combination of


				2023 Proxy Statement 1

factors for each director, including those nominated by its stockholders, including (a) the nominee’s ability to represent all stockholders without a conflict of interest, (b) the nominee’s ability to work in and promote a productive environment, (c) whether the nominee has sufficient time and willingness to fulfill the substantial duties and responsibilities of a director, (d) whether the nominee has demonstrated the high level of character, ethics and integrity expected by the Company, (e) whether the nominee possesses the broad professional and leadership experience and skills necessary to effectively respond to the complex issues encountered by a publicly-traded company, (f) the nominee’s ability to apply sound and independent business judgment and (g) the diverse attributes of the nominee, such as differences in background, qualifications and personal characteristics.

The Nominating and Governance Committee has determined that all of our directors meet the criteria and qualifications set forth in our Corporate Governance Guidelines and the criteria set forth above for director nominees.

In the event of one or more vacancies on the Board, the Nominating and Governance Committee will identify the desired skills and experience of the new director(s) and nominate individual(s) who it believes would strengthen the Board’s capabilities and further diversify the collective experience represented by the then-current Board. The Nominating and Governance Committee may engage third parties to assist in the search process and to provide recommendations for candidates for director. Also, incumbent directors may be asked to recommend candidates for director. Any candidates for director would then be evaluated based on the process outlined in our Corporate Governance Guidelines, subject to the rights of the Apax Funds under the Director Nomination Agreement. The same process will be used to evaluate all candidates for director, including any candidates recommended by our stockholders. See “—Stockholder Recommendations of Director Candidates” below.

Age Limits. As it relates to age, our Corporate Governance Guidelines require that no director that has attained age 74 or older may be nominated to a new term, unless he or she is also the chief executive officer of the Company. We believe that this policy will promote director refreshment and strikes an appropriate balance between depth of experience and understanding of the Company and its operations and the need for new and fresh perspectives that younger generations will contribute to the Board.

Board Diversity. While we do not have a formal policy on diversity when considering the selection of nominees for director, we consider a combination of factors for each director, including the diverse attributes of the nominee – such as differences in background, qualifications and personal characteristics, and strive to achieve a diverse set of perspectives and experiences aligned with our company-wide diversity, equity and inclusion (“DE&I”) strategy. (See the section entitled “Social – Diversity, Equity & Inclusion” under “Environmental, Social and Governance Framework,” below, for further detail about the steps the Company has taken over the past fiscal year to advance its commitment to DE&I.)

The following table provides summary information about the members of the Board who self-identify in the gender and demographic categories shown:



Board Diversity Matrix as of August 31, 2023

Board Size:

Total Number of Directors		8

	Female		Male		Non-Binary		Did Not Disclose Gender

Part 1: Gender Identity

Directors		2		6		0		0

Part 2: Demographic Background

African American or Black		0		0		0		0

Alaskan Native or Native American		0		0		0		0

Asian		0		0		0		0

Hispanic or Latinx		0		1		0		0

Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander		0		0		0		0

White		2		5		0		0

Two or More Races or Ethnicities		0		0		0		0

LGBTQ+		0

Did Not Disclose Demographic Background		0


2 2023 Proxy Statement

Background and Experience of our Directors

Each of our directors possesses the following critical personal qualities and attributes that we believe are essential for the proper functioning of the Board to allow it to fulfill its duties for our stockholders: accountability, ethical leadership, governance, integrity, risk management, and sound business judgment. In addition, our directors have the confidence to assess and challenge the way things are done and recommend alternative solutions, a keen awareness of our business and social realities of the environment in which we operate, the independence and high-performance standards necessary to fulfill the Board’s oversight function, and the humility, professional maturity, and style to interface openly and constructively with other directors and management.

The table below and the director biographies under the section entitled “Proposal 1 – Election of Directors” highlight the key skills and experiences that our director nominees and continuing directors have developed through education, direct experience and oversight responsibilities. We believe these collective qualities, skills, experiences and attributes are essential to the Board’s ability to exercise its oversight function for Paycor and its stockholders and to guide us to long-term sustainable, dependable performance. If an individual is not listed as having a particular attribute, it does not signify a director’s lack of ability to contribute in that specific area. Rather, it is intended to depict notable areas of focus.

Director

LOGO

Public Company Governance

Software Industry

Executive Management

International

Human Capital Management

Executive Compensation

Accounting/Finance

Marketing & Sales

Environmental/Sustainability

Technology/Cybersecurity

Mergers and Acquisitions

Director Nomination Agreement

In connection with our initial public offering (“IPO”), we entered into a director nomination agreement (the “Director Nomination Agreement”) with Pride Aggregator, L.P., our principal stockholder (“Pride Aggregator”). The Director Nomination Agreement provides certain funds advised by Apax Partners LLP (the “Apax Funds”), through their control of Pride Aggregator, the right to designate nominees for election to the Board for so long as Pride Aggregator beneficially owns at least 5% of the total number of shares of our common stock that it beneficially owned upon completion of the IPO, as adjusted for any reorganization, recapitalization, stock dividend, stock split, reverse stock split or similar changes in the Company’s capitalization (such amount of shares, as adjusted, the “Original Amount”). Specifically, the Director Nomination Agreement provides the Apax Funds the right to designate: (i) all of the nominees for election to the Board for so long as Pride Aggregator beneficially owns at least 40% of the Original Amount; (ii) a number of directors (rounded up to the nearest whole number) equal to 40% of the total directors for so long as Pride Aggregator beneficially owns less than 40% but at least 30% of the Original Amount; (iii) a number of directors (rounded up to the nearest whole number) equal to 30% of the total directors for so long as Pride Aggregator beneficially owns less than 30% but at least 20% of the Original Amount; (iv) a number of directors (rounded up to the nearest whole number) equal to 20% of the total directors for so long as Pride Aggregator beneficially owns less than 20% but at least 10% of the Original Amount; and (v) one director for so long as Pride Aggregator beneficially owns less than 10% but at least 5% of the Original Amount. In addition, the Apax Funds are entitled to designate a successor for any of their designees whose service on the Board terminates prior to the end of any such designee’s term for any reason, regardless of Pride Aggregator’s beneficial ownership at the time of the vacancy. The Apax Funds also have the right to designate one member of each committee of the Board, subject to compliance with applicable law or listing standards, including any applicable independence requirements. Finally, the Director Nomination Agreement prohibits us from increasing or decreasing the size of the


				2023 Proxy Statement 3

Board without the prior written consent of the Apax Funds. If Pride Aggregator is dissolved, then the rights of Pride Aggregator under the Director Nomination Agreement may be assigned by the Apax Funds to one or more associated investment funds.

Stockholder Recommendation of Director Candidates

Subject to the rights of the Apax Funds under the Director Nomination Agreement, the Nominating and Governance Committee will evaluate candidates for director recommended by our stockholders using the same criteria and process outlined in our Corporate Governance Guidelines. Stockholders who wish to identify director candidates for consideration by the Nominating and Governance Committee may write to Paycor HCM, Inc., 4811 Montgomery Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45212, Attn: Corporate Secretary, and any candidates so identified will then be forwarded to the Chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee for consideration. Stockholders may also nominate directors for election to the Board. In order to nominate a candidate for director at our 2024 annual meeting of stockholders, nominations must be submitted in writing to our Corporate Secretary at our principal executive offices, and must be received no later than the close of business on August 2, 2024 and not earlier than the close of business on July 3, 2024. All stockholder nominations must also satisfy certain other procedural requirements as specified in our Amended and Restated Bylaws (“Bylaws”).

In addition to satisfying the requirements under our Bylaws, in order to comply with Rule 14a-19 (the universal proxy rules) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), stockholders who intend to solicit proxies in support of director nominees, other than the Company’s nominees, must provide written notice that sets forth all of the information required by Rule 14a-19(b) under the Exchange Act, which notice must be postmarked or transmitted electronically to the Company Secretary at our principal executive offices no later than September 1, 2024. However, if the date of our 2024 annual meeting of stockholders is changed by more than 30 days from October 31, 2024, then written notice must be provided by the later of the 60th day prior to the date of our 2024 annual meeting of stockholders and the 10th day following the day on which public announcement of the date of our 2024 annual meeting of stockholders is first made by us.


4 2023 Proxy Statement

PROPOSAL 1 – ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

Based upon the recommendation of the Nominating and Governance Committee, the Board has nominated the following three directors to be re-elected at the Annual Meeting: Kathleen Burke, Steven Collins and Jeremy Rishel. If elected at the Annual Meeting, they will serve for three-year terms, expiring at our 2026 annual meeting of stockholders and until their respective successors are duly elected and qualified, or until his or her earlier death, resignation or removal. Certain biographical information for each of the nominees is set forth in the following section. Also set forth therein is a description of the specific experience, qualifications, attributes and skills of each nominee that were considered by the Nominating and Governance Committee, in the context of the needs of the Board as a whole, in determining that these individuals were qualified to serve on the Board. Each of the three nominees has been included in the slate of nominees recommended for re-election by the Board pursuant to the terms of the Director Nomination Agreement.

Proxies solicited on behalf of the Board will be voted “for” the election of each of the three director nominees, unless your proxy card is marked otherwise (if you are a registered stockholder) or you have provided a different instruction to your bank or broker (if you are a beneficial or “street name” stockholder).

Vote Required

Under our Bylaws, the election of the three director nominees at the Annual Meeting requires a plurality of the votes cast by holders of our common stock present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote on the election of directors. In an uncontested election of directors, this means that each director nominee will be elected if he or she receives at least one “FOR” vote. Failure to vote by proxy or to vote electronically at the virtual Annual Meeting and “WITHHOLD” votes will result in a respective nominee having fewer votes but will have no effect on the outcome of the election because a plurality of the votes cast is required for the election of the director nominee. Cumulative voting is not permitted in the election of directors.

Each nominee for director has consented to stand for election and has agreed to serve if elected. We currently have no reason to believe that any of the nominees would be unable or unwilling to serve if elected. However, if before the Annual Meeting, any nominee becomes unable to serve, or chooses not to serve, the Board may nominate another individual as a substitute. If that happens, the persons named as proxies in the proxy card will vote for the substitute. Alternatively, the Board may either let the vacancy stay unfilled until an appropriate candidate is identified or reduce the size of the Board to eliminate the vacancy.

The Board unanimously recommends that you vote “FOR” each of the director nominees below.

Director Nominees to Serve for Three-Year Terms Expiring at the 2026 Annual Meeting

Kathleen (“Katie”) Burke

Age 42

Director since 2020

INDEPENDENT

Committees:

• Compensation

and Benefits (Chair)

• Nominating

and Governance

Ms. Burke has served as the Chief People Officer at HubSpot, Inc., a customer relationship management company recognized globally for its culture, since January 2017. Under her leadership, HubSpot has been named the #1 Best Place to Work by Glassdoor and has been recognized globally as an innovator in culture and employee engagement. Ms. Burke joined HubSpot in December 2012 and held several positions before serving as Chief People Officer, including Vice President of Culture and Experience and Director for Talent and Culture.

Ms. Burke received a Bachelor of Arts in American Studies from Bates College and a Master of Business Administration from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management.

Skills and Qualifications:

• Ms. Burke brings extensive experience in human capital management (“HCM”), as well as B2B and SaaS industry experience, to the Board.

Public Company Directorships:

• None


				2023 Proxy Statement 5

Steven (“Steve”) Collins

Age 58

Director since 2019

INDEPENDENT

Committees:

• Audit (Chair)

• Compensation

and Benefits

Mr. Collins retired as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of ExactTarget, Inc., a provider of digital marketing automation and analytics software and services (acquired by Salesforce in 2013), a position which he held from July 2011 to February 2014. Prior to that, from 2003 through 2011, Mr. Collins held various senior management positions at NAVTEQ Corporation, a digital mapping company, including as its Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Senior Vice President of Finance & Accounting, and Vice President of Finance. Mr. Collins earned a Bachelor of Science from Iowa State University and a Master of Business Administration from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania

Skills and Qualifications:

• Mr. Collins brings extensive technology and finance experience at both private and public companies to the Board.

Current Public Company Directorships:

• nCino, Inc. (Nasdaq: NCNO)

• Sprout Social, Inc. (Nasdaq: SPT)

Past Public Company Directorships:

• Instructure Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: INST)

• MuleSoft, Inc. (NYSE: MULE)

• Shopify, Inc. (NYSE: SHOP)

Jeremy Rishel

Age 50

Director since 2022

INDEPENDENT

Committees:

• Audit

Mr. Rishel has served as the Chief Technology Officer at SoFi Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: SOFI), a digital personal finance company, since June 2022, where he also serves as the Head of Engineering, Product and Design, overseeing SoFi’s technology strategy and architecture. From April 2019 to June 2022, Mr. Rishel served as the Special Vice President of Engineering and in various other roles at Splunk, a provider of cybersecurity and digital observability solutions. Prior to joining Splunk, he was the Vice President of Engineering at DoorDash, an online food ordering and delivery platform, from October 2017 to April 2018. He also served as Vice President of Engineering at Twitter, a social media company, from February 2013 to June 2017. Mr. Rishel received a Bachelor of Arts in computer science and philosophy from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Master of Business Administration from MIT’s Sloan School of Management.

Skills and Qualifications:

• Mr. Rishel has extensive experience in the fintech and software-as-a-service industries.

• Mr. Rishel has technical expertise in cybersecurity.

Public Company Directorships:

• None


6 2023 Proxy Statement

Continuing Directors Whose Terms Expire in 2025

Whitney (“Whit”) Bouck

Age 57

Director since 2020

INDEPENDENT

Committees:

• Audit

• Nominating and

Governance

Ms. Bouck has served as a Managing Director for Insight Partners, a global private equity and venture capital firm, since January 2022 to present. Ms. Bouck served as Chief Operating Officer of HelloSign, an e-signature and document workflow platform (acquired by Dropbox, Inc. in February 2019) from February 2016 to January 2022. Prior to joining HelloSign, Ms. Bouck held various senior leadership roles at Box, Inc., EMC, Sybase Inc. and Oracle Corporation. Ms. Bouck currently serves on the board of directors of Trengo B.V. and BlueOcean AI, Inc. She previously served on the board of directors of Ekata (a Mastercard company) and the Association for Information and Image Management. Ms. Bouck earned a Bachelor of Arts from Claremont McKenna College.

Skills and Qualifications:

• Ms. Bouck has extensive technology experience.

Public Company Directorships:

• None

Scott Miller

Age 62

Director since 2006

INDEPENDENT

Committees:

• Compensation

and Benefits

Mr. Miller co-founded Scott’s Add-ins in October 2018 and currently serves as its CEO.

Mr. Miller was the founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Treadstone Group, an enterprise resource planning product maker, before it was acquired by Exact Software in May 2004. He currently serves on the boards of directors of NaviStone, Inc., a SaaS marketing technology company, and La Soupe, Inc., a non-profit organization that transforms perishable foods for the food insecure, and the board of advisors of NLign Analytics, an independent division of Etegent Technologies Ltd., which develops data management software and related services for the aircraft manufacturing and sustainment markets. Mr. Miller received a Bachelor of Science in Accountancy from Miami University.

Skills and Qualifications:

• Mr. Miller is a director and investor in the technology industry, with emphasis in SaaS, and is an original investor in the Company.

• Mr. Miller brings extensive technology experience to the Board and previously led the Board’s oversight of our Information Security Council.

Public Company Directorships:

• None


				2023 Proxy Statement 7

Jason Wright

Age 51

Director since 2018

Committees:

• None

Mr. Wright is an Equity Partner in the Tech team at Apax Partners, where he focuses primarily on investments in enterprise software and technology-enabled services. Prior to joining Apax Partners in 2000, Mr. Wright served in a variety of roles at GE Capital, including principal investing on behalf of GE Ventures. He previously worked at Accenture, designing and implementing systems for the financial services and pharmaceutical industries. Mr. Wright serves on the boards of directors of several privately-held technology companies, including Bonterra, ECi Software Solutions, Inc., TIVIT, and EcoOnline. He is a member of the Wharton Graduate Executive Board, a Trustee of the Apax Foundation and Chairman Emeritus and a current board member of the Opportunity Network, an education-focused charity in New York City. Mr. Wright received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Tufts University and a Master of Business Administration in Finance from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania

Skills and Qualifications:

• Mr. Wright started his career as an early-stage venture capitalist and brings extensive technology and finance industry experience to the Board.

Current Public Company Directorships:

• Verint Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: VRNT)

Past Public Company Directorships:

• RealPage, Inc.

• Duck Creek Technologies, Inc.
(Nasdaq: DCT)


8 2023 Proxy Statement

Continuing Directors Whose Terms Expire in 2024

Jonathan Corr

Age 56

Director since 2021

INDEPENDENT

Committees:

• Audit

• Nominating and

Governance (Chair)

Mr. Corr served as Chief Executive Officer of Ellie Mae, Inc. from February 2015 through October 2020, as its President from February 2013 through October 2020, and as its Chief Operating Officer from November 2011 through February 2013. Following his retirement from Ellie Mae in October 2020, Mr. Corr acted as Executive Advisor to ICE Mortgage Technology through March 2021. Prior to joining Ellie Mae, Mr. Corr served in executive and management positions at PeopleSoft, Inc., Netscape Communications Corporation, KANA Software, Inc., BroadBase Software, Inc., and Rubric Inc. Mr. Corr also serves on the board of directors of Reggora, Inc., a private appraisal management software company and Polly, Inc., a private capital markets software company in mortgage industry. Mr. Corr holds a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from Columbia University and a Master of Business Administration from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business.

Skills and Qualifications:

• Mr. Corr brings extensive experience in executive leadership, technology, corporate strategy and acquisitions to the Board.

Current Public Company Directorships:

• None

Past Public Company Directorships:

• Independence Holdings Corp. (Nasdaq: ACQR)

Raul Villar, Jr.

Age 55

Director since 2021

Committees:

• None

Mr. Villar has served as our Chief Executive Officer since July 2019 and as a member of the Board since January 2021. From September 2015 to July 2019, Mr. Villar served as the Chief Executive Officer of AdvancedMD, a medical software and services company, and prior to that, he held numerous leadership roles at Automatic Data Processing Inc. (“ADP”), including President, ADP AdvancedMD, Senior Vice President, Sales – Major Accounts, and Senior Vice President, Sales – Small Business. Mr. Villar earned a Bachelor of Science from Bryant University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Connecticut.

Skills and Qualifications:

• Mr. Villar contributes his industry expertise to the Board and offers strategic and operational insights into our business as our Chief Executive Officer.

Public Company Directorships:

• None

Independent Status

The listing standards of the Nasdaq Global Market (“NASDAQ”) require that, subject to specified exceptions, such as those described below under “—Controlled Company Status,” each member of a listed company’s audit committee, compensation committee and nominations committee be independent and that audit committee members also satisfy independence criteria set forth in Rule 10A-3 under the Exchange Act.

The Board has determined that none of the following directors (nor any of his or her family members) has a relationship with the Company which, in its opinion, would interfere with her or his exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director of the Company, and therefore, each of the following directors qualifies as an independent director in accordance with NASDAQ’s listing standards: Whit Bouck, Katie Burke, Steve Collins, Jonathan Corr, Scott Miller and Jeremy Rishel. In addition, the Board has determined that each of Ms. Bouck and Messrs. Collins, Corr and Rishel meets the heightened independence requirements for audit committee membership as set forth in


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Rule 10A-3 under the Exchange Act and the applicable listing standards of NASDAQ. In making these determinations, the Board considered the relationships (if any) that each director (and any of his or her family members) has with the Company and such other facts and circumstances that the Board deemed relevant in making a determination of independence, including beneficial ownership of our common stock.

Controlled Company Status

The Apax Funds, through their control of Pride Aggregator, own a majority of our outstanding common stock. (See “Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management” below.) As a result, we are a “controlled company.” Under NASDAQ rules, a company of which more than 50% of the voting power for the election of directors is held by an individual, group or another company is a “controlled company” and may elect not to comply with any of the following NASDAQ corporate governance rules required of newly public companies within one year of the date of listing:

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to have a board that is composed of a majority of “independent directors”, as defined under the rules of the NASDAQ;

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to have a compensation committee that is composed entirely of independent directors; and

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to have a nominations committee that is composed entirely of independent directors.

From time to time, we may rely on certain of these exemptions. Although a majority of the Board is currently composed of independent directors, neither the Compensation and Benefits Committee, nor the Nominating and Governance Committee, consists entirely of independent directors. Accordingly, you may not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of the NASDAQ corporate governance requirements.

Board Meetings and Committees

For our fiscal year ended June 30, 2023 (“fiscal year 2023”), the Board held 7 meetings. The Board currently has three standing committees: the Audit Committee, the Compensation and Benefits Committee and the Nominating and Governance Committee. During fiscal year 2023, the Audit Committee met 4 times, the Compensation and Benefits Committee met 4 times and the Nominating and Governance Committee met 3 times. Directors are expected to attend the annual meetings of our stockholders and all or substantially all of the Board meetings and meetings of committees on which they serve. Each director attended at least 75% of the meetings of the Board and the Board committees on which she or he served during fiscal year 2023. Two directors attended the 2022 annual meeting of our stockholders.

The composition, duties and responsibilities of the Audit, Compensation and Benefits, and Nominating and Governance Committees are as set forth below. In the future, the Board may establish other committees, as it deems appropriate, to assist it with its responsibilities.



Board Member	Audit Committee	Compensation and Benefits Committee	Nominating and Governance Committee

Whit Bouck	X		X

Katie Burke		X (Chair)	X

Steve Collins	X (Chair)	X

Jonathan Corr	X		X (Chair)

Scott Miller		X

Jeremy Rishel	X

Raul Villar, Jr.

Jason Wright

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee’s responsibilities include:

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appointing, approving the compensation of, and assessing the qualifications, performance and independence of our independent registered public accounting firm;

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pre-approving audit and permissible non-audit services, and the terms of such services, to be provided by our independent registered public accounting firm;


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reviewing our policies on risk assessment and risk management;

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reviewing and discussing with management and our independent registered public accounting firm our annual and quarterly financial statements and related disclosures as well as critical accounting policies and practices used by us;

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reviewing the adequacy of our internal control over financial reporting;

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establishing policies and procedures for the receipt and retention of accounting-related complaints and concerns;

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recommending, based upon the Audit Committee’s review and discussions with management and the independent registered public accounting firm, whether our audited financial statements should be included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K;

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monitoring our compliance with legal and regulatory requirements as they relate to our financial statements and accounting matters;

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preparing the Audit Committee report required by the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) to be included in our annual proxy statement;

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reviewing all related party transactions for potential conflict of interest situations and approving all such transactions; and

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reviewing and discussing with management and our independent registered public accounting firm our earnings releases and scripts.

The Board has affirmatively determined that each of Ms. Bouck and Messrs. Collins, Corr and Rishel meets the definition of “independent director” for purposes of serving on an audit committee under Rule 10A-3 of the Exchange Act and the applicable NASDAQ listing standards. In addition, the Board has determined that each of Messrs. Collins and Corr qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” within the meaning of Item 407(d)(5) of Regulation S-K. The written charter of the Audit Committee may be found by visiting the “Governance—Documents and Charters” section of our investor relations website at https://investors.paycor.com.

Compensation and Benefits Committee

The Compensation and Benefits Committee’s responsibilities include:

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reviewing and approving the corporate goals and objectives relevant to the compensation of our Chief Executive Officer;

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evaluating the performance of our Chief Executive Officer in light of such corporate goals and objectives, and determining and approving the compensation of our Chief Executive Officer;

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reviewing and approving the compensation of our other executive officers;

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administering our incentive compensation plans and any other compensation plans to which the Board has delegated authority to the Compensation and Benefits Committee;

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reviewing and approving our overall executive compensation philosophy and objectives;

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annually reviewing, in conjunction with the Board, succession plans for our Chief Executive Officer, other executive officers and other positions deemed critical to the Company’s performance;

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reviewing our compensation and benefit practices, policies and programs to ensure they do not encourage unnecessary or excessive risk taking, and annually assessing whether any risks arising from such practices, policies and programs are reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on the Company;

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reviewing and approving the implementation or revision of any clawback policy;

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establish and monitor compliance with any stock ownership guidelines applicable to our executive officers or directors;

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annually reviewing and reassessing the adequacy of the Compensation and Benefits Committee’s charter;


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appointing, compensating and overseeing the work of any compensation consultant, legal counsel or other advisor retained by the Compensation and Benefits Committee; and

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assessing the independence of any compensation consultant, legal counsel or other advisor retained by the Compensation and Benefits Committee or management in accordance with the requirements of the NASDAQ listing standards.

The Board has adopted a written charter for the Compensation and Benefits Committee, which may be found by visiting the “Governance—Documents and Charters” section of our investor relations website at https://investors.paycor.com.

Nominating and Governance Committee

The Nominating and Governance Committee’s responsibilities include (subject, in each case as applicable, to the rights of the Apax Funds under the Director Nomination Agreement as described under “—Director Nomination Agreement” above):

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developing, and recommending to the Board for its approval, criteria to be considered in selecting nominees for director;

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identifying and recommending individuals qualified to become members of the Board;

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developing and recommending to the Board approval standards for determining whether a director is independent;

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reviewing the size of the Board and ensuring that qualified director candidates with a diversity of gender, ethnicity and tenure are included in each pool of candidates from which nominees for director are chosen;

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reviewing the Company’s policies, programs and initiatives for employee diversity and inclusion and providing guidance to the Board on diversity matters;

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considering candidates for director recommended by the Company’s stockholders;

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reviewing any stockholder proposals and recommending Board responses pursuant to Rule 14a-8 of the Exchange Act;

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overseeing engagement with stockholders and proxy advisory firms and reviewing proxy advisory firm policies and voting recommendations;

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reviewing the Board’s leadership structure and recommending changes to the Board as appropriate;

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reviewing and recommending to the Board the sizes, structure and compositions of the committees of the Board;

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renewing, proposing changes to the Board or developing, as needed, corporate governance policies;

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reviewing and discussing with management disclosure of the Company’s corporate governance practices proposed to be included in the Company’s annual proxy statement or annual report on Form 10-K, as applicable;

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reviewing emerging corporate governance trends and practices and recommending changes to the Company’s corporate governance practices to the Board;

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developing and recommending to the Board a succession plan for the chief executive officer; and

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developing, subject to approval by the Board, a process for an annual evaluation of the Board and its committees and overseeing the conduct of this annual evaluation.

The Board has adopted a written charter for the Nominating and Governance Committee, which may be found by visiting the “Governance—Documents and Charters” section of our investor website at https://investors.paycor.com.

Board Leadership Structure

The Board believes that the mix of experienced independent directors, as well as the director affiliated with our controlling stockholder and our Chief Executive Officer, that currently comprise the Board, together with the structure and composition of the committees of the Board, provides strong overall oversight and strategic direction for the Company.


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Chair of the Board

Our Corporate Governance Guidelines provide that the offices of Chair of the Board and Chief Executive Officer may be at times combined and at times separated, giving the Board discretion in light of prevailing circumstances. Currently, the positions of Chair of the Board and Chief Executive Officer are held by separate persons. The Board believes this current leadership structure is appropriate for the Company and its stockholders as it allows our Chief Executive Officer to devote more attention to the day-to-day leadership and performance of the Company, with the Chair’s responsibility to, among other things, provide strategic guidance to our Chief Executive Officer.

The combination or separation of these offices is a matter that is considered periodically by the Board as part of the Company’s succession planning process, based on all of the then-relevant facts and circumstances. Accordingly, the Board may make changes to our leadership structure in the future as it deems appropriate and in the best interests of the Company and its stockholders.

Our Bylaws provide that for so long as the Apax Funds beneficially own in the aggregate (directly or indirectly) at least 30% or more of our Voting Stock, the majority of the directors nominated or designated for nomination by the Apax Funds have the right to designate the Chair of the Board. Accordingly, based on the percentage of our Voting Stock beneficially owned by Pride Aggregator (see “Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management” below), which is controlled by the Apax Funds, the Apax Funds have the effective right to designate the Chair of the Board under our Bylaws.

Jason Wright has served as Chair of the Board since July 2021.

Risk Oversight

The Board oversees an enterprise-wide approach to risk management, designed to support the achievement of organizational objectives, improve long-term organizational performance and enhance stockholder value. A fundamental part of risk management is not only understanding the most significant risks a company faces and what steps management is taking to manage those risks, but also understanding what level of risk is appropriate for a given company. The involvement of the full Board in reviewing our business is an integral aspect of the Board’s assessment of our risk profile and its determination of what constitutes an appropriate or acceptable level of risk.

The Board has overall responsibility for risk oversight, and management provides the Board periodic reports on our compliance programs, including data privacy. While the full Board is committed to the prevention, timely detection, and mitigation of the effects of cybersecurity threats or incidents to the Company, it has delegated oversight of certain risks to its committees. The Audit Committee monitors our major financial and security risk exposures, and the steps our management has taken to monitor and control these exposures, including guidelines and policies to govern the process by which risk assessment and management is undertaken. The Audit Committee also monitors compliance with legal and regulatory requirements. The Compensation and Benefits Committee oversees the design and implementation of our compensation policies and programs and monitors the incentives created by these policies and programs to ensure they do not encourage unnecessary or excessive risk taking by our executive officers and other employees. In addition, the Nominating and Governance Committee oversees our major corporate governance risks. We are committed to ensuring the Board and its committees are consistently updated on threats to our business and receive consistent updates on risk mitigation processes.

In connection with its reviews of the operations of our business and through ongoing strategic planning with management, the full Board addresses the primary risks associated with our business. The Board appreciates the evolving nature of our business and industry and is actively involved with monitoring new threats and risks as they emerge. For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Board closely monitored the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic, including its impacts on our customers and our operations, and the long-term effects the pandemic may have on general macroeconomic conditions.

At periodic meetings of the Board and its committees, management reports to and seeks guidance from the Board and its committees with respect to the most significant risks that could affect our business, such as risks associated with our operations, technology and competition, cybersecurity and privacy risks, and legal, financial, tax and audit related risks.

Code of Ethics

We have adopted a Code of Ethics that applies to all our directors, officers and employees, including those officers responsible for financial reporting. Our Code of Ethics is posted under the “Governance—Documents and Charters”


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section of our Investor Relations website at https://investors.paycor.com. We intend to disclose any amendments to the Code of Ethics, or any waivers by the Board of its requirements for any of our directors or executive officers, on our website to the extent required by SEC and/or NASDAQ rules.

Anti-Hedging and Anti-Pledging Policy

Pursuant to our Insider Trading Policy, we prohibit directors, officers and other employees from engaging in hedging or monetization transactions, including the use of financial instruments such as prepaid variable forwards, equity swaps, collars and exchange funds. Additionally, directors, officers and other employees are prohibited from holding our securities in a margin account or otherwise pledging our securities as collateral for a loan.

Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation

No interlocking relationships exist between the members of the Board and the board or compensation committee of any other company.

Communications by Stockholders with the Board

Stockholders may contact an individual director, the Board as a group, or a specified Board committee or group, including the independent directors as a group, by sending regular mail to:

Paycor HCM, Inc.

4811 Montgomery Road

Cincinnati, OH 45212

Attn: Board of Directors

c/o Chief Legal Officer and Secretary

Each communication should specify which director or directors the communication is addressed to, as well as the general topic of the communication. Paycor will receive the communications and process them before forwarding them to the addressee. Paycor may also refer communications to other departments within Paycor. Paycor generally will not forward to the directors a communication that is primarily commercial in nature, relates to an improper or irrelevant topic, or requests general information regarding Paycor.


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ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL AND GOVERNANCE FRAMEWORK

Since our founding over 30 years ago, corporate social responsibility has been a key business tenet. We recognize the importance of Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) issues and remain committed to extending the consideration of ESG factors in connection with our business operations and investment practices.

Governance

Paycor has an ESG Committee that consists of a cross-functional group of leaders and employees from departments including finance, investor relations, human resources, legal and facilities. This committee assists the Board and executive management team in developing our ESG strategy, identifying ESG risks and opportunities, including regulatory changes and compliance, setting initiatives and tracking our performance. The Audit Committee assists the Board with ESG oversight from a reporting and procedural perspective and the Nominating and Governance Committee assists the Board with ESG oversight with respect to strategy, communication and stockholder engagement.

Ethics & Compliance

Paycor has a culture of integrity, honesty and ethical behavior. Paycor maintains a Code of Ethics that applies to all of its employees, officers and directors, with an additional policy for senior officers responsible for financial reporting.

Every Paycor associate completes comprehensive training when hired and annually thereafter. Our training includes our Code of Ethics, anti-bribery, discrimination harassment prevention, privacy, security, fraud, and related internal controls. Our Associate Voice Line, a third-party whistleblower and ethics hotline, is managed by our internal audit department, which reports into the Audit Committee.

Our supplier conduct guidelines are designed to help ensure that our partners adhere to the same high standards of integrity and ethics. In addition, many of our solutions are designed to assist clients with their compliance to certain U.S. federal, state and local laws and regulations that apply to them.

Data Governance

Paycor is dedicated to protecting the privacy and security of our clients’ information and has implemented mechanisms necessary to do so across our organization. We align to internationally recognized frameworks that demonstrate this commitment, including the AICPA’s SOC 1 Type 2, SOC 2 Type 2, the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

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SEC Form DEF 14A filed by Paycor HCM Inc.