SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

 

 

SCHEDULE 14A

(Rule14a-101)

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN PROXY STATEMENT

SCHEDULE 14A INFORMATION

PROXY STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 14(a) OF THE

SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Filed by the Registrant  x                             Filed by a Party other than the Registrant  ¨

Check the appropriate box:

 

¨ Preliminary Proxy Statement
¨ Confidential, for Use of the Commission Only (as permitted by Rule14a-6(e)(2))
x Definitive Proxy Statement
¨ Definitive Additional Materials
¨ Soliciting Material Pursuant to §240.14a-12§240.14a-12

 

RED LION HOTELS CORPORATION

(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):
x No Fee Required
¨ Fee computed on table below per Exchange Act Rules14a-6(i)(1) and0-11
 (1) 

Title of each class of securities to which transaction applies:

 

  

 

 (2) 

Aggregate number of securities to which transaction applies:

 

  

 

 (3) 

Per unit price or other underlying value of transaction computed pursuant to Exchange Act Rule0-11 (set forth the amount on which the filing fee is calculated and state how it was determined):

 

  

 

 (4) 

Proposed maximum aggregate value of transaction:

 

(5)

Total fee paid:

 

  

 

(5)

Total fee paid:

¨ Fee paid previously with preliminary materials.
¨ Check box if any part of the fee is offset as provided by Exchange Act Rule0-11(a)(2) and identify the filing for which the offsetting fee was paid previously. Identify the previous filing by registration statement number, or the Form or Schedule and the date of its filing.
 (1) 

Amount previously paid:

 

  

 

 (2) 

Form, Schedule or Registration Statement No.:

 

  

 

 (3) 

Filing Party:

 

  

 

 (4) 

Date Filed:

 

  

 

 

 

 


LOGOLOGO

April 20, 20166, 2020

Dear Shareholder:

You are cordially invited to attend the 20162020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders of Red Lion Hotels Corporation at 9:00 a.m. EDTMDT on Tuesday, May 24, 2016.19, 2020. The meeting will be held at the Hotel RL Baltimore Inner Harbor, 207 E. Redwood St., Baltimore, MD 21202.Red Lion Hotels Corporation, 1550 Market Street, Suite 500, Denver, Colorado, 80202.

The accompanying Notice of 20162020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders and Proxy Statement describe the matters to be presented at the meeting. In addition, management will speak on our developments of the past year and respond to comments and questions of general interest to shareholders.

It is important that your shares be represented and voted whether or not you plan to attend the annual meeting in person. You may vote by completing and mailing the enclosed proxy card or the form forwarded by your bank, broker or other holder of record. Voting by written proxy will ensure your shares are represented at the meeting.

 

Sincerely,
LOGO
Robert G. Wolfe

LOGO

R. Carter Pate
Chairman of the Board

 

IMPORTANT

A proxy statement and WHITE proxy card are enclosed. All shareholders are urged to complete and mail the proxy card promptly. The enclosed envelope for return of the proxy card requires no postage. Any shareholder of record attending the meeting may personally vote on all matters that are considered, in which event the signed proxy will be revoked.

ITYOUR VOTE IS IMPORTANT, THAT YOUR STOCK BE VOTED.REGARDLESS OF THE NUMBER OF SHARES YOU OWN

If you need assistance voting your shares, please contact Red Lion’s proxy solicitor, Laurel Hill Advisory Group, LLC at888-742-1305.


RED LION HOTELS CORPORATION

NOTICE OF 20162020 ANNUAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS

TO BE HELD ON MAY 24, 201619, 2020

To the Shareholders of Red Lion Hotels Corporation:

The 20162020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders of Red Lion Hotels Corporation will be held at 9:00 a.m. EDTMDT on Tuesday, May 24, 201619, 2020 at the Hotel RL Baltimore Inner Harbor, 207 E. Redwood St., Baltimore, MD 21202,Red Lion Hotels Corporation, 1550 Market Street, Suite 500, Denver, Colorado, 80202 for the following purposes:

 

(1)

Election of nineseven individuals to the Board of Directors;

 

(2)

Ratification of the selection of BDO USA, LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for 2016;2020;

 

(3)Approval of the 2016 RLHC Executive Officers Bonus Plan;

Advisory(non-binding) vote to approve executive compensation; and

 

(4)Advisory (non-binding) vote on executive compensation; and

(5)Transaction of such other business as may properly come before the meeting and any adjournments thereof.

The foregoing items of business are more fully described in the proxy statement accompanying this notice.

The Board of Directors has fixed March 31, 201624, 2020 as the record date for the meeting. Only shareholders of record at the close of business on that date will be entitled to notice of and to vote at the meeting.

Please submitOuray Select, LP, a shareholder of record (“Ouray”), has provided notice to the Company of its intention to put forth individuals (the “Ouray Nominees”) for election as directors at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders. The Board is unanimously OPPOSED to the nominations of the Ouray Nominees and does not believe that election of these individuals is in the best interest of the Company or its shareholders.

You may receive solicitation materials from Ouray, including a proxy as soon as possible so that your shares can be voted at the meeting in accordance with your instructions. statement and proxy cards. The Board urges you not to sign or return or vote on any proxy cards sent to you by Ouray.

IT IS IMPORTANT THAT PROXIES BE RETURNED PROMPTLY. EVEN IF YOU PLAN TO ATTEND THE MEETING AND VOTE IN PERSON, WE URGE SHAREHOLDERS TO PROMPTLY VOTE BY PHONE OR INTERNET FOLLOWING THE INSTRUCTIONS ON THE ENCLOSED WHITE PROXY CARD OR TO COMPLETE, SIGN, DATE AND RETURN THE WHITE PROXY CARD BY MAIL IN THE POSTAGE-PAID ENVELOPE PROVIDED.

For specific instructions on voting, please refer to the proxy card or the information provided by your bank, broker or other holder of record. Even if you vote your proxy, you may still vote in person if you attend the meeting. Please note, however, that if your shares are held of record by a bank, broker or other holder of record and you wish to vote in person at the meeting, you must obtain a proxy issued in your name from the bank, broker or other holder of record.

 

By Order of the Board of Directors

 

LOGO

LOGO

Thomas L. McKeirnan
Secretary

Spokane, WashingtonDenver, Colorado

April 20, 20166, 2020

The 20152019 Annual Report of Red Lion Hotels Corporation accompanies this proxy statement.

Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for the

Shareholder Meeting to Be Held on May 24, 201619, 2020::

The Notice of Meeting, Proxy Statement, Proxy Card and 20152019 Annual Report

are available athttps://rlhcorp.gcs-web.com/annual-reports-and-proxies.

Important Notice regardingCOVID-19: We intend to hold the Annual Meeting in person. However, we are monitoring the protocols that federal, state, and local governments may recommend or require in light of the evolving coronavirus(COVID-19) situation. As a result, we may impose additional procedures or limitations on meeting attendees (beyond those described herein) or may decide to hold the Annual Meeting in a different location or solely by means of remote communication (i.e., a virtual-only meeting). In the event we determine it is necessary or appropriate to take additional steps regarding how we conduct the Annual Meeting, we will announce this decision in advance, and details will be posted on our website at http://investor.shareholder.com/rlhcorp/annuals-proxies.cfmir.redlion.com and filed with the SEC..


TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

INFORMATION CONCERNING VOTING AND SOLICITATION

1

General

1
Who Can Vote1
Shares Outstanding and Quorum1
Proxy Card and Revocation of Proxy1
Voting of Shares2
Counting of Votes2
Solicitation of Proxies2

PROPOSAL 1 ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

2
Board Structure2
Voting for Directors3
Nominees for Election at the Annual Meeting3
Director and Director Nominee Qualifications; Diversity6

PROPOSAL 2 RATIFICATION OF SELECTION OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

6

PROPOSAL 3 APPROVAL OF THE 2016 RLHC EXECUTIVE OFFICERS BONUS PLAN

7

PROPOSAL 4 ADVISORY VOTE ON EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

11

SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT

12

SECTION 16(a) BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP REPORTING COMPLIANCE

13

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

14

Corporate Governance Documents

14

Director Independence

14

Meetings of the Board of Directors

14

Executive Sessions of the Board

14

Committees of the Board of Directors

15

Leadership Structure

17

Board’s Role in Risk Oversight

17

Communications with the Board of Directors

17

Compensation Committee Report

18

COMPENSATION DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS

19

Compensation Program Objectives and Rewards

19

Elements of Our Compensation Program

20

EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

24

Summary Compensation Table

24

2015 Grants of Plan-Based Awards

25

2015 Outstanding Equity Awards at Fiscal Year End

26

2015 Option Exercises and Stock Vested

27

Employment Agreements; Severance and Change of Control Arrangements

27


TABLE OF CONTENTS

(continued)

Page

DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

32

2015 Director Compensation Table

32

REPORT OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE

33

PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES

34

Fees Paid

34

Pre-Approval Policies and Procedures

34

Auditor Independence

34

CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS

35

PROPOSALS OF SHAREHOLDERS

36

ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K

36

ii


RED LION HOTELS CORPORATION

201 West North River Drive,1550 Market Street, Suite 100425

Spokane, Washington 99201Denver, Colorado 80202

 

 

20162020 PROXY STATEMENT

 

 

INFORMATION CONCERNING VOTING AND SOLICITATION

General

The enclosed proxy is solicited on behalf of the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Red Lion Hotels Corporation, a Washington corporation, for use at the 20162020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be held at 9:00 a.m. EDTMDT on Tuesday, May 24, 2016, and19, 2020 at any adjournments thereof. The meeting will be held at the Hotel RL Baltimore Inner Harbor, 207 E. Redwood St., Baltimore, MD 21202.Red Lion Hotels Corporation, 1550 Market Street, Suite 500, Denver, Colorado, 80202.

Proxies are solicited to give all shareholders of record an opportunity to vote on matters properly presented at the meeting. This proxy statement and the accompanying proxy card are first being mailed on or about April 20, 20166, 2020 to all shareholders entitled to vote at the meeting.

Who Can Vote

You are entitled to vote at the meeting if you were a holder of record of our common stock, $.01 par value, at the close of business on March 31, 2016.24, 2020. Your shares may be voted at the meeting only if you are present in person or represented by a valid proxy.

For the ten days prior to the meeting, a list of shareholders entitled to vote at the meeting will be available during ordinary business hours for examination by any shareholder, for any purpose germane to the meeting, at our principal executive office at 201 West North River Drive,1550 Market Street, Suite 100, Spokane, Washington 99201.425, Denver, Colorado 80202. This list will also be available at the meeting.

Shares Outstanding and Quorum

At the close of business on March 31, 2016,24, 2020, there were 20,131,36325,208,983 shares of our common stock outstanding and entitled to vote. A majority of the outstanding shares of our common stock, present in person or represented by proxy, will constitute a quorum at the meeting.

Proxy Card and Revocation of Proxy

You may vote by completing and mailing the enclosed proxy card. If you sign the proxy card but do not specify how you want your shares to be voted, your shares will be voted by the proxy holders named in the enclosed proxy (i) “FOR”FOR election of the nineseven director nominees named below; (ii) “FOR”FOR ratification of the selection of BDO USA, LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for 2016;2020; and (iii) “FOR” approval of the 2016 RLHC Executive Officers Bonus Plan; and (iv) “FOR”FOR approval, on an advisory basis, of the compensation of our named executive officers. If one or more of the director nominees should become unavailable for election prior to the meeting, an event that currently is not anticipated by the Board, the proxies may be voted in favor of the election of a substitute nominee or nominees proposed by the Board.

1


The proxy holders named in the enclosed proxy are authorized to vote in their discretion on any other matters that may properly come before the meeting or any adjournments thereof. At the time this proxy statement went to press, management was not aware of any matter that may properly be presented for action at the meeting other than those described in this proxy statement. In addition, no shareholder proposal or director nomination was received on a timely basis, so no such other matters may be brought to a vote at the meeting.


If you vote by proxy, you may revoke that proxy at any time before it is voted at the meeting. Shareholders of record may revoke a proxy by delivering a written notice of revocation or a duly executed proxy bearing a later date to our Secretary at our principal executive office at 201 West North River Drive,1550 Market Street, Suite 100, Spokane, Washington 99201,425, Denver, Colorado 80202, or by attending the meeting and voting in person. Attendance at the meeting will not, by itself, revoke a proxy. If your shares are held in the name of a broker, bank or other holder of record, you may change your vote by submitting new voting instructions to that holder of record. Please note that if your shares are held of record by a broker, bank or other holder of record and you decide to attend the meeting, you may vote at the meeting only if you present a legal proxy issued in your name from that holder of record.

Voting of Shares

Shareholders of record as of the close of business on March 31, 201624, 2020 are entitled to one vote for each share of our common stock held on all matters to be voted upon at the meeting. You may vote by attending the meeting and voting in person or by completing and mailing the enclosed proxy card or the form forwarded by your bank, broker or other holder of record. If your shares are held by a bank, broker or other holder of record, please refer to the instructions they provide for voting your shares. All shares entitled to vote and represented by properly executed proxies that are received before the polls are closed at the meeting and are not revoked or superseded will be voted at the meeting in accordance with the instructions indicated on those proxies.YOUR VOTE IS IMPORTANT.IMPORTANT.

Counting of Votes

All votes will be tabulated by the inspector of election appointed for the meeting, who will separately tabulate affirmative and negative votes, abstentions and brokernon-votes. Shares held by persons attending the meeting but not voting, shares represented by proxies that reflect abstentions on one or more proposals and brokernon-votes will be counted as present for purposes of determining a quorum.

Abstentions on any of the proposals under consideration at the annual meeting will generally not count as votes “cast”. A brokernon-vote occurs when a bank, broker or other holder of record holding shares for a beneficial owner does not receive voting instructions from the beneficial owner and does not have (or elects not to exercise) discretionary authority to vote the shares without such instructions. The effect of abstentions and brokernon-votes on each of the proposals on the agenda for the annual meeting is discussed below in the sections discussing those proposals.

Solicitation of Proxies

We will bear the expense of preparing, printing and distributing proxy materials to our shareholders. We will also furnish copies of the proxy materials to banks, brokers and other holders of record holding in their names shares of our common stock that are beneficially owned by others, so that the proxy materials can be forwarded to those beneficial owners. We will reimburse these banks, brokers and other holders of record for costs incurred in forwarding the proxy materials to the beneficial owners. In addition, the Company has retained Laurel Hill Advisory Group, LLC to assist with the solicitation of proxies for a fee of $25,000, plus reimbursement of certainout-of-pocket expenses.

2


PROPOSAL 1

ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

Board Structure

Under our Articles of Incorporation andBy-Laws, the Board consists of from three to 13thirteen directors, as determined from time to time by resolution of the Board. The number of directors that currently constitutes the Board is nine.

seven. At the recommendation of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, the Board has nominated all nine of our current directors for election at the annual meeting existing directors Frederic F “Jake” Brace, R. Carter Pate, Ted Darnall, and Joseph B. Megibow, each to hold office for a term expiring at next year’s annual meeting.

The Board of Directors, at the recommendation of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, has also nominated for election three new nominees: Linda C. Coughlin, Janet L. Hendrickson and Kenneth R. Trammell. Existing directors Bonny W. Simi and Amy Humphreys are not standing forre-election.

Voting for Directors

Each share of common stock is entitled to one vote for each of the nineseven nominees. Cumulative voting is not permitted. With respect to each nominee, shares may be voted “FOR”, “AGAINST” or “ABSTAIN”. Unless otherwise directed, it is the intention of the proxy holders named in the enclosed proxy to vote the proxies received by them “FOR” the election of the nineseven nominees. If any nominee should become unavailable for election prior to the meeting, an event that currently is not anticipated by the Board, the proxies will be voted in favor of the election of a substitute nominee or nominees proposed by the Board or the number of directors may be reduced accordingly. Each nominee has agreed to serve if elected and the Board has no reason to believe that any nominee will be unable to serve.

We have adopted majority voting procedures for theIn a contested election, of directors in uncontested elections. Ifif a quorum is present, the persons receiving a nomineeplurality of the votes cast shall be elected directors. As Ouray has not delivered a notice of withdrawal with respect to its notice to nominate individuals for election to a position on the Board will be elected as a director if the votes cast for the nominee exceed the votes cast against the nominee. The term of any incumbent director who does not receive a majority of votes cast in an election held under the majority voting standard terminates on the earliest to occur of the following:

90 days after the voting results of the election are determined;

the date on whichDirectors, the Board selects another individual to fill the position; orhas determined that this is a contested election and plurality voting will apply.

the effective date of the director’s resignation.

The following will not be considered votes cast and will not count towards the election of any director nominee:

 

a share whose ballot is marked as abstain;

 

a share otherwise present at the meeting but for which there is an abstention;

 

a share otherwise present at the meeting as to which a shareholder of record gives no authority or direction; and

 

brokernon-votes.

Because an abstention from voting for a nominee is not treated as a vote cast, it will have no effect on the election of the nominee. Brokers do not have discretionary authority to vote in the election of directors. If a broker holding shares for a beneficial owner does not receive instructions from the beneficial owner on how to vote in the election, the broker will submit anon-vote. Because a brokernon-vote is not treated as a vote cast, it will have no effect on the election of the nominee.

Set forth below is biographical information for each nominee.of the Company’s nominees for director. There are no family relationships among any of the nominees or among any of the nominees and our executive officers.

Nominees for Election at the Annual Meeting

Raymond R. BrandstromFrederic F. “Jake” Brace, age 62, was appointed to the Board on July 17, 2019. Mr. Brace has over 30 years of experience in strategy, finance, restructuring and transformation for numerous industries including airlines,

3


health care, retail, E&P, electrical production, hospitality and real estate. He currently provides advisory services through his firm, Sangfroid Advisors, an international turnaround, restructuring and transformation consultancy. He was formerly the President and CEO of Laser Spine Institute and, before that, Midstates Petroleum, a Tulsa-based E&P company. Previous to those positions, Mr. Brace served as President of Niko Resources, a Canadian E&P company, Chief Administrative Officer of The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Co. (A&P grocery stores) and the Chief Financial Officer of UAL Corporation. (In December 2010, The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code; it emerged from bankruptcy in March 2012). Mr. Brace currently sits on the board of Anixter International (NYSE: AXE) and Niko Resources (OTC: NKRSF). He was previously on the boards of various public and private companies including iHeart Media, Sequa, GenOn, Standard Register, Edison Mission Energy, Bally Total Fitness, Neff Rental, Sirva, Galileo International and Bearing Point among others.

Linda C. Coughlin, age 63,68, has been nominated for election at the 2020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders. Ms. Coughlin is a veteran operating executive specializing in the leadership of disruptive changes to the status quo such as restructurings, downsizings, internalstart-ups and the planning for and implementation of mergers, acquisitions, IPO’s, joint ventures and divestitures and rebranding initiatives. Since 2008, Ms. Coughlin has served as the CEO of Great Circle Associates, LLC, a consulting firm she founded that provides interim executive and individual advisory services. From 2004 until 2007, she served as Chief Administrative Officer and member of the Executive Committee at Cendant Corporation, where she was responsible for global contact center operations, corporate marketing, information technology, global procurement, human resources and corporate real estate. From 2002-2004, she served as the President and Vice Chair of the Board of Directors at Linkage, Inc., a global consulting firm, and from 1986 to 2002, she held various roles with Scudder Investments, a global investment management firm, including serving as President of the Americas Mutual Fund Groups and Chair of the Board of the AARP, Scudder and Kemper Funds. Ms. Coughlin began her career at American Express Company and Citibank where she spent 10 years in a variety of strategy, marketing, telephone operations and corporate communications roles. She has 12 years of public and private company board experience, and currently serves as a Director and member of the Audit and Nomination and Governance Committees of The China Fund, Inc. (NYSE:CHN). Ms. Coughlin holds a BA in Economics, summa cum laude from Fordham University.

Ted Darnall,age 62,was appointed to the Board on July 31, 2018.Mr. Darnall is a30-year veteran of the hospitality industry. Since April 2015, he has served as CEO of HEI Hotels and Resorts Lodging and Technical Services Company, the company responsible for all of HEI lodging services, management, design, renovation and technical services, and served as the Chief Operating Officer of HEI Hotels and Resorts from October 2006 to April 2015. Prior to joining HEI Hotels and Resorts, Mr. Darnall was with Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide for 10 years where he held various executive positions, including Chief Operating Officer of Starwood Lodging Corporation, President of North America Operations and most recently, President of Starwood Real Estate Group. Prior to joining Starwood, Mr. Darnall was with Interstate Hotels and Resorts for over 14 years, reaching the position of Senior Vice President, Operations. Mr. Darnall began his hospitality career with Marriott International, where he held a number of management positions.

Janet L. Hendrickson, age 65, has been nominated for election at the 2020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders. Ms. Hendrickson is an experienced executive and corporate director that brings deep expertise to strategic leadership, business development, fiscal management, capital structure strategies, operations, and people development. She is currently serving as the Chief Operating Officer of Toaster Labs Inc., dba Pulse, a position she has held since 2019. From 2015-2018, Ms. Hendrickson served as Regional Managing Director of Ascent Private Capital Management, and she was aco-founder and Managing Partner of Denny Hill Capital, an early stage venture capital firm with a consumer focused investment strategy, from 2002-2015. Ms. Hendrickson currently sits on the board of The Commerce Bank of Washington, a banking institution serving Washington state, one of eight community banks under Zion Bancorporation (NASDAQ: ZION) and the Virginia Mason Health System. She previously served on the board of Tully’s Coffee from 2009 to 2013, including as Lead Director, and for private companies Butter London, Toosum Foods, Reklaim, PhotoRocket, and Cleverset,

4


among others. Ms. Hendrickson was recognized in 2011 by the Puget Sound Business Journal as a Woman of Influence. She began her career in finance and operations attaining the position of CFO. Ms. Hendrickson earned her graduate degree in public administration from the University of Washington, as well as her Bachelor of Arts.

Joseph B. Megibow, age 51, has been a director since November 2009. Since January 2013,March 2017. Mr. Megibow is currently the Chief Executive Officer of Purple Innovation, Inc, a manufacturer and retailer of a variety of innovative, premium, comfort products including mattresses and pillows, a position he has been an employee of Columbia Pacific Management, Inc., a company that has some common ownership with Columbia Pacific Opportunity Fund, LP, one of our major shareholders. From January 2010 until December 2012,held since October 2018. Prior to Purple, Mr. Brandstrom’s primary occupation was as an advisor to Emeritus Corporation. Mr. Brandstrom was one of Emeritus’s founders and served on its board of directors from its inception in 1993 until May 2013. From September 2007 to December 2009, heMegibow served as its ExecutiveSenior Vice President—Finance, Secretary and Chief Financial Officer. He had previously served at Emeritus in various capacities, including as its President and Chief Operating Officer.Digital Officer at American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. where he oversaw the transformation and growth of American Eagle’s $550+ milliondirect-to-consumer business between 2012 and 2015. In this role, he built out a global omni- channel strategy and infrastructure, and led all digital marketing, customer operations, engineering and product management efforts. Prior to that, Mr. BrandstromMegibow held several senior roles with Expedia, Inc., including VP and General Manager of Expedia.com, the $10B+ US online travel business. Mr. Megibow most recently served as Presidentan independent consultant to Advent International, the $41 billion global private equity firm, helping its portfolio companies develop world-class digital capabilities. Mr. Megibow earned an MBA from the University of Columbia Pacific Group, Inc.Chicago Booth School of Business and Columbia Pacific Management, Inc. From May 1992 to May 1997, Mr. Brandstrom also served as Vice President and Treasurera Bachelor of Columbia Winery, a company that is engagedScience in the production and sale of table wines. Mr. Brandstrom adds outstanding operational and financial acumen to the Board, as well as years of experience in real estate development and as a public company director and chief financial officer.Electrical Engineering from Cornell University.

James P. EvansR. Carter Pate,, age 69,65, has been a director since May 2019, and was appointed as Chairman of the Board on December 2012.26, 2019. Mr. Evans servedPate has had a distinguished career in directing performance improvement, executive management, finance, and board service, including experience as oura public company chairman. He has led numerous companies through strategic change and has the required skill set to help the Board and management team to realize its full potential as a franchise Company. Mr. Pate recently completed serving as Interim PresidentChief Executive Officer at The Providence Service Corporation, (NASDAQ: PRSC) a position he had held since 2017. He is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer from August 2013 to Januaryof Carter Pate, LLC, a consulting and investment firm he founded in 2014. From 2011 to 2012, he2014, Mr. Pate served as the Chief Executive Officer of Brand USA,MV Transportation, Inc. the nation’s first public-private global marketing effort to promotelargest privately owned passenger transportation logistics firm based in the United StatesStates. Prior to joining MV, he was the Global and U.S. Managing Partner of Healthcare and Government Practice for PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP and prior served in various roles as the world’s premier travel destination. HeUS Managing Partner, Advisory Line of Service and US Managing Partner, Corporate Restructuring Partner. Mr. Pate has previously served as the Chief Executive OfficerChairman of Ardent Hotel Advisorsthe Board of BioScrip, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIOS) prior to its merger with Option Care Health since 2015 and now serves as a Director and on the Audit Committee of the combined Company. He is also a Director of Advanced Emissions Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADES) since 2016 where he also serves on the audit committee and is the Chair of its compensation Committee. Mr. Pate is a Certified Public Accountant in Texas. He is aco-author of The Phoenix Effect: Nine Revitalizing Strategies No Company Can Do Without, originally published in 2002 and translated into five languages. Mr. Pate holds a Masters in Accounting and Information Management from 2005 to 2011, as Chief Executive Officerthe University of Jenny Craig, Inc.Texas at Dallas, and a BS in Accounting from 2003 to 2005 and as Chief Executive Officer of Best Western International, Inc. from 1998 to 2002. He has also held executive management positions in operations for DoubleTree Hotel Corporation and Hyatt Hotels and Resorts. Mr. Evans brings nearly 40 years of hospitality, hotel and brand management expertise to the Board.Greensboro College.

Enrico Marini FicheraKenneth R. Trammell, age 47,59, has been a director since June 2015. The Board appointed him as a director, and has nominated him for reelectionelection at the meeting,2020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders. Mr. Trammell is currently serving as required by the termsInterim Chief Financial Officer of an Investor Agreement that we entered into on June 15, 2015, with HNA RLH Investments LLC (the “Investor”)Tenneco Inc. (NYSE: TEN), a Delaware limited liability company that is a wholly owned, indirect subsidiarymanufacturer of HNA Group Co., Limited (“HNA”),vehicle components and with its affiliate, HNA Investment Management LLC, a Delaware limited liability company,systems. He was previously Executive Vice President of Tenneco Inc. from January 2006 until his retirement in connection withDecember 2018, the Investor’s purchase on that date of 2,987,343 shares of our common stockChief Financial Officer from Columbia Pacific Opportunity Fund, LP.

Mr. Marini Fichera has served asSeptember 2003 until June 2018, and the Head of Investments for HNA Group North America LLC, an HNA company, since October 2014. From August 2008 to September 2014, he was the Senior Portfolio Manager and Principal at CHF Investment Management L.P. (“CHF”), a Beijing-based US $250 million growth capital fund. Mr. Marini Fichera has been involved in China since 2005 and has over 15 years of information technology, financial services, media, telecom, consumer & retail, industrials, energy (including clean energy) and infrastructure experience. He has worked on various private equity investments and M&A transactions with a total value greater than $30 billion.Controller from 1997 through 2003. Prior to joining CHF, he worked for Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., Morgan Joseph & Co., Capital IQ Inc. (one of the original members that developed Capital IQ Inc.), Warburg Dillon Read (now UBS), and Lazard Frères & Co. Mr. Marini Fichera received an M.B.A.Tenneco in Finance from New York University’s Stern School of Business and B.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Mathematics from Columbia University.

David J. Johnson, age 69, has been a director since December 2012. Most recently, Mr. Johnson served from 1997 to 2005 as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of KinderCare Learning Centers, Inc. From 1991 to 1996, Mr. JohnsonTrammell spent 12 years with the international public accounting firm of Arthur Andersen LLP. Mr. Trammell has served as Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Red Lion Hotels, Inc. Earlier in his career, he served as President, Chief Operating Officer and Director of Dillingham Holdings and President and Chief Executive Officer of Cal Gas Corporation. Mr. Johnson is currently a member of the board of directorsUniversal Technical Institute (NYSE: UTI), a provider of Grand Canyon Education, Inc. Mr. Johnson brings nearly 30 years of executive management experience to the Board along with significant industry expertisepostsecondary education for students seeking careers as professional automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle and brand experiencemarine technicians as the former CEO of Red Lion Hotels, Inc.

Melvin L. Keating,age 69, has been a directorwell as welders and computer numerical control (CNC) machining technicians, since July 2010June 2011, and served as Chairman of the Board from May 2013 through May 2015. Since November 2008, Mr. Keating has been a private consultant, providing investment advice and other services to private equity firms. Mr. Keating alsocurrently serves as a director of API Technologies Corp., where he is ChairmanChair of the Audit Committee andCommittee. Mr. Trammell received a member of both the Compensation and Nominating/Corporate Governance Committees; Agilysys Inc., where he is Chairman of the Compensation Committee and a member of the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee; and Modern Systems Inc. (formerly BluePhoenix Solutions Ltd.). Since 2010, Mr. Keating has also served as a director of the following companies: Bitstream Inc., Crown Crafts Inc., InfoLogix, Inc., Integral Systems, Inc. and White Electronic Designs Corp. Mr. Keating holds a B.A. degree from Rutgers University, as well as an M.S.BBA in Accounting and an M.B.A in Finance, both from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Keating’s experience as an executive and as a board member of other public companies, together with his real estate and financial acumen, are of great value in his role as a director of our company.

Gregory T. Mount, age 55, has been a director since November 2014. Mr. Mount joined our company as President and Chief Executive Officer in January 2014. From November 2009 to January 2014, he served as President of Richfield Hospitality, Inc., a hotel management company based in Denver, Colorado. From January 2007 to November 2009, he served as a Senior Vice President of Acquisitions at Sage Hospitality Resources,

LLC, a hotel management, investment and development company. From 1998 to 2006, Mr. Mount held various senior development and operations positions with Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. From 1990 to 1998, he served in several management positions at Interstate Hotels & Resorts, Inc. From 1982 to 1990, he worked in various operational roles at Marriott International, Inc. In early 2011, a staffing services company operated by Mr. Mount’s wife filed a petition for reorganization under federal bankruptcy laws. That case was administratively consolidated with a second reorganization case filed by the Mounts, who had personally guaranteed the commercial loan used to acquire the company. A joint plan of reorganization was confirmed in the fall of 2011, and in 2012 orders were entered finding both cases fully administered and discharging the individual debtors.

Michael Vernon, age 69, has been a director since December 2012. Mr. Vernon served as the Chief Financial Officer of Zulily, Inc. from 2011 to 2012. He served as Chief Financial Officer of Big Fish Games, Inc. from 2009 to 2011, as Chief Financial Officer of Zumobi, Inc. from 2007 to 2008 and as Chief Financial Officer of aQuantive, Inc. from 2000 to 2006. Prior to these roles, Mr. Vernon was the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer at Park Plaza International, where he helped the company transform from a franchisor into a manager of high-end hotels. From 1995 to 1997, he was the Chief Financial Officer of Red Lion Hotels, Inc. Mr. Vernon brings more than 25 years of domestic and international experience in corporate finance, M&A, investor communications, and strategic development to the Board.

Alexander Washburn, age 46, is a managing member and co-founder of Columbia Pacific Advisors LLC. He has been involved in all phases of the firm’s development since its founding in 2006 and sits on each of the firm’s investment committees. Prior to founding Columbia Pacific Advisors, Mr. Washburn was a partner and portfolio manager at Summit Capital Management, a Northwest-based multi-strategy investment manager. He is a director of Winemakers Investment Properties, Freehold Corporation, SST Group, and Northeast Wireless Networks. He is also a trustee and member of the Board of Directors of the Seattle Aquarium. Mr. Washburn holds a B.A.accounting from the University of Washington with a concentration in Finance.Houston.

Robert G. Wolfe, age 59, has been a director since December 2012 and has served as Chairman of the Board since May 2015. Mr. Wolfe brings more than 30 years of experience in investment banking, finance and investment management to the Board, including significant executive management and director-level experience. Since 2008, Mr. Wolfe’s primary activity has been to serve as president of Windy Point, LLC, a private investment firm. From 2002 to 2008, he was a partner at Northwest Venture Associates, a venture capital fund that invested exclusively in companies based in the Pacific Northwest (“NWVA”). Northwest Venture Partners III, L.P. (NVP III), one of the venture capital funds managed by NWVA, was a small business investment company administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). Mr. Wolfe was an investor in the limited liability company that owned the general partner of NVP III. Due to the recession in 2008 and other factors, the SBA elected to exercise rights that resulted in the assets of NVP III being placed in receivership in June 2009. From 1999 to 2002, Mr. Wolfe was President and Chief Operating Officer of Toronto-based GT Group Telecom, which was Canada’s largest independent local exchange carrier. Mr. Wolfe has significant experience in finance and investment banking, including working at Goldman Sachs from 1987 to 1995. He also serves as a director of Darigold, Inc.

The Board recommends a vote “FOR” each of the nine nominees.5


Director and Director Nominee Qualifications; Diversity

Our Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee assists the Board in reviewing the business and personal background of each of our directors with respect to our company’s business and business goals. The committee generally considers diversity as one of several factors relating to overall composition when making nominations to our Board. While we do not have a formal policy governing how diversity is considered, the committee generally considers diversity by examining the entire Board membership and, when making nominations to our Board, by reviewing the diversity of the entire Board. The committee construes Board diversity broadly to include many factors. As a result, the committee strives to ensure that our Board is composed of individuals with a variety of different opinions, perspectives, personal, professional and industry experience, backgrounds, skills and expertise.

In addition to the qualities described previously in the individual biographies, the following matrix summarizes the skills and attributes of our director nominees for 20162020 that we believe are essential to our business:

 

   RaymondJake
BrandstromBrace
  JamesLinda
EvansCoughlin
  EnricoTed
Marini
FicheraDarnall
  DavidJanet
JohnsonHendrickson
  MelvinJoseph
KeatingMegibow
  GregoryR. Carter
MountPate
  MichaelKenneth
Vernon
Alexander
Washburn
Robert
WolfeTrammell

Senior leadership/CEO/COO experience

  ü  ü    ü    ü  üüüüü

Business development experience

  ü  ü    ü    ü  üüüüü

Financial expertise/CFO

  üüüü    ü

Outside public board experience

  ü    ü    üüüü

Independence

  ü  üüüüüüü

Industry Experience

    ü    ü  

Hotel and travel industry experience

    üüüü

Marketing/sales expertise

    ü  ü    üü    

Government expertise

    ü        ü

Mergers and& acquisitions & investment experience

  ü  ü    ü    ü  üüüüü

Demonstrated integrity-

personalintegrity-personal and professional

  ü  ü    ü    ü  üüüüü

Real estate expertise

  ü  ü    ü    ü  üüüüü

Franchising expertise

    ü    üü    ü  
ü

Digital marketing and analytics expertise

    

Technology expertise

We have concluded that all of our director nominees have the skills, experience, knowledge and personal attributes that are necessary to effectively serve on our Board and to contribute to the overall success of our company. We believe that the diverse backgrounds of these nominees will ensure that we have a Board that has a broad range of industry-related knowledge, experience and business acumen.

6


PROPOSAL 2

RATIFICATION OF SELECTION OF

INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

The Audit Committee of the Board has selected BDO USA, LLP to serve as our independent registered public accounting firm for 20162020 and has further directed that this selection be submitted for ratification by our shareholders at the annual meeting. BDO USA, LLP has audited our financial statements since 2001. Representatives of the firm are expected to be present at the meeting, will have the opportunity to make a statement if they desire to do so, and are expected to be available to respond to appropriate questions from shareholders.

Shareholder ratification of the selection of BDO USA, LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm is not required by ourBy-Laws or otherwise. However, the Board is submitting the selection of the firm to the shareholders for ratification as a matter of good corporate practice. If the shareholders fail to ratify the selection, the Audit Committee will reconsider whether or not to retain that firm. Even if the selection is ratified, the Audit Committee in its discretion may select a different accounting firm at any time during the year if the Audit Committee determines that such a change would be in our best interests and that of our shareholders.

Each share of common stock is entitled to one vote on the proposal to ratify the selection of BDO USA, LLP and will be given the option to vote “FOR” or “AGAINST” the proposal or to “ABSTAIN.” Unless otherwise directed, it is the intention of the proxy holders named in the enclosed proxy to vote the proxies received by them “FOR” this proposal.

Brokers willdo not have discretionary authority to vote on Proposal 2. If a broker holding shares for a beneficial owner does not receive instructions from the beneficial owner on how to vote on this proposal, we anticipate that the broker will vote “FOR” this proposal. Therefore, there should be no broker non-votes on this proposal.submit anon-vote.

Proposal 2 will be approved if the number of votes cast in favor of the proposal exceeds the number of votes cast against the proposal. Abstentions from voting and brokernon-voteswill have no impact on the outcome of this proposal.

The Board recommends a vote “FOR” ratification of the selection of BDO USA, LLP.

7


PROPOSAL 3

APPROVAL OF THE 2016 RLHC EXECUTIVE OFFICERS BONUS PLAN

We are asking our shareholders to approve the 2016 RLHC Executive Officers Bonus Plan, which is intended to increase shareholder value and the success of our company by motivating eligible executives to achieve our financial, strategic and operating objectives in order to be eligible to earn a cash bonus. If the plan is approved by our shareholders, that approval should permit us to receive a full federal income tax deduction for compensation (if any) paid under the plan that qualifies as “performance-based compensation” under Section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or Section 162(m). Our Compensation Committee approved the plan on March 28, 2016, subject to the approval of our shareholders at the annual meeting. Our Board unanimously recommends that our shareholders approve the plan.

Shareholder approval is not required for our company to be able to offer bonuses or other cash incentives to its employees. However, under Section 162(m), our company may not receive a federal income tax deduction for compensation (including bonuses) paid to our President and Chief Executive Officer, or CEO, or any of our next three most highly compensated executive officers other than our chief financial officer) to the extent that any of these persons receives total compensation of more than $1 million in any one year. Notwithstanding that general rule, if the compensation qualifies as “performance-based” under Section 162(m), we may be eligible to receive a full federal income tax deduction for the compensation, even if total compensation to an affected executive otherwise is more than $1 million during a single year. The plan allows us to pay cash incentive compensation that is intended to be performance-based and therefore potentially fully tax deductible for federal income tax purposes under current law. In order for the potential cash compensation to qualify as performance-based, the plan under which the compensation is paid must (among other things) be approved by shareholders. Therefore, we are asking shareholders to approve the 2016 RLHC Executive Officers Bonus Plan at the annual meeting. If shareholders do not approve the plan, it will be terminated. However, if that happens, we may choose to pay bonuses or other incentives outside of the plan, which payments, if any, may not be deductible.

A copy of the 2016 RLHC Executive Officers Bonus Plan is attached to this Proxy Statement as Appendix C. The following summarizes the terms of the plan and does not purport to be fully descriptive. Please refer to Appendix C for more detailed information about the plan. The statements made in this Proxy Statement

regarding the plan should be read in conjunction with and are qualified in their entirety by reference to the complete terms of the plan.

Purpose

The purpose of the 2016 RLHC Executive Officers Bonus Plan is to increase shareholder value and the success of our company by motivating eligible executives to achieve our company’s financial, strategic, and operating objectives. The plan provides executives with the ability to earn cash incentive awards for the achievement of goals relating to the performance of our company, its departments and the individual executives.

Eligibility to Participate

Our CEO together with the individuals who were executive vice presidents of our company at the beginning of 2016 are the only persons eligible to participant in the plan.

Target Bonuses Awards and Performance Goals

The plan provides for potential bonuses for our CEO and our executive vice presidents. The target bonuses under the plan (“Target Bonuses”) are 75% of 2016 base salary for our CEO and 50% of 2016 base salary for each of the other executives.

Bonuses under the plan will be based on the following three performance goals:

Achievement of at least 90% of our 2016 budgeted adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (“Budgeted Adjusted EBITDA”).

Achievement of a departmental goal based on our 2016 earnings per share.

Achievement of an individual goal that has been specified by the Compensation Committee for each executive. The individual goals are based on one or more of the following business criteria: gross operating profit; revenues from group business; RevPar growth; increase in RevPar index; development of tools to measure guest experience; and addition of franchised and managed hotels to our system of hotels.

Actual Awards

To determine bonuses under the plan, the EBITDA goal will be weighted 80% and each of the other two goals will be weighted 10%. No bonus will be payable under the plan unless the ratio (“EBITDA Goal Achievement”) of (i) our actual adjusted EBITDA for 2016, to (ii) Budgeted Adjusted EBITDA exceeds 90%.

If the EBITDA Goal Achievement percentage is 150% or higher, an executive will be entitled to a payout equal to:

twice his Target Bonus (“Maximum Payout”), if the executive achieves both his department and individual goals;

90% of the Maximum Payout, if the executive only achieves one of his department and individual goals; or

80% of the Maximum Payout, if the executive achieves neither his department nor his individual goal.

If the EBITDA Goal Achievement percentage is 100%, an executive will be entitled to a payout equal to:

his Target Bonus, if the executive achieves both his department and individual goals;

90% of his Target Bonus, if the executive only achieves one of his department and individual goals; or

80% of his Target Bonus, if the executive achieves neither his department nor his individual goal.

The plan specifies other payout amounts that will apply if the EBITDA Goal Achievement percentage is between 90% and 100% or between 100% and 150%.

Any payments due under the plan will be made to participants as soon as administratively possible following the end of 2016. A participant must be employed by us at the time of payment in order to receive a payout. All payments under the plan are subject to previous approval by the Compensation Committee. Bonuses otherwise payable under the plan may be deferred, partially paid or withheld in their entirety if the Compensation Committee determines that to be in the best interests of our company.

The plan provides that a participant who receives a bonus under the plan will be required to repay the bonus to the extent required by (i) any “clawback” or recoupment policy adopted by our company to comply with the requirements of any applicable laws, rules or regulations, or (ii) any applicable law, rule or regulation that imposes mandatory recoupment.

The Compensation Committee also may choose to pay bonuses or other compensation to plan participants outside of the 2016 RLHC Executive Officers Bonus Plan on terms established by the Compensation Committee from time to time. Any such bonuses or other compensation may not qualify as performance-based under Section 162(m).

Administration

Our Compensation Committee will administer the 2016 RLHC Executive Officers Bonus Plan with the assistance of our Director of Compensation and Benefits, our Senior Vice President, Human Resources, and our chief financial officer.

Tax Effects of the Plan

The 2016 RLHC Executive Officers Bonus Plan is intended to permit the payment of bonuses that qualify as “performance-based” compensation under Section 162(m). Under Section 162(m), our company may not receive a federal income tax deduction for compensation paid to our CEO, or any of our next three most highly compensated executive officers other than our chief financial officer, to the extent that any of these persons receives more than $1 million in any one year. However, “performance-based” compensation that qualifies under Section 162(m) is exempt from this $1 million limitation. The plan allows us to pay cash incentive compensation that is intended to be performance-based and therefore potentially fully tax deductible on our company’s federal income tax return (subject to future changes in tax laws and other circumstances). We also may choose to pay other or additional compensation outside of the plan that is not intended to qualify as performance-based compensation (and that, therefore, may not be tax deductible for our company). For example, base salaries do not qualify as performance-based compensation and any bonuses paid outside of the plan likely would not qualify as performance-based compensation.

Amendment and Termination of the Plan

The Compensation Committee has the right to cancel, change, modify or interpret any and all provisions of the plan at any time without notice.

Bonuses Paid to Certain Individuals and Groups

Awards, if any, under the plan are determined based on actual future performance. As a result, future actual awards cannot now be determined. The following table sets forth the Target Bonus and Maximum Bonus potentially payable to each of the participants:

2016 RLHC Executive Officers Bonus Plan

Name and Position

  Target
Bonus ($)(1)
   Maximum
Bonus ($)(1)
 

Gregory T. Mount

    

President and Chief Executive Officer

   369,750     739,500  

William J. Linehan

    

Executive Vice President, , Chief Marketing Officer

   160,325     320,650  

Thomas L. McKeirnan

    

Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary

   139,637     279,273  

Harry G. Sladich

    

Executive Vice President, Hotel Operations and Sales

   127,213     254,426  

All executive officers, as a group (4 persons) (2)

   796,925     1,593,849  

Non-Executive Director Group (3)

   —       —    

Non-Executive Officer Employee Group (3)

   —       —    

(1)Bonus amounts in the table are calculated by reference to the current annual base salaries of the participants. Actual bonus amounts will be calculated by reference to the annual base salaries in effect on December 31, 2016.
(2)James A. Bell, our former Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, was eligible to participate in the plan until his employment terminated on April 8, 2016. Due to his termination, he will not receive any award under the plan.
(3)The individuals in these groups are not eligible to participate in the plan.

Vote Required

Each share of common stock is entitled to one vote on Proposal 3 and will be given the option to vote “FOR” or “AGAINST” the proposal or to “ABSTAIN.” Unless otherwise directed, it is the intention of the proxy holders named in the enclosed proxy to vote the proxies received by them “FOR” this proposal.

Brokers do not have discretionary authority to vote on Proposal 3. If a broker holding shares for a beneficial owner does not receive instructions from the beneficial owner on how to vote on this proposal, the broker will submit a non-vote.

Proposal 3 will be approved if the number of votes cast in favor of the proposal exceeds the number of votes cast against the proposal. Abstentions from voting and broker non-votes will have no impact on the outcome of this proposal.

The Board recommends a vote “FOR” approval of the 2016 RLHC Executive Officers Bonus Plan.

PROPOSAL 4

ADVISORY VOTE ONTO APPROVE EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

As required by Section 14A of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Board is submitting a separate resolution, to be voted on by shareholders in anon-binding vote, to approve on an advisory basis the executive compensation of our named executive officers. The text of the resolution is as follows:

RESOLVED, that the shareholders approve, on an advisory basis, the compensation of the named executive officers as disclosed in this proxy statement under the captions “Compensation Discussion and Analysis” andcaption “Executive Compensation”.

As described in this proxy statement under Executive Compensation Discussion and Analysis, our compensation program is designed to focus executives on the achievement of specific annual and long-term goals. We structure the goals to align executives’ interests with those of shareholders by rewarding performance that maintains and improves shareholder value.

The following features of the compensation structure reflect this approach:

 

Our executive compensation program has both short- and long-term components.

 

The annual cash incentive component focuses on one or more specific performance goals and allows for discretionary compensation based on performance not otherwise measured by the goals.

 

Our agreements with executives generally do not contain guarantees for salary increases,non-performance-based bonuses or equity compensation.

The Board believes that the current executive compensation program properly focuses our executives on the achievement of specific annual, long-term and strategic goals. The Board also believes that this program properly aligns the executives’ interests with those of shareholders.

Shareholders are urged to read the Executive Compensation Discussion and Analysis section of this proxy statement, which discusses in greater detail how our compensation program advances the specific goals that we set.

Each share of common stock is entitled to one vote on Proposal 43 and will be given the option to vote “FOR” or “AGAINST” the proposal or to “ABSTAIN.” Unless otherwise directed, it is the intention of the proxy holders named in the enclosed proxy to vote the proxies received by them “FOR” this proposal.

Brokers do not have discretionary authority to vote on Proposal 4.3. If a broker holding shares for a beneficial owner does not receive instructions from the beneficial owner on how to vote on this proposal, the broker will submit anon-vote.

Proposal 43 will be approved if the number of votes cast in favor of the proposal exceeds the number of votes cast against the proposal. Abstentions from voting and brokernon-votes will have no impact on the outcome of this proposal.

The Board recommends a vote “FOR” the approval, on an advisory basis,

of the compensation of the named executive officers.

Although the advisory vote on Proposal 43 isnon-binding, we expect that the Board and the Compensation Committee will review the results of the vote and, consistent with our record of shareholder engagement, take the outcome of the vote into consideration, along with other relevant factors, in making determinations concerning future executive compensation.

8


SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT

The following table sets forth certain information regarding the beneficial ownership of our common stock as of March 31, 201623, 2020 by: (i) each of our directors and nominees; (ii) each of our named executive officers; (iii) all of our directors, nominees and executive officers as a group; and (iv) each person known by us to beneficially own more than 5% of our common stock.

 

Beneficial Owner

  Number of
Shares
Owned(1)
   Percentage  of
Common
Stock(1)
 

HNA Investment Management LLC (2)

   3,238,401     16.1

Daniel R. Baty (3)

   3,052,638     14.8

Alexander Washburn (4)

   2,952,638     14.4

Columbia Pacific Opportunity Fund, LP (4)

   2,510,105     12.5

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP (5)

   1,700,160     8.4

Eidelman Virant Capital, Inc. (6)

   1,432,187     7.1

Thomas L. McKeirnan (7)

   110,341     *  

Raymond R. Brandstrom

   62,144     *  

Melvin L. Keating

   55,790     *  

Harry G. Sladich (8)

   38,610     *  

James P. Evans

   34,091     *  

David J. Johnson

   34,091     *  

Michael Vernon

   34,091     *  

Robert G. Wolfe

   34,091     *  

Gregory T. Mount

   22,252     *  

James A. Bell (9)

   15,932     *  

William J. Linehan (10)

   15,729     *  

Enrico Marini Fichera (11)

   0     *  

All directors and executive officers as a group (13 persons)(12)

   3,409,800     16.6

Beneficial Owner

  Number of
Shares
Owned(1)
   Percentage
of
Common
Stock(1)
 

Coliseum Capital Management, LLC (2)

   4,200,871    16.7

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP (3)

   2,054,883    8.2

Blackrock, Inc. (4)

   1,733,567    6.9

Frederic F. “Jake” Brace

   57,584    * 

Ted Darnall

   43,270    * 

Bonny Simi

   36,095    * 

Joe Megibow

   28,005    * 

Julie Shiflett (5)

   16,684    * 

Amy Humphreys

   15,591    * 

R. Carter Pate

   11,637    * 

Gary Sims (6)

   2,195    * 

John Russell

   0    * 

Linda Coughlin

   0    * 

Janet Hendrickson

   0    * 

Kenneth Trammell

   0    * 

All directors and executive officers as a group
(14 persons)(7)

   518,151    2.06

 

*

Represents less than 1% of the outstanding common stock.

(1)

For purposes of this table, a person is deemed to have “beneficial ownership” of shares of common stock if such person has the right to acquire beneficial ownership of such shares within 60 days.days of March 23, 2020. This includes shares of our common stock held, options held that were exercisable as of March 23, 2020 or within 60 days thereafter, and RSUs and PSUs held that will vest within 60 days after March 23, 2020. This table does not include RSUs or PSUs that vest more than 60 days after March 23, 2020. RSUs and PSUs are awards payable, subject to vesting requirements, in shares of our common stock. For purposes of computing the percentage of outstanding shares held by each person named above, any security that such person has the right to acquire within 60 days after March 31, 201623, 2020 is deemed to be outstanding, but is not deemed to be outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of any other person.

(2)

The address for this beneficial owner is 225 Liberty Street, New York, NY 10281. The shares shown for this beneficial owner are based solely on the following documents filed by this beneficial owner: Schedule 13D (filed June 25, 2015), Schedule 13D/A (filed December 9, 2015) and Form 4 (filed December 16, 2015).

(3)The address for this beneficial owner is 1910 Fairview105 Rowayton Avenue, East, Suite 500, Seattle, Washington 98102.Rowayton, Connecticut, 06853. The shares shown for this beneficial owner are based solely on the Schedule 13D/A that Mr. Baty jointly filed by this beneficial owner on June 17, 2015 with certain affiliated entities and individuals reporting the following holdings:November 18, 2019.

100,000 shares owned by Mr. Baty individually;

2,510,105 shares held by Columbia Pacific Opportunity Fund, LP (the “Fund”); and

442,533 shares subject to a warrant held by an entity in which Columbia Pacific Real Estate Fund II, LP (the “Real Estate Fund”) holds an indirect ownership interest.

Columbia Pacific Advisors, LLC, of which Mr. Baty, Alexander Washburn and Stanley L. Baty are the managing members, serves as the investment manager of the Fund and the Real Estate Fund.

(4)(3)See note 3.

(5)The address for this beneficial owner is Palisades West, Building One, 6300 Bee Cave Road, Austin, Texas 78746. The shares shown for this beneficial owner are based solely on the Schedule 13G/A filed by this beneficial owner on February 9, 2016.2020.

(6)(4)

The address for this beneficial owner is 8000 Maryland Avenue, Suite 380, St. Louis, Missouri 63105.55 East 52nd Street, New York, NY 10055. The shares shown for this beneficial owner are based solely on the Schedule 13G/A13G filed by this beneficial owner on February 12, 2016.6, 2020.

(7)(5)

Includes 46,461 shares subject to options exercisable, and 9,7902,320 shares subject to restricted stock units vesting within 60 days afterof March 31, 2016.23, 2020.

(8)(6)

Includes 9,2982,165 shares subject to restricted stock units vesting within 60 days afterof March 31, 2016.23, 2020.

(9)(7)

Includes 5,25025,347 shares subject to restricted stock units vesting within 60 days after March 31, 2016. These restricted stock units terminated when Mr. Bell’s employment terminated on April 8, 2016.

(10)Includes 4,749and 25,796 shares subject to restrictedperformance stock units vesting within 60 days afterof March 31, 2016.
(11)Based on information in the documents listed in note 2, Mr. Marini Fichera is one of five members of HNA Investment Management LLC (“HNA”), which has the authority to vote and dispose of the shares of our common stock shown as beneficially owned by it in the above table. Voting and investment decisions involving these shares require the approval of a majority of HNA’s members, none of whom individually has the power to vote or dispose of the shares.
(12)Includes 46,461 shares subject to options exercisable, 442,533 shares subject to a warrant exercisable, and 29,087 shares subject to restricted stock units vesting, within 60 days after March 31, 2016. See note 9.23, 2020.

9


DELINQUENT SECTION 16(a) BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP REPORTING COMPLIANCEREPORTS

Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, requires our executive officers and directors, and persons who own more than 10% of our common stock (collectively, “Reporting Persons”), to file reports of ownership and changes in ownership of our common stock with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Based solely on our review of the reports filed by the Reporting Persons, and written representations from certain Reporting Persons that no other reports were required for those persons, we believe that, with respect to the year ended December 31, 2015, the Reporting Persons met all applicable Section 16(a) filing requirements, except that, due to a clerical error, 2,600 shares of our common stock that were issued in payment of director fees on April 14, 2015 to each of Raymond R. Brandstrom, James P. Evans, David J. Johnson, Melvin L. Keating, Michael Vernon and Robert G. Wolfe were not reported until Forms 4 were filed for these directors on July 17, 2015.

None.

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Corporate Governance Documents

The Board has adopted the following corporate governance documents:

 

Corporate Governance Guidelines;

 

Code of Business Conduct and Ethics;

 

Accounting and Audit Complaints and Concerns Procedures;

 

Statement of Policy with respect to Related Party Transactions; and

 

Charters for each of its standing committees, which include the Audit Committee, the Compensation Committee and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.

We review each of these corporate governance documents annually and update them as necessary to reflect changes in regulatory requirements and evolving oversight practices. Copies of these documents are available online in the Investor Relations section of our website atwww.redlion.com. We will provide paper copies of these documents to any shareholder upon written request to our Secretary at our principal executive office at 201 West North River Drive,1550 Market Street, Suite 100, Spokane, Washington 99201.425, Denver, Colorado 80202.

Director Independence

The Board has determined that each nominee for election as a director at the annual meeting, other than Gregory T. Mount, our President and Chief Executive Officer, and Alexander Washburn,Ted Darnell, is “independent” within the meaning of applicable listing standards of the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”). Under the NYSE listing standards, a director is considered “independent” if the Board affirmatively determines that he or she has no material relationship with our company, either directly or as a partner, shareholder or officer of an organization that has a relationship with our company. Our Corporate Governance Guidelines contain categorical standards to assist the Board in making determinations of independence. A copy of these categorical standards is included inAppendix A to this proxy statement. The Board has made an affirmative determination that each independent member of the Board satisfies these categorical standards.

Meetings of the Board of Directors

The Board met 13eleven times in 2015.2019. All directors attended at least 75% of the total number of meetings of the Board and its committees on which they serve.

We encourage all of our directors to attend each annual meeting of shareholders. All of the current directors who were on the Board at the time of the 2015At our 2019 annual meeting of shareholders, attended that meeting.all 9 of our directors were in attendance at the meeting in person.

Executive Sessions of the Board

It is our policy that the independent directors meet in executive session without members of management following regularly scheduled meetings of the Board. The Chairman of the Board serves as the presiding director for these executive sessions.

10


Committees of the Board of Directors

We have three committees to assist the Board in fulfilling its responsibilities: the Audit Committee, the Compensation Committee and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. The following table shows the membership of each committee as of March 31, 2016:23, 2020:

 

Director

  Audit
Committee
  Compensation
Committee
  Nominating and
Corporate Governance
Committee

Raymond R. Brandstrom

üChair

James P. EvansCarter Pate(1)

    ü  Chair

David J. JohnsonFrederic F. (Jake) Brace

    üü

Melvin L. Keating

ü  ü

Michael VernonAmy Humphreys(2)

  Chair    

Joseph B. Megibow

Chair

Bonny W. Simi(2)

Chair

(1)

Chairman of the Board

(2)

Not standing for reelection.

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee engages our independent registered public accounting firm, reviews with the firm the plans and results of the audit engagement, approves the audit andnon-audit services provided by the firm, reviews our financial statements, reviews our compliance with laws and regulations, receives and reviews complaints relating to accounting or auditing matters, considers the adequacy of our internal accounting controls, and produces a report for inclusion in our annual proxy statement. The Audit Committee met eightnine times in 2015.2019.

The Board has determined that each member of the Audit Committee is financially literate under the current listing standards of the NYSE. The Board also has determined that each member of the Audit Committee qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined by applicable rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission. All members of the Audit Committee are considered independent because they satisfy the independence requirements for board members prescribed by the NYSE listing standards, including those set forth in Rule10A-3 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

Compensation Committee

The Compensation Committee discharges the responsibilities of the Board relating to compensation and evaluation of our President and Chief Executive Officer, or CEO, and other executive officers, makes recommendations to the Board regarding the compensation of directors, oversees the administration of our equity incentive plans and produces an annual report on executive compensation for inclusion in our annual proxy statement. The Compensation Committee met sixtwenty times in 2015.2019.

The processes and procedures of the Compensation Committee for considering and determining compensation for our executive officers and directors are as follows:

 

Compensation for our executive officers is generally determined annually during the first few months of the year.

 

  

With respect to our CEO, the Compensation Committee generally reviews and approves performance goals for the current year, evaluates his performance in light of the goals established for the prior year, and establishes his compensation based on this evaluation and the facts and circumstances described below inExecutive Compensation Discussion and Analysis. As part of the evaluation process, the Compensation Committee solicits input from the CEO and other Board members. Final determinations regarding our CEO’s performance and compensation are made during an executive sessionsessions of the Compensation Committee and reported to the Board.

 

11


  

Our Compensation Committee determines compensation for the other executive officers based on the recommendations of our CEO, evaluates the performance of our executive officers against performance goals established for the prior year, and approves compensation based upon these factors and the facts and circumstances described below inExecutive Compensation Discussion and Analysis. Final determinations of their compensation are made during an executive sessionsessions of the Compensation Committee and reported to the Board.

The Compensation Committee periodically reviews the information contained in the biennial HVS North America Hotel Corporate Compensation Report.

 

The Compensation Committee has the sole authority to retain and compensate its own advisers. In December of 2014, the committee retained Towers Watson to conduct a pay assessment for our executive officers and to provide market practices for long-term incentives. The committee did not rely on that firm’s assessment in formulating the executive officers’ 2015 compensation.

 

The Compensation Committee reviews director compensation and benefits annually and makes recommendations to the Board with respect thereto.

 

The Compensation Committee has no authority to delegate any of the functions described above to any other persons.

The Board has reviewed the source of compensation received by each director serving on the Compensation Committee and determined that no director receives compensation from any person or entity that would impair his or her ability to make independent judgments about our company’s executive compensation. The Board has also reviewed all affiliations the directors serving on the Compensation Committee have with our company and its subsidiaries and affiliates and determined that there is no such relationship that places any of these directors under the direct or indirect control of our company or senior management, or creates a direct relationship between the director and members of our senior management, in each case of a nature that would impair his or her ability to make independent judgments about our company’s executive compensation.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee is responsible for identifying and recommending to the Board for selection or nomination those individuals qualified to become members of the Board under the criteria established by our Corporate Governance Guidelines, periodically reviewing and making recommendations to the Board with regard to size and composition of the Board and its committees, recommending and periodically reviewing for adoption and modification by the Board our Corporate Governance Guidelines, and overseeing the evaluation of the Board and management. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee met fourfive times in 2015.2019.

Directors may be nominated by the Board or by shareholders in accordance with ourBy-Laws. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee will review all proposed nominees for the Board, including those recommended by shareholders, in accordance with its charter, ourBy-Laws and our Corporate Governance Guidelines. The committee will review age (a minimum age of 21 is prescribed for directors under theBy-Laws), desired experience, mix of skills and other qualities to assure appropriate Board composition, taking into account the current Board members and the specific needs of our company and the Board. The committee will generally look for individuals who have displayed high ethical standards, integrity and sound business judgment. This process is designed to ensure that the Board includes members with diverse backgrounds, skills and experience, including appropriate financial and other expertise relevant to our business.

While the committee is authorized to retain a third party to assist in the nomination process, we have not paid a fee to any third party to identify or assist in identifying or evaluating potential nominees.

A shareholder of record can nominate a candidate for election to the Board by complying with the procedures in Section 3.3 of ourBy-Laws. Any shareholder of record who wishes to submit a nomination should review the requirements in theBy-Laws for nominations by shareholders, which are included in the excerpt from theBy-Laws attached asAppendix B to this proxy statement. Any nomination should be sent to our Secretary at our principal executive office, 201 West North River Drive,1550 Market Street, Suite 100, Spokane, Washington 99201.425, Denver, Colorado 80202. Any recommendations from shareholders regarding director nominees should be sent to the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee in care of our Secretary at the same address.

Leadership Structure

We believe it is the CEO’s responsibility to lead the company and it is the responsibility of the Chairman of the Board to lead the Board. As directors continue to have more oversight responsibilities than ever before, we

12


believe it is beneficial to have a separate chairman whose sole job is leading the Board. Accordingly, our Corporate Governance Guidelines currently provide that the Chairman of the Board cannot be an officer of the company. The Board retains the authority to modify this structure as and when appropriate to best address our company’s unique circumstances and to advance the best interests of all shareholders.

Board’s Role in Risk Oversight

The Board’s role in overseeing our company’s risk is to satisfy itself, directly or through Board committees, that —

 

there are adequate processes designed and implemented by management such that risks have been identified and are being managed;

 

the risk management processes function as intended to ensure that our company’s risks are taken into account in corporate decision making; and

 

the risk management system is designed to ensure that material risks to our company are brought to the attention of the Board or an appropriate committee of the Board.

Each of our company’s risk management processes is reviewed periodically (but at least once a year) by either the Board or an appropriate committee. Committee chairs regularly report on committee meetings at the meetings of the full Board.

The Board has reviewed our company’s current risk management systems and processes and concluded that the current allocation of oversight responsibilities between the Board and its committees is adequate, so long as the committees continue to coordinate their risk oversight responsibilities, share information appropriately with the other members of the Board, and provide timely and adequate reports to the full Board. The Board will continually evaluate its risk oversight role.

Communications with the Board of Directors

Our annual meeting of shareholders provides an opportunity each year for shareholders to ask questions of, or otherwise communicate directly with, members of the Board on appropriate matters. Shareholders or other interested parties may contact the Chairman of the Board at any time by sending ane-mail tochairman@redlion.com. In addition, shareholders may communicate in writing with any particular director, any committee of the Board, or the directors as a group, by sending a written communication to our Secretary at our principal executive office, 201 West North River Drive,1550 Market Street, Suite 100, Spokane, Washington 99201.425, Denver, Colorado 80202. Copies of written communications received at such address will be provided to the Board or the relevant director unless such communications are considered, in the reasonable judgment of our Secretary, to be inappropriate for submission to the intended recipient(s). Examples of shareholder communications that would be considered inappropriate for submission to the Board include, without limitation, customer complaints, solicitations, communications that do not relate directly or indirectly to our business or communications that relate to improper or irrelevant topics. Communications concerning potential director nominees submitted by any of our shareholders will be forwarded to the Chairman of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.

Compensation Committee ReportAnti-Hedging and Anti-Pledging

The Board of Directors has adopted a policy which prohibits our employees (including officers) and directors, or any of their designees, from engaging in transactions in our capital stock which could create the appearance of misalignment between an employee or director and stockholders and/or create a heightened compliance risk. Engaging in transactions or purchasing financial instruments that hedge or offset, or are designed to hedge or offset, any decrease in the market value of any securities of the Company held by our employees or directors is prohibited. Prohibited transactions include, but are not limited to, purchases and sales of put and call options, short sales, financial instruments such as prepaid variable forward contracts, equity swaps, collars, units of exchangeable funds, or other derivative securities that are designed to or that may be reasonably expected to have the effect of hedging or offsetting a change in the market value of any securities of our Company. The policy also prohibits our directors and employees from purchasing Company securities on margin or otherwise pledging Company securities as collateral for a loan.

13


EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

Summary Compensation Committee has reviewedTable

The following table sets forth summary information concerning the compensation awarded to, paid to or earned by our named executive officers for all services rendered in all capacities to us in 2019 and discussed2018.

  Name and Principal Position  Year   Salary
($)
   Stock
Awards
($)(1)
   Non-Equity
Incentive Plan
Compensation
($)(2)
   All Other
Compensation
($)(3)
   Total
($)
 

 John J. Russell, Jr.,

Interim Chief
Executive Officer (4)

   2019   $15,535      —      —     $15,535 

 Gregory T. Mount

Former President and Chief Executive Officer (5)

   

2019

2018

 

 

  $

$

493,985

548,500

 

 

  $

$

1,112,002

1,111,997

 

 

   

—  

465,492

 

 

   

556,000

—  

 

 

  $

$

2,161,987

2,126,639

 

 

 Julie Shiflett,
Executive Vice President,
Chief Financial Officer (6)

   2019   $346,304   $1,083,202    —      —     $1,429,506 

 Gary Sims (7)

Executive Vice President,
Chief Operating Officer

   

2019

2018

 

 

  $

$

350,150

168,269

 

 

  $

$

279,996

981,200

 

 

   

—  

91,131

 

 

   

—  

18,751

 

 

  $

$

630,146

1,259,172

 

 

 Paul Sacco (8)(9)

Former Executive Vice
President, President of
Global Development

   

2019

2018

 

 

  $

$

338,942

338,077

 

 

  $

$

300,002

1,145,193

 

 

   

—  

109,885

 

 

   

211,250

85,106

 

 

  $

$

850,194

1,678,261

 

 

(1)

Amounts in this column reflect the total Performance-based Restricted Stock Units (PSUs), and Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) awarded in 2019 and represent the grant date fair value of these stock awards. As amounts shown represent the fair value on date of grant they do not reflect the amount that may be ultimately realized by the NEOs. See Note 11 to our consolidated financial statements in our Annual Report on Form10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 for information regarding the assumptions underlying the valuation of these equity awards. The stock awards shown for Mr. Mount and Mr. Sacco in the table above were subject to further vesting conditions, and therefore were forfeited upon their departure in November 2019. Amounts above include the aggregate grant date fair values of PSUs at the Target number, calculated in accordance with accounting guidance. At the maximum number, these values for Ms. Shiflett and Mr. Sims would be $ 359,996.32 and $335,998.72, respectively. For additional information regarding our long-term incentive plans, please see “Long-Term Equity Incentives” under theAdditional Narative Disclosure Regarding Compensation Section below.

(2)

Amounts in this column represent amounts payable under our Executive Officers Bonus Plan. No bonuses were paid under the Executive Officers Bonus Plan in 2019. For additional information, see “Elements of Our Compensation Program — Bonus Plan and Other Annual Cash Awards” under theAdditional Narative Disclosure Regarding Compensation Section below.

(3)

Unless otherwise disclosed, the total value of all perquisites and personal benefits received by the executive officers in 2019 was $10,000 or less.

(4)

Mr. Russell was hired as interim Chief Executive Officer on December 3, 2019. Per the terms of his employment offer letter, the Company is providing the use of aone-bedroom apartment in Denver, Colorado. The value was less than $10,000 for 2019.

(5)

Mr. Mount left the Company on November 8, 2019. Per the terms of his employment offer letter with the Company, Mr. Mount was entitled to receive a lump sum payment equal to one year of his base salary, or $566,000. This was paid to Mr. Mount in November 2019 and is included in the “All Other Compensation” column above.

14


(6)

Ms. Shiflett was hired as Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer on January 14, 2019. In connection with her hiring, Ms. Shiflett received aone-time grant of 88,000 Restricted Stock Units vesting over four years, withone-fourth of the shares vesting on each of the anniversary of her hire date.

(7)

Mr. Sims was hired June 25, 2018. In connection with his hiring, Mr. Sims received aone-time grant of 88,000 Restricted Stock Units vesting on the fourth anniversary of his hire date. “All Other Compensation” above includes $18,751 in reimbursement for moving expenses in 2018.

(8)

Mr. Sacco left the Company effective November 7, 2019. Per the terms of his employment offer letter with the Company, upon delivery to the Company of a release, Mr. Sacco was entitled to receive a lump sum payment equal toone-half of his current base salary, or $187,500. This was paid in December 2019 and is included in the “All Other Compensation” column above.

(9)

Mr. Sacco was promoted to Executive Vice President, President of Global Development on June 14, 2018. In connection with his promotion, Mr. Sacco received aone-time grant of 88,000 Restricted Stock Units vesting on the fourth anniversary of his promotion date. All Other Compensation above includes $23,750 and $83,231 in commission payments in 2019 and 2018, respectively.

2019 Outstanding Equity Awards at Fiscal Year End

The following table sets forth summary information regarding the Compensation Discussionoutstanding equity awards held by each of our named executive officers at December 31, 2019.

   Option Awards (1)   Stock Awards (1) 
  Name  Number
of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options

(#)
Exercisable
   Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options

(#)
Unexercisable
   Option
Exercise
Price

($)
   Option
Expiration
Date
   Number of
Shares or
Units of
Stock That
Have Not
Vested

(#) (2)
  Market
Value of
Shares or
Units of
Stock That
Have Not
Vested

($) (3)
 

  Gregory T. Mount (3)

   60,848    60,848    8.20    3/28/2026    0   0 

  John Russell

           0   0 

  Julie Shiflett

           88,000 (4)   323,840 
           9,282 (5)   34,158 
           44,554 (6)   163,959 

  Gary Sims

           88,000 (7)   323,840 
           8,663 (5)   31,880 
           41,584 (6)   153,029 

  Paul Sacco (8)

           0   0 

(1)

The vesting of unvested restricted stock units is subject to continuous service with us or one of our affiliates through the respective scheduled dates of vesting disclosed in the footnotes to this table. Under certain circumstances, these vesting dates may be accelerated. See —Employment Agreements; Severance and Change of Control Arrangements below.

(2)

The value of these RSUs and PSUs is calculated by multiplying the number of RSUs and PSUs by $3.68, the closing market price of our common stock on December 31, 2019.

(3)

Mr. Mount left the Company on November 8, 2019. Per the terms of our Equity Incentive Plan and the award agreement for the options listed in the table above, the option expired on February 8, 2020 without exercise.

(4)

One-fourth of these RSUs vested on January 14, 2020 and the remainder will vest in three equal installments on the next three anniversaries of that date.

(5)

One-fourth of these RSUs will vest on March 29, 2020 and the remainder will vest in three equal installments on the next three anniversaries of that date.

(6)

Represents the maximum amount of PSUs that can be issued if all performance measures were exceeded. The PSUs vest upon confirmation of achievement of the performance conditions set forth in the individual executive’s grant agreement by the Compensation Committee and, in addition, on continuous service through the vesting date of March 29, 2022. No PSUs vested in 2018 or 2019.

15


(7)

These RSUs will vest June 25, 2022.

(8)

Mr. Sacco left the Company effective November 7, 2019.

In 2019, as described in the table above, we provided long-term incentives to our executive officers in the form of (i) time-based restricted stock units (RSUs), with a vesting period of four years and Analysis provided below(ii) performance-based restricted stock units, with management and,a vesting provision based on the review and discussions, recommendedachievement of certain performance goals plus a time based provision requiring continued service to the Board thatCompany for an additional three years from grant date.    

Under all of the Compensation DiscussionRSUs granted to our executive officers in 2019, an executive will be entitled to receiveone-fourth of the shares subject to the award on each of the first four anniversaries of the date of grant as long as the executive remained continuously employed with us until the applicable anniversary.

Under the PSUs granted to our executive officers in 2019, anexecutive will be entitled to receive the shares subject to the award on March 29, 2022, at the target level, as long as prior to such date the performance conditions set forth in each executive officer’s grant are achieved, and Analysis be includedthe executive remained continuously employed with us until the applicable vesting date. The performance measure for the PSUs granted in this proxy statement2019 related to fiscal year 2020 and incorporated by reference into2021 EBITDA performance.

The performance measure for PSUs granted to our Annual Reportexecutives in 2018 related to fiscal 2019 EBITDA performance. Based on Form 10-K.

Respectfully submitted,the Company’s reported EBITDA as of December 31, 2019, the performance conditions were not achieved, and therefore the PSUs issued to executives in 2018 were forfeited.

Additional Narrative Disclosure Regarding Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors

Raymond R. Brandstrom, Chairman

James P. Evans

David J. Johnson

March 28, 2016

COMPENSATION DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS

The Compensation Committee of our Board, which is composed entirely of independent directors, as defined under NYSE rules, determines compensation for our executive officers. All decisions of the Compensation Committee are reported to our Board.

There are no material differencesAs a smaller reporting company, we may comply with scaled disclosure requirements, particularly in the description of executive compensation. The smaller reporting company rules do not require us to include a Compensation Discussion and Analysis, or CD&A, section in our proxy. Nevertheless, we believe it is important for our shareholders to understand our compensation objectives, policies or decisions with respectand procedures, so we have elected to the executive officers.include in this proxy this additional discussion of our compensation program objectives and elements.

Compensation Program Objectives and Rewards

We believeOur Company believes that our executive compensation program should:

 

Attract, motivate and retain highly qualified executives by paying them competitively, consistent with our success and their contributions to this success; and

 

Pay for performance by rewarding and encouraging individual and superior company performance, on both a short- and long-term basis, in a way that promotes alignment with long-term shareholder interests.

All of the compensation and benefits for our executive officers have as a primary purpose our need to attract, retain and motivate highly talented individuals who will engage in the behaviors necessary to enable us to succeed in our mission while upholding our values in a highly competitive marketplace. Beyond that, different elements are designed to engender different behaviors.behaviors:

 

Base salary and benefits are designed to attract and retain executives over time.

 

Annual cash awards under ouran annual bonus plan for executive officers (the “Bonus Plan”) are designed to focus executives on one or more specific performance goals established each year by the Compensation Committee. Executive officers may also receive discretionary bonuses based on performance not otherwise measured by the Bonus Plan or for other reasons.

 

16


Long-term equity incentives — restricted stock units (“RSUs”) and stock options under our shareholder-approved stock incentive plans — focus executives’ efforts on the behaviors within their control that theywe believe are necessary to ensure our long-term success, as reflected in increases in our stock price over a period of years.

 

Severance and change of control arrangements are designed to facilitate our ability to attract and retain executives as we compete for talent in a marketplace where such protections are commonly offered. These arrangements ease an executive’s transition due to an unexpected employment termination. In the event of rumored or actual fundamental corporate changes, these arrangements will also allow executives to remain focused on our business interests.

WePay Practices

The following table summarizes our executive compensation practices that we employ to motivate superior performance from our executives and encourage behaviors necessary to enable us to succeed in our mission while upholding our values in a highly competitive market place, as well as practices we avoid because we believe they increase risk and/or do not believe that anyserve the long-term interests of our shareholders:

What We Do:

•  Pay for performance

•  Balance short-term and long-term compensation to discourage short-term risk taking at the expense of long-term results

•  Put caps on incentive compensation

•  Subject variable pay to our clawback policy

•  Have double trigger change of control agreements

•  Set required stock ownership guidelines for executive officers

•  Pay competitively to attract and retain top talent

•  Engage independent consultants to review and advise on executive compensation

What We Don’t Do:

•  Provide guaranteed minimum bonuses

•  Pay dividends on unvested or unearned incentive awards

•  Reprice or reload stock options without shareholder approval

•  Backdate options or grant options retroactively

•  Provide for automatic single-trigger vesting acceleration in connection with a change of control

The Compensation Committee has the sole authority and responsibility to select, retain, and terminate any adviser to assist it in the performance of its duties, and to approve the compensation policiesconsultant’s fees and practices are reasonably likelyterms of engagement. In 2019, the Committee continued to have a material adverse effect on our company. With respect to ourwork with independent compensation policies and practices for executive officers, we believe that our allocation of overall compensation among base salary and annual and long-term incentives encouragesconsultant PayGovernance, which provided general consultation regarding our executive officers to deliver strong resultscompensation and director compensation programs, including compensation for our shareholders without taking excessive risks. The base salaries of our executive officers provide them assured cash compensation at levels that our Compensation Committee deems appropriate, taking into account their respective job dutiesinterim CEO and responsibilities. We believe these base salaries, taken together with their at-risk annual and long-term incentives, motivate the executive officers to perform at a high level. With respect to annual cash awards under the Bonus Plan, we believe that our use of one or more objective company financial performance goals, together with the Compensation Committee’s discretion to disqualify an executive officer from receiving an award that might otherwise be payable, serves to mitigate against undue risk-taking. We also believe that our use of multi-year vesting schedules for most of our long-term equity incentives encourages our executive officers to deliver value to our shareholders while mitigating risk.

At last year’s annual meeting, we asked our shareholders to approve, on an advisory basis, the 2014 compensation of ourall named executive officers disclosed in the proxy statement for that meeting. Nearly 82% of the votes cast on that proposal approved the compensation.officers.

Elements of Our Compensation Program

Base Salaries

The Compensation Committee determines base salaries for the executive officers early each year based on its assessmenta variety of all facts and circumstances that it considers relevant, which typically include most or all offactors, including the following factors:following:

 

individual performance;

 

17


job responsibilities;

 

tenure with the company as well as prior experience;

 

economic conditions;

 

retention considerations; and

 

the competitive labor market, including regional salary levels and those of executives at other hospitality companies.

In determining the base salaries of executive officers, the Compensation Committee also solicits input from the CEO on his compensation and takes into consideration the recommendations made by the CEO with respect to the compensation of the other executive officers.

In early 2015 our company’s senior management provided the Compensation Committee with an analysis of compensation survey data included in the HVS North America Hotel Corporate Compensation Report. The analysis was based upon compensation data for the following five categories of hotel companies included in the report: National Data; Revenues less than $450 million; Revenues greater than $450 million;15 - 50 hotels; and Greater than 50 hotels. This analysis showed that the 2014 base salaries of the CEO and three of the four otherfor our named executive officers were less thanfor 2019 remained the same as the base salaries for 2018. As a general matter, the Company seeks to position its base salaries, target annual bonuses and long-term incentive compensation at or below the median of the 50th percentile base salaries reportedits peer group benchmark data (as adjusted to account for these five categories of hotel companies. The differences between the 2014 base salaries of our executive officers and the corresponding median amount were $314,000 for the CEO and from $41,000smaller revenue size as compared to $92,000 for the other three executives whose 2014 base salaries were less than the corresponding median amounts.

After considering this analysis and assessing the other factors listed above, the Compensation Committee determined that the 2015 base salaries of the executive officers should be increased as follows:

   Base Salary ($)         
   2014   2015   Increase ($)   Increase (%) 

Gregory T. Mount

   336,165     433,333     97,168     28.9  

James A. Bell

   285,000     303,077     18,077     6.3  

William J. Linehan

   286,165     291,500     5,335     1.9  

Thomas L. McKeirnan

   242,915     265,974     23,059     9.5  

Harry G. Sladich

   236,165     242,310     6,145     2.6  

Under Section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), base salaries paid to executive officers are deductible for federal income tax purposes except to the extent that they exceed $1 million. No executive received base salary in excess of $1 million in 2015.our peer group).

Bonus Plan and Other Annual Cash Awards

Each year the Compensation Committee generally establishes one or more performance goals for our executive officers under an executive officer bonus plan (the “Bonus Plan”), and the Bonus Plan, as well as the various levels of cash awards that the executives will receive based on the extent to which their goals are achieved. The goals and award levels are initially proposed by the CEO, and the final goals and award levels are determined following a dialogueset after extensive discussion between the Compensation Committee

and the CEO.CEO regarding the performance needed to drive execution on the Company’s annual budget and its strategic plan. Company goals generally relate to the Company’s overall financial performance, and individual goals have been subjective or objective, but they have generally been based on performance in areas of our business that the Compensation Committee believed were important to our success. Award levels are specified as a percentage of base salary. The final performance goals and award levels are set by the Compensation Committee. The Compensation Committee determines the threshold, target and maximum award levels that are potentially available under the Bonus Plan based on the same factors that it considers in determining base salaries.

The following table sets forth the 2015 award levels under the Bonus Plan as well as the awards actually paid:

Bonus Plan Award Levels for 2015

   Percentage of Base Salary  Award Payouts ($) 
   Threshold(1)  Target  Maximum  Threshold(1)   Target   Maximum   Actual 

Gregory T. Mount

   0  50  100  0     216,667     433,333     260,200  

James A. Bell

   0  40  80  0     121,231     242,462     145,589  

William J. Linehan

   0  40  80  0     116,600     233,200     140,028  

Thomas L. McKeirnan

   0  40  80  0     106,390     212,779     127,766  

Harry G. Sladich

   0  40  80  0     96,924     193,848     116,398  

(1)Because award payouts under the Bonus Plan were based on multiple performance goals and the goal weightings were not uniform, we do not consider the Bonus Plan to have any “Threshold” award level.

In order to be eligible for a bonus under the plan at the target level, each executive had to meet three performance goals:

Achievement of our 2015 budgeted adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”), reduced by income attributable to noncontrolling interests. The amount of the EBITDA goal was $10,178,000. Adjusted EBITDA as reported in our 2015 Form 10-K was $12,463,000. This was reduced by $1,297,000 of income attributable to noncontrolling interests. The balance of $11,166,000, which was approximately 110% of the plan’s EBITDA goal, was used in determining the award amounts under the plan.

Achievement of the following departmental goals by the specified executive:

Gregory T. Mount:

Execute 30 hotel deals with 22 openings

James A. Bell:

Successfully complete debt/equity financing and integration for three hotel acquisitions

William J. Linehan:

Execute 30 hotel deals with 22 openings

Thomas L. McKeirnan:

Execute 30 hotel deals with 22 openings

Harry G. Sladich:

Achieve budgeted gross operating profits for the joint venture hotels

Achievement of the following individual goals by the specified executive:

Gregory T. Mount:

Achieve 500 bps RevPar growth

James A. Bell:

Identify and explore at least two strategic M&A opportunities

William J. Linehan:

Achieve 500 bps RevPar growth

Thomas L. McKeirnan:

Execute three acquisitions

Harry G. Sladich:

Achieve budgeted group room revenue

To determine bonuses under the plan, the EBITDA goal was weighted 80% and each of the other two goals was weighted 10%. After review of the extent to which each of the applicable performance goals was achieved, the Compensation Committee determined that the overall performance by each executive was at 110% of target level. Under the terms of the plan, this entitled each executive to 120% of his target bonus, which is the amount of the bonus payout shown in the above table.

Under the Bonus Plan, there wasis an overriding discretionary analysis of each executive’s eligibility to receive variable pay. For example, if an executive failed to follow company policy and procedures, exposed the company to legal liability, or exhibited behavior inappropriate for a leadership position, the executive could have been disqualified from receiving variable pay, even if his or her specified performance goals had been achieved.

For 2019, the Bonus Plan had a threshold of 90% of target Adjusted EBITDA for 2019 (“Target Adjusted EBITDA”), which was required to be reached before any bonus would be paid. The Bonus Plan is structured so that if the threshold level of Target Adjusted EBITDA is achieved, then bonuses would be paid, with 80% of the executive’s eligible bonus payable based on the level of Target Adjusted EBITDA achievement, and 20% based on the executive’s achievement of departmental and individual goals. Departmental and individual goals are set for each executive, and include one or more department or individual goals based on applicable division or department performance such as gross operating profit; increases in revenue; addition of franchised hotels to the RLHC system; brand acquisitions; improvement in customer service competitive quality index; improvement in brand awareness index; and other goals that advance department or company strategic goals and/or personal development. The department and individual goals are established by the CEO and Compensation Committee.

In 2019, the Company did not achieve 90% of its Target Adjusted EBITDA, therefore no bonuses were paid under the Bonus Plan.

In addition to awards under the Bonus Plan, the Compensation Committee has on occasion grantedauthority to grant discretionary bonuses to executive officers based on performance not otherwise measured by the Bonus Plan or for other reasons. No discretionary bonuses were granted to our named executive officers for 2015.2019.

We generally intend that executive officer cash compensation be fully deductible for federal income tax purposes, taking into account Section 162(m) of the Code, provided that other compensation objectives are met. We did not seek shareholder approval of the Bonus Plan under Section 162(m), because we anticipated that no executive officer would have, and no executive officer in fact had, aggregate base salary and annual incentive awards of more than $1 million for 2015.

18


Long-Term Equity Incentives

WeRSUs and PSUs. Since 2009, we have since 2009 provided long-term incentives to our executive officers in the form of time-based restricted stock units (“RSUs”)(RSUs), typically with a vesting period of four years. We have done this in order not to unduly depletepreserve the pool of shares available under our stock incentive plans, and also in recognitionbecause of thea market trend at many companies to rely more heavily on RSUs than on stock options as long term incentives because RSUs provide more stable incentives for executives. Prior to 2009, we also granted stock options to our executives, and we recently granted a stock option to our CEO. The equity incentives are intended to benefit shareholders by enabling us to better attract and retain top talent in a marketplace where such incentives are prevalent. Both RSUs and stock options closely align our executives with the achievement of our longer-term financial objectives that enhance shareholder value.

The Compensation Committee each year generally determines the grants of equity incentives that will be made to our executive officers based on the same factors that it considers in determining base salaries. In early 2015, the committee awarded the executives RSUs with grant date values as shown in the following table:

   Value of Stock
Underlying
RSUs($)
   Percentage of
2015 Base
Salary
 

Gregory T. Mount

   244,111     56.3

James A. Bell

   171,251     56.5

William J. Linehan

   165,245     56.7

Thomas L. McKeirnan

   139,258     52.4

Harry Sladich

   135,199     55.8

For each executive, 25% of the RSUs shown in the above table vested on March 2, 2016, and the remainder are scheduled to vest in equal increments on the next three anniversaries of that date, except that the remaining RSUs held by Mr. Bell terminated when his employment terminated on April 8, 2016.

In addition to the RSU grants described above, the Compensation Committee made a special one-time RSU grant to each of the executive officers on the date of last year’s annual meeting of shareholders. The grant to the CEO covered 200,000 shares with a grant date value of $1,470,000, and the grant to each other executive officer covered 125,000 shares with a grant date value of $918,750. All of these RSUs are scheduled to vest on the fourth anniversary of the date of grant, although they may vest earlier under certain conditions if our company has a change of control. The Compensation Committee made these grants for two reasons. First, it felt that the executives would be better motivated if they had a larger equity position in our company. In addition, the committee was concerned that the leadership and abilities of the executives, along with the recent accomplishments of our company, made the executives susceptible to recruitment by our competitors and other industries.

Restricted Stock Units

RSU grants provide for the issuance of shares of our common stock if the recipient has met certain continued service requirements. Under all of the RSUs granted to our executive officers in 2015, other than the one-time grants described in the preceding paragraph,2019, an executive was entitled to receiveone-fourth of the shares subject to histhe award on each of the first four anniversaries of the date of grant soas long as the executive remained continuously employed with us until the applicable anniversary.

UnlikeTo further reflect ourpay-for-performance compensation philosophy, in 2018 the Compensation Committee elected to grant restricted stock options,units with a mix of both time-based RSUs may have value even ifand performance-based restricted stock units (PSUs). The Compensation Committee believes that the pricemix of time-vesting and performance-vesting equity awards achieves a balance in our equity-based incentive program that further aligns the interests of our common stock does not increase. Nevertheless, we award RSUs because they promote retentionexecutive team and we believe they also create incentivesour shareholders. Each set of performance measures is intended to reward the achievement of specific long-term strategic goals designed to deliver long-term shareholder value. The length of the performance period, the mix of time and performance-based awards, the specific performance measures and target levels, and the time-based vesting provisions are established each year by the Compensation Committee.

The mix for executives2019 was 75% PSUs and 25% RSUs. Each PSU has a minimum, a target and a maximum share amount based on the level of attainment of the performance condition(s) with payouts of 25% to focus on increased share prices so that50% at the common stock subjectminimum, 100% at the target, and 160% at the maximum. The PSUs granted in 2019 were tied to the award will be as valuable as possible when it is eventually issued. Although we do not impose any restriction on the saleachievement of common stock issued pursuant to RSUs, we expect that our executives will continue to hold some if not all of the shares issued, which will also keep their interests aligned with those of our shareholders.

Our RSUs do not qualify as performance-based compensation under Section 162(m) of the Code. Ascertain financial and operational performance goals measured over fiscal years 2020 and 2021. In addition, each PSU has a result, the value of common stock ultimately issued to an executive officer pursuant to an RSU will not be deductiblefurther time vesting provision requiring continued service to the extent that value in any year, when aggregated with the executive officer’s other compensation for that year that is subject to Section 162(m), exceeds $1 million.

Stock Options

Stock options provide for financial gain derived from the potential appreciation in stock priceCompany of three years from the date of grant. The Compensation Committee believes PSU grants align our executive’s compensation with meeting or exceeding key financial and operational performance goals that will deliver long-term value to our shareholders, and will further motivate our executive team to achieve our key business objectives.

The performance measure for PSUs granted to our executives in 2018 related to fiscal 2019 EBITDA performance. Based on the optionCompany’s reported EBITDA as of December 31, 2019, the performance conditions were not achieved, and therefore the PSUs issued to executives in 2018 were forfeited.

The Company has in the past awarded stock options to executives, although no stock options were granted to executives in 2018 or 2019. When granting stock options, the Company’s policy is granted untilto set the date that the option is exercised. The exercise price of our stock options is set at fair market value, which is the closing selling price of our common stock on the NYSE on the grant date. The vesting provisions

Say on Pay Voting Results

At last year’s annual meeting, we asked our shareholders to approve, on an advisory basis, the compensation of our named executive officers disclosed in the proxy statement for that meeting. We hold this advisory shareholder vote every year.

Red Lion has historically received strong support from our shareholders regarding our executive compensation programs, averaging over 90% in favor during 2014 through 2018, including 98% support in 2018. In 2019, we saw our approval rating decline to 61.3% of the votes cast on that proposal approving the compensation. Our proposal at our 2019 meeting to increase the number of shares authorized for issuance under our existing stock incentive plan also received less for votes than against votes, and was not approved. Although Red Lion was already engaged in active engagement with our shareholders, we focused our outreach during the remainder of 2019 and into 2020 to ensure shareholder input was included in our planning process for our 2020 compensation program.

19


During the third and fourth quarters of 2019, we engaged in active communication with and solicited feedback from shareholders holding approximately 50% of our outstanding shares to discuss the strategic direction of our company, our corporate governance and executive compensation matters. Our shareholder engagement team included our Chairman of the Board, and members of our management team, including our CEO and CFO, all of whom met with shareholders to better understand the reasons behind the lower say on pay vote and no vote on the amendment to our stock incentive plan. This outreach has continued into 2020 with current Chairman of the Board R. Carter Pate. We heard from shareholders that excessive dilution associated with stock awards to management was a concern. The Compensation Committee will use this feedback from shareholders as we continue our search for a permanent Chief Executive Officer and design and set compensation for our new chief executive, and in making modifications to our incentive plan structure and incentive compensation on a going forward basis.

Clawback Policy

The Compensation Committee has adopted a Compensation Clawback Policy (the “Clawback Policy”) that gives the Compensation Committee authority to recoup certain executive officer compensation in the event of financial errors, including an accounting restatement, or other executive officer conduct that adversely affects our company or its results of operation. The Clawback Policy applies to all incentive compensation paid, granted, earned, vested or otherwise awarded to an executive officer, including annual bonuses and other short and long term cash incentive awards, stock options, we have grantedrestricted stock awards and other equity or equity-based awards.

Stock Ownership Guidelines

Our Board of Directors has adopted Stock Ownership Guidelines applicable to our directors and executive officers. Share ownership demonstrates to our shareholders, the investing public and the rest of our company’s associates, our executive officers’ commitment to our company and directly aligns executives’ interests with those of our shareholders. Each of our CEO, CFO, Executive Vice Presidents and General Counsel is required to own the lesser of either (i) 30,000 shares of our common stock, or (ii) a number of shares of our common stock equal in the past have varied, although they have generally vested in equalvalue to at least his or her annual increments over a periodbase salary. Each of our executives has four years from the date of grant.

Underhis or her appointment to attain such level of ownership. Our executives are in compliance with our Stock Ownership Guidelines or are still within the shareholder-approved stock incentive plans, we may not grant stock options at a discount to fair market value or with a so-called “reload” feature, and we may not reduce the exercise price of outstanding stock options except in the case of a stock split or other similar event. We do not lend funds to employees to enable them to exercise stock options.

We do not backdate options or grant options retroactively. In addition, we do not plan to coordinate grants of options so that they are made before announcement of favorable information, or after announcement of unfavorable information. Our options are granted at fair market value on a fixed date or event, with all required approvals obtained in advance of or on the actual grant date. All grants to executive officers require the approval of the Compensation Committee.

Our long-term performance ultimately determines the value of stock options, because gains from stock option exercises are entirely dependent on the long-term appreciation in the price of our common stock. As a result, we believe stock option grants encourage executives and other employees to focus on behaviors and initiatives that should lead to an increase in the price of our common stock, which benefits all our shareholders.

Under Section 162(m) of the Code, we generally may not deduct compensation paid to an executive officer in a calendarfour year if it exceeds $1 million. Certain compensation that is considered “performance-based” is deductible without regard to this $1 million limitation. We believe that any compensation attributable to stock options held by our executive officers will be considered performance-based, so Section 162(m) of the Code should not limit our ability to deduct it for federal income tax purposes.

EXECUTIVE COMPENSATIONperiod.

Summary Compensation Table

The following table sets forth summary information concerning the compensation awarded to, paid to or earned by our named executive officers for all services rendered in all capacities to us in 2015, 2014 and 2013.

Name and Principal PositionYearSalary
($)
Bonus
($)
Stock
Awards
($)(1)
Option
Awards
($)

Non-Equity
Incentive

Plan
Compensation
($)

All Other
Compensation
($)(2)

Total

($)

Gregory T. Mount (3)
President and Chief
Executive Officer


2015
2014


407,173
298,045


260,200
202,500


1,714,111
271,243


0
0


0
0


0
114,578


2,381,484
886,366

James A. Bell (4)
Former Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer


2015
2014


298,360
41,654


170,589
139,000


1,090,001
174,530


0
0


0
0


0

0



1,558,950
355,184

William J. Linehan (5)
Executive Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer


2015
2014


290,214
231,698


140,028
120,000


1,083,995
139,994


0
0


0
0


0

5,187



1,514,237
496,879

Thomas L. McKeirnan
Executive Vice President, General Counsel and
Corporate Secretary



2015
2014
2013




259,916
232,410
220,448




127,766
92,700
0




1,058,010
90,000
89,995




0
0
0




0
0
0




0

6,367
10,133





1,445,692
421,477
320,516


Harry G. Sladich
Executive Vice President, Hotel Operations and Sales



2015
2014
2013




240,806
225,929
197,358




116,398
90,000
0




1,053,949
90,000
79,997




0
0
0




0
0
0




0

6,367
10,133





1,411,153
412,296
287,388


(1)Represents the grant date fair value of these stock awards. See Note 11 to our consolidated financial statements in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015 for information regarding the assumptions underlying the valuation of these equity awards.
(2)The total value of all perquisites and personal benefits received by each executive officer in 2015 was less than $10,000.
(3)Mr. Mount was hired effective January 27, 2014.
(4)Mr. Bell was hired effective October 29, 2014. At the time of his hire, we agreed to pay him a $50,000 starting bonus in two installments of $25,000 each, one in 2014 and the other in 2015. These are included in his bonus amounts for 2014 and 2015. Mr. Bell’s employment terminated on April 8, 2016.
(5)Mr. Linehan was hired effective February 24, 2014.

2015 Grants of Plan-Based Awards

The following table sets forth summary information regarding all grants of plan-based awards made to our named executive officers for the year ended December 31, 2015.

  Type of Award Grant
Date(3)
  Estimated Possible Payouts Under
Non-Equity Incentive Plan  Awards(1)
  

All
Other
Stock
Awards:
Number
of Shares
of Stock
or Units

(#)(4)

  

Grant
Date Fair
Value of
Stock
Awards

($)

 
   

Threshold

($)(2)

  

Target

($)

  Maximum
($)
   

Gregory T. Mount

 Annual Incentive Award   0    216,667    433,333    
 Restricted Stock Units  3/2/2015       35,846    244,111  
 Restricted Stock Units  5/20/2015       200,000    1,470,000  

James A. Bell

 Annual Incentive Award   0    121,231    242,462    
 Restricted Stock Units  3/2/2015       25,147    171,251  
 Restricted Stock Units  5/20/2015       125,000    918,750  

William J. Linehan

 Annual Incentive Award   0    116,600    233,200    
 Restricted Stock Units  3/2/2015       24,265    165,245  
 Restricted Stock Units  5/20/2015       125,000    918,750  

Thomas L. McKeirnan

 Annual Incentive Award   0    106,390    212,779    
 Restricted Stock Units  3/2/2015       20,449    139,260  
 Restricted Stock Units  5/20/2015       125,000    918,750  

Harry G. Sladich

 Annual Incentive Award   0    96,924    193,848    
 Restricted Stock Units  3/2/2015       19,853    135,199  
 Restricted Stock Units  5/20/2015       125,000    918,750  

(1)These represent the “Threshold”, “Target” and “Maximum” award payouts that were available for the 2015 performance period under our annual bonus plan for executive officers (the “Bonus Plan”). This plan is further discussed under the captionBonus Plan and Other Annual Cash Awards in the Compensation Discussion and Analysis. There were awards in the amount of $789,981 paid under the Bonus Plan for 2015.
(2)Because award payouts under the Bonus Plan were based on multiple performance goals and the goal weightings were not uniform, we do not consider the Bonus Plan to have any “Threshold” award level.
(3)For the restricted stock units (“RSUs”), the closing market price of our common stock on March 2, 2015 was $6.81, and on May 20, 2015 it was $7.35.
(4)One-fourth of the RSUs granted on March 2, 2015 vested on March 2, 2016, and the remainder are scheduled to vest in equal installments on the next three anniversaries of that date. The RSUs granted on May 20, 2015 are scheduled to vest on May 20, 2019. Notwithstanding the foregoing, all of the unvested RSUs held by Mr. Bell terminated when his employment terminated on April 8, 2016. In all cases, vesting of RSUs is subject to continuous service with us or one of our affiliates. Under certain circumstances, the vesting dates may be accelerated. See — Employment Agreements; Severance and Change of Control Arrangements. When RSUs vest, we will, as soon as is administratively practicable, issue one share of our common stock for each unit that vests.

2015 Outstanding Equity Awards at Fiscal Year End

The following table sets forth summary information regarding the outstanding equity awards held by each of our named executive officers at December 31, 2015.

   Option Awards   Stock Awards 

Name

  Number
of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options

(#)
Exercisable
   Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options

(#)
Unexercisable
   Option
Exercise
Price

($)
   Option
Expiration
Date
   Number of
Shares or
Units of
Stock That
Have Not
Vested

(#)(1)
  Market
Value of
Shares or
Units of
Stock That
Have Not
Vested

($)(2)
 

Gregory T. Mount

           27,411(3)   192,151  
           35,846(4)   251,280  
           200,000(5)   1,402,000  

James A. Bell

           25,750(6)   180,508  
           25,147(4)   176,280  
           125,000(5)   876,250  

William J. Linehan

           14,249(7)   99,885  
           24,265(4)   170,098  
           125,000(5)   876,250  

Thomas L. McKeirnan

   11,447     0     12.21     11/21/16     
   13,014     0     13.00     5/17/17     
   22,000     0     8.74     5/22/18     
           2,590(8)   18,156  
           6,628(9)   46,462  
           11,658(7)   81,723  
           20,449(4)   143,347  
           125,000(5)   876,250  
           2,466(8)   17,287  

Harry G. Sladich

           5,892(9)   41,303  
           11,658(7)   81,723  
           19,853(4)   139,170  
           125,000(5)   876,250  

(1)All of the stock awards in this column are RSUs. Their vesting is subject to continuous service with us or one of our affiliates through the respective scheduled dates of vesting disclosed in the footnotes to this table. Under certain circumstances, these vesting dates may be accelerated. See — Employment Agreements; Severance and Change of Control Arrangements.
(2)The value of these RSUs is calculated by multiplying the number of RSUs by $7.01, the closing market price of our common stock on December 31, 2015.
(3)One-third of these RSUs vested on January 27, 2016, and the remainder will vest in two equal installments on the next two anniversaries of that date.
(4)One-fourth of these RSUs vested on March 2, 2016, and the remainder will vest in three equal installments on the next three anniversaries of that date, except that the unvested RSUs held by Mr. Bell terminated when his employment terminated on April 8, 2016.
(5)These RSUs will vest on May 20, 2019, except that the RSUs held by Mr. Bell terminated when his employment terminated on April 8, 2016.
(6)10,000 of these RSUs were scheduled to vest on October 9, 2016. The remaining 15,750 were scheduled to vest in three equal installments on May 19, 2016 and the next two anniversaries of that date. All of these RSUs terminated when Mr. Bell’s employment terminated on April 8, 2016.

(7)These RSUs will vest in three equal installments on May 19, 2016 and the next two anniversaries of that date.
(8)These RSUs will vest on May 22, 2016.
(9)These RSUs will vest in two equal installments on May 21, 2016 and May 21, 2017.

2015 Option Exercises and Stock Vested

The following table summarizes the option exercises and vesting of stock awards for each of our named executive officers for the year ended December 31, 2015.

   Option Awards  Stock Awards 

Name

  Number of
Shares
Acquired
on Exercise
(#)
  Value
Realized

on Exercise
($)
  Number of
Shares
Acquired
on Vesting
(#)
   Value Realized
on Vesting
($)(1)
 

Gregory T. Mount

       19,517     125,104  

James A. Bell

       5,250     38,430  

William J. Linehan

       9,833     68,876  

Thomas L. McKiernan

       12,375     90,644  

Harry G. Sladich

       11,760     86,137  

(1)All of these stock awards were RSUs. The value of the shares of common stock acquired upon vesting of these RSUs is calculated by multiplying the number of shares by the closing market price of our common stock on the date the RSUs vested.

Employment Agreements; Severance and Change of Control Arrangements

We have entered into letter agreements with each of our executive officers which specifies that such officer will be employed by us on an“at-will” basis, and which provides for the following terms regarding such officers compensation: payment of an annual base salary, eligibility to participate in our annual executive officers bonus plan, eligibility to participate in our long-term incentive programs, and certain severance benefits if terminated without cause, or if terminated in connection with a change of control involving our Company, as described below.    

President and Chief Executive OfficerMr. Russell

Gregory T. Mount servesMr. John J. Russell, Jr. is currently serving as our President andinterim Chief Executive Officer under a written agreement that was restated as of February 27, 2015.dated November 30, 2019. Under that agreement, Mr. Mount receivesRussell is entitled to abi-weekly base salary of $15,384.62, which is the equivalent of $400,000 per year, and Mr. Russell is eligible to earn a bonus of up to $35,000 for each 90 days of employment upon achievement of certain bonus criteria established by the Compensation Committee of the Company’s board of directors. In addition, the Company is providing to Mr. Russell (i) a furnishedone-bedroom apartment in Denver, Colorado, (ii) reimbursing him for shipping costs to Denver, Colorado for one vehicle and reasonable household items, plus $5,000 in other reasonable relocation expenses and (iii) providing two round-trip tickets for domestic flights for each of Mr. Russell and his spouse during his interim employment. For any relocation reimbursements that are deemed wages to Mr. Russell under the Internal Revenue Code, the Company shall gross up its reimbursement to account for federal income tax.

20


Ms. Shiflett

Ms. Shiflett serves as our Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer under a written agreement dated January 14, 2019. Under that Agreement, Ms. Shiflett is entitled to an annual base salary of $433,333. He$375,000, and she is also entitledeligible to participate in our annual bonus plan with an initial target bonus for 2019 equal to 70% of her base salary. Ms. Shiflett is also eligible to receive an annual equity grant with a value equal to at least 50%80% of hisher annual base salary and to participate in our annual bonus plan for executive officers (the “Bonus Plan”) with a target bonus equal to at least 50% of his base salary.

If we terminate Mr. Mount’sShiflett’s employment without cause, we will make alump-sum severance payment to himher equal to hisone-half of her base annual salary for the year in which the termination occurs.occurs, and (ii) vesting shall accelerate on any Restricted Stock Units that were part of her initial RSU Grant that would otherwise have vested within the 12 months after such termination.

If there is a constructive termination of Mr. Mount’sMs. Shiflett’s employment without cause within twelve months after a change of control of the Company, then in lieu of the severance described in the preceding paragraph:

 

we will make alump-sum severance payment to her equal to the sum of

100% of her then base salary, plus

100% of her target incentive bonus for the year of termination, prorated for the number of days elapsed in that year prior to her termination;

we will accelerate vesting on any portion of any equity grant previously made to her under any of our stock incentive plans that would otherwise have vested after the date of the termination, per the terms of the applicable award agreement; and

all restrictions under anynon-performance based restricted stock, restricted stock units or other similar awards granted to her will terminate, and we will issue any common stock that underlies such awards but has not yet been issued, and all performance based restrictions under any performance based award granted to her will terminate if expressly provided in the award agreement.

Following any termination of employment in connection with which Ms. Shiflett is entitled to severance, she will be prohibited from competing with us or soliciting any of our employees for a period equivalent to the period for which the severance is paid.

Mr. Sims

Gary L. Sims serves as our Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer under a written agreement dated May 25, 2018. Under that agreement, Mr. Sims current annual base salary is $350,000, and he is also eligible to participate in our annual bonus plan with a target bonus equal to at least 60% of his base salary. Mr. Sims is also eligible to receive an annual equity grant with a value equal to 80% of his annual base salary.

If we terminate Mr. Sims’ employment without cause, we will make alump-sum severance payment to him equal toone-half of his base annual salary for the year in which the termination occurs.

If there is a constructive termination of Mr. Sims’ employment within twelve months after a change of control of the Company, then in lieu of the severance described in the preceding paragraph:

we will make alump-sum severance payment to him equal to the sum of

 

150%100% of his then base salary, plus

 

150% of his target incentive bonus for the year in which the termination occurs, plus

150%100% of his target incentive bonus for the year of termination, prorated for the number of days elapsed in that year prior to his termination;

 

we will accelerate vesting on any portion of any equity grant previously made to him under any of our stock incentive plans that would otherwise have vested after the date of the termination;termination, per the terms of the applicable award agreement; and

 

21


all restrictions under anynon-performance based restricted stock, restricted stock units or other similar awards granted to him will terminate, and we will issue any common stock that underlies such awards but has not yet been issued.issued, and all performance based restrictions under any performance based award granted to him will terminate if expressly provided in the award agreement.

Following any termination of employment in connection with which Mr. MountSims is entitled to severance, he will be prohibited from competing with us or soliciting any of our employees for a period equivalent to the period for which the severance is paid.

For each of our executives, the terms “cause” and “change of control” and the circumstances that constitute “constructive termination” are as follows:

The term “cause” means (i) willful and intentional failure or refusal to perform or observe any material duties, responsibilities or obligations, if such breach is not cured within 30 days after we give notice of the breach, which notice shall state that such conduct shall, without cure, constitute cause; (ii) any willful and intentional act involving fraud, theft, embezzlement or dishonesty affecting our company; or (iii) conviction of (or a plea of novo contendere to) an offense that is a felony in the jurisdiction involved.

The term “change of control” means the occurrence of any one of the following events: any merger or consolidation involving the acquisition of 50% or more of the combined voting power of our outstanding securities by a person or an investor group; adoption of a plan for liquidation or for sale of substantially all of our assets;assets or any other similar transaction or series of transactions involving our company.company, or the acquisition of 50% or more of the combined voting power of our outstanding securities by a person or an investor group.

A “constructive termination” includes an involuntary termination by us without cause as well as an involuntarya voluntary termination by the executive within thirty days after any of the following (i) a significant reduction in overall scope of duties; (ii) a required relocation more than 30 miles from Spokane, Washington; or (iii)(ii) a reduction of more than 20% in base salary or target bonus.

Mr. Bell

James A. Bell served as our Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer until his employment terminated on April 8, 2016. Under With respect to Ms. Shiflett, a written agreement that was restated as of February 27, 2015, he received an annual base salary of $303,077, and he was“constructive termination” also entitled to participate in our Bonus Plan with a target bonus equal to at least 40% of his base salary. We paid Mr. Bell a $25,000 bonus in 2015, which he was obligated to reimburse in full if he was terminated for cause or left our company voluntarily prior to October 29, 2016. In connection with the recent termination of his employment, we waived any right we had to require this reimbursement.

If we terminated Mr. Bell’s employment without cause, we wereincludes Ms. Shiflett being required to makerelocate from her present residence as a lump-sum severance payment to him equal to one-halfcondition of his base annual salary for the year in which the termination occurs. The term “cause” had the same meaning for purposes of Mr. Bell’s agreement as it does for Mr. Mount’s. In connection with the recent termination of Mr. Bell’s employment, we paid him severance of $346,000 in a lump sum and agreed to pay the cost of COBRA coverage for him and his qualified beneficiaries for a period of 12 months.

If there had been a constructive termination of Mr. Bell’s employment without cause within twelve months after a change of control, then, in lieu of the severance described in the first sentence of the preceding paragraph, he would have been entitled to the same severance benefits that Mr. Mount would receive upon such a constructive termination, except that Mr. Bell’s lump-sum severance payment would have been based on 100% rather than 150% of his base salary and target incentive bonus.

As a result of the recent termination of Mr. Bell’s employment, he is prohibited from competing with us or soliciting any of our employees for a period of six months.

The term “change of control” and the circumstances that constitute “constructive termination” were the same for purposes of Mr. Bell’s agreement as they are for Mr. Mount’s.

Mr. Linehan

William J. Linehan serves as our Executive Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer under a written agreement that was restated as of February 27, 2015. Under that agreement, Mr. Linehan receives an annual base salary of $291,500, and he is also entitled to participate in our Bonus Plan with a target bonus equal to at least 40% of his base salary.

If we terminate Mr. Linehan’s employment without cause, we will make a lump-sum severance payment to him equal to one-half of his base annual salary for the year in which the termination occurs. The term “cause” has the same meaning for purposes of Mr. Linehan’s agreement as it does for Mr. Mount’s.

If there is a constructive termination of Mr. Linehan’s employment without cause within twelve months after a change of control, then, in lieu of the severance described in the preceding paragraph, he will be entitled to the same severance benefits that Mr. Bell would have received upon such a constructive termination.

Following any termination of employment in connection with which Mr. Linehan is entitled to severance, he will be prohibited from competing with us or soliciting any of our employees for a period equivalent to the period for which the severance is paid.

The term “change of control” and the circumstances that constitute “constructive termination” are the same for purposes of Mr. Linehan’s agreement as they are for Mr. Mount’s, except that a required relocation of his place of employment will not constitute a constructive termination.

Mr. McKeirnan

Thomas L. McKeirnan serves as our Executive Vice President, General Counsel under a written agreement that was restated as of February 27, 2015. Under that agreement, Mr. McKeirnan receives an annual base salary of $265,974, and he is also entitled to participate in our Bonus Plan with a target bonus equal to at least 30% of his base salary. The following is a summary of the other material terms of his agreement:continuing employment.

 

Term of Agreement; Restrictive Covenants

Mr. McKeirnan will serve in his current position through December 31, 2016, unless his agreement terminates earlier in accordance with its terms. Thereafter, his agreement automatically renews for additional one-year periods, unless terminated by either party upon 120-days’ notice (a “Non-renewal Notice”) prior to the end of 2016 or any later calendar year. Following termination of the agreement for any reason, Mr. McKeirnan will generally be prohibited from competing with us for a period of one year or soliciting any of our employees for a period of two years.22

Annual Bonus

If Mr. McKeirnan attains the target performance measures determined under our Bonus Plan for a particular year, he must be eligible, subject to any discretion accorded the Compensation Committee under the terms of the Bonus Plan to withhold a bonus otherwise payable, to receive a bonus equal to at least 30% percent of his base salary for that year.

Standard Severance Arrangements

If we deliver a Non-Renewal Notice to Mr. McKeirnan or terminate his agreement without cause, or if he terminates his agreement for good reason within six months following the occurrence of the event that constitutes good reason, then:

we will accelerate vesting on any portion of any equity grant previously made to him under any of our stock incentive plans that would otherwise have vested after the date of the termination;

all restrictions under any restricted stock, restricted stock units or other similar awards granted to him will terminate, and we will issue any common stock that underlies such awards but has not yet been issued;

we must provide a lump-sum severance payment equal to his cash compensation for the prior year (but not less than his total annual base salary rate), plus the target award amount available under the Bonus Plan for the year in which the termination occurs (prorated for the portion of the year elapsed at the time of termination), plus a continuation of all life, health and insurance benefits for a one-year period; and


to the extent that the foregoing severance payments or benefits received by him are deemed “excess parachute payments” within the meaning of Section 280G(b)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), and thereby result in the imposition upon him of the excise tax imposed by Section 4999 of the Code, we must pay him an additional amount (the“Gross-Up Payment”) such that the net amount retained by him, after deduction of (i) any excise tax payable on such excess parachute payments and theGross-Up Payment, and (ii) any federal, state and local income and employment taxes payable on theGross-Up Payment, is the same as it would have been if such excise tax had not been imposed.

The circumstances that constitute “good reason” entitling Mr. McKeirnan to severance benefits following a voluntary termination of employment generally relate to: (i) assignment to him of duties materially inconsistent with his positions and responsibilities as described in the agreement; (ii) removing him from such positions; (iii) any material continuing breach of the agreement; and/or (iv) a change in our headquarters office location. However, he will not have good reason unless he gives us written notice of the occurrence of the specified conduct or event that gives rise to his having good reason, and we fail to cure such conduct or event within 30 days after receipt of such notice.

Change of Control Arrangements

If our company undergoes a change of control, then we will accelerate vesting on any portion of any equity grant previously made to Mr. McKeirnan under any of our stock incentive plans that would otherwise have vested after the date of the termination, and all restrictions under any restricted stock, restricted stock units or other similar awards granted to him will terminate, and we will issue any common stock that underlies such awards but has not yet been issued.

If there is a constructive termination of Mr. McKeirnan’s employment without cause within twelve months after a change of control, he will be entitled to the same severance benefits that Mr. Bell would receive upon such a constructive termination. These benefits will be in lieu of the severance described above underStandard Severance Arrangements, except that he will still be entitled to a Gross-Up Payment if any of his benefits constitute excess parachute payments.

The term “change of control” is the same for purposes of Mr. McKeirnan’s agreement as it is for Mr. Mount’s.

Mr. Sladich

Harry G. Sladich serves as our Executive Vice President, Hotel Operations and Sales under a written agreement that was restated as of February 27, 2015. Under that agreement, Mr. Sladich receives an annual base salary of $242,310.

If there is a constructive termination of Mr. Sladich’s employment without cause within twelve months after a change of control, he will be entitled to the same severance benefits that Mr. Bell would have received upon such a constructive termination.

Following any termination of employment in connection with which Mr. Sladich is entitled to severance, he will be prohibited from competing with us or soliciting any of our employees for a period equivalent to the period for which the severance is paid.

The term “change of control” and the circumstances that constitute “constructive termination” are the same for purposes of Mr. Sladich’s agreement as they are for Mr. Mount’s.

Table of Severance Payments and Benefits

If the employment of our executive officers had terminated on January 1, 2016 under circumstances entitling them to the severance and change of control benefits described above, the lump-sum severance payments payable to the executive officers, and the value of the other severance benefits they would have received, would have been as shown in the following table:

Name

  Severance
Payment
   Accelerated
Restricted
Stock Units (1)
   Life, Health
and Insurance
Benefits
   Gross-Up
Payment
   Total 

Gregory T. Mount (2)

  $975,000    $1,845,431    $0    $0    $2,820,431  

James A. Bell (3)

  $424,308    $1,233,038    $0    $0    $1,657,346  

William J. Linehan (3)

  $408,100    $1,146,233    $0    $0    $1,554,333  

Thomas L. McKeirnan (3)

  $372,364    $1,165,938    $7,653    $654,030    $2,199,985  

Harry G. Sladich (3)

  $339,234    $1,155,733    $0    $0    $1,494,967  

(1)The value of the accelerated restricted stock units is calculated by multiplying the number of unvested units by $7.01, the closing market price of our common stock on December 31, 2015.
(2)The severance payment for Mr. Mount equals 150% of his base salary for 2015 plus 150% of the target amount available to him under the Bonus Plan for 2015.
(3)The severance payment for each of Messrs. Bell, Linehan, Sladich and McKeirnan equals his base salary for 2015 plus the target amount available to him under the Bonus Plan for 2015.

DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

The following summarizes our standard compensation arrangements for our directors, which are subject to modification at any time.

We payDuring 2019, we paid each of ournon-employee directors other than Enrico Marini Fichero and Alexander Washburn, a retainer at the annual rate of $100,000. We pay our Chairman of the Board an additional fee at the annual rate of $30,000. The chair of the Audit Committee receives an additional fee at the annual rate of $20,000. The chairs of the Compensation Committee and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee each receive an additional fee at the annual rate of $15,000.Non-chair committee members receive an additional fee at the annual rate of $5,000 for each committee on which they serve. From time to time we also make payments to directors on anad hoc basis for service in connection with special projects or onnon-standing committees of the Board, which fees are included in the table below. During 2019, Mr. Pate, Mr. Brace, Ms. Humphreys and Mr. Wolfe received an additional $15,000 each for their service on a temporary board committee.

All of thesethe director fees are payable in advance in equal quarterly installments. For each quarter, $17,500 of the fees is paid in fully-vested shares of our common stock based on the closing market price on the regularly scheduled quarterly payment date. The balance of the quarterly fees are payable in cash, although they may be paid in stock to the extent a director so elects.

From time to time we have made payments to directors on anad hoc basis for service in connection with special projects or on non-standing committees of the Board.

It is also our policy to reimburse directors for theirout-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with their service on the Board and its committees.

20152019 Director Compensation Table

The following table shows compensation of thenon-employee members of our Board for 2015:2019:

 

Name

  Fees
Earned or
Paid in

Cash
($)
   Fees
Earned or
Paid in
Stock
($)
   Total
($)
 

Raymond R. Brandstrom

   50,000     70,000     120,000  

Ryland P. Davis (1)

   24,471     17,500     41,971  

James P. Evans

   42,500     70,000     112,500  

Enrico Marini Fichero

   0     0     0  

David J. Johnson

   39,808     70,000     109,808  

Melvin L. Keating

   66,058     70,000     136,058  

Michael Vernon

   50,000     70,000     120,000  

Alexander Washburn

   0     0     0  

Robert G. Wolfe

   51,250     70,000     121,250  
   Name  Fees
Earned or
Paid in
Cash
($)
   Stock
Award
($)s(1)
   Total
($)
 

  Frederic F. “Jake” Brace (2)

   44,750     17,500     62,250  

  Ted Darnall

   1,500     98,500     100,000  

  James P. Evans (3)

   33,750     52,500     86,250  

  Amy Humphreys

   62,500     70,000     132,500  

  Joseph B. Megibow

   37,500     70,000     107,500  

  R. Carter Pate (4)

   32,677     46,650     79,327  

  Bonny W. Simi

   50,000     70,000     120,000  

  Michael Vernon

   47,500     70,000     117,500  

  Robert G. Wolfe (5)

   86,250     70,000     156,250  

 

(1)Mr. Davis retired effective May 20, 2015.

Represents the portion of the annual director fee paid in common stock based on the closing market price on the regularly scheduled quarterly payment date.

(2)

Mr. Brace was appointed to the Board on July 17, 2019.    

(3)

Mr. Evans resigned from the board effective September 30, 2019.

(4)

Mr. Pate was elected to the Board on April 19, 2019.

(5)

Mr. Wolfe resigned from the board effective December 26, 2019.

Our Board of Directors has adopted Stock Ownership Guidelines applicable to our directors. Eachnon-employee Director is required to own the lesser of either (i) 20,000 shares of our common stock, or (ii) a number of shares of our common stock equal in value to at least three times the director’s annual base retainer (however paid). Each Director will have five years from the later of the date of his or her election to the Board (or the adoption of these guidelines in November 2019) to attain such level of ownership. Our directors are in compliance with our Stock Ownership Guidelines or are still within the five year period.

23


REPORT OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE

The Audit Committee oversees our company’s financial reporting process on behalf of the Board. Management has the primary responsibility for the financial statements and the reporting process including the systems of internal controls. In fulfilling its oversight responsibilities, the committee reviewed and discussed the audited financial statements with management.

The committee discussed with BDO USA, LLP, our independent registered public accounting firm, the matters required to be discussed by Auditing Standard No. 16,Communications with Audit Committees (AS 16), issued bythe applicable requirements of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The committee also received the written disclosures and the letter from BDO USA, LLP required by PCAOB Ethics and Independence Rule 3526,Communication with Audit Committees Concerning Independence, regarding the independent registered public accounting firm’s communications with the committee concerning independence, and has discussed with BDO USA, LLP their independence.

In reliance on the reviews and discussions referred to above, the committee recommended to the Board that the audited financial statements be included in the Annual Report on Form10-K for the year ended December 31, 20152019 for filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The committee and the Board have also recommended, subject to shareholder ratification, the selection of BDO USA, LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for 2016.2020.

Respectfully submitted,

Audit Committee of the Board of Directors

Michael Vernon, ChairmanAmy Humphreys, Chairwoman

Raymond R. BrandstromFrederic F. (Jake) Brace

Melvin L. KeatingJoseph B. Megibow

April 1, 2016

March 20, 2020

24


PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES

Fees Paid

BDO USA, LLP billed our company the amounts shown in the table below for professional services related to 20152019 and 2014:2018:

 

Services Rendered

  2015   2014   2019   2018 

Audit Fees (1)

  $448,300    $476,000    $557,865    703,095 

Audit-Related Fees (2)

   46,000     41,000     18,000    17,800 
  

 

   

 

   

 

   

 

 

Total Audit and Audit-Related Fees

   494,300     517,000     575,865    720,895 

Tax Fees (3)

   89,655     124,450     —      —   

All Other Fees (4)

   —       —       —      —   
  

 

   

 

   

 

   

 

 

Total Fees

  $583,955    $641,450    $575,865    720,895 
  

 

   

 

   

 

   

 

 

 

(1)

The audit fees covered the annual audit of our financial statements, Sarbanes-Oxley compliance work, and quarterly reviews.

(2)The audit-related fees coveredreviews, and audit and attest services for entities we consolidate that are required by agreement but not by statute or a regulatory body. They also

(2)

The audit-related fees covered the audit of our employee benefit plan.

(3)

The tax fees coveredcover tax returns,year-end tax planning and tax advice. No tax fees were billed during 2019 or 2018.

(4)

BDO USA, LLP did not bill us for any other professional services rendered during 20152019 or 2014,2018, and it did not provide our company during either of those years any professional services described in paragraph (c)(4) of Rule2-01 of RegulationS-X.

Pre-Approval Policies and Procedures

The Audit Committee is responsible for selecting, setting compensation and overseeing the work of our independent registered public accounting firm. The committee has adopted a policy that requires advance approval of audit, audit-related, tax, and other services (“audit andnon-audit services”) performed by the independent registered public accounting firm.

The committee has delegated to its chairman authority to approve permitted services provided that the chairman reports any decisions to the committee at its next regularly scheduled meeting. On an ongoing basis, management communicates specific projects and categories of services for which the advance approval of the committee or chairman is requested. The committee or chairman reviews these requests and advises management if the engagement services of the independent registered public accounting firm are approved. On a periodic basis, management reports to the committee actual spending for audit andnon-audit services compared to approved amounts.

Auditor Independence

The Audit Committee has considered and determined that the other professional services provided by BDO USA, LLP are compatible with maintaining its independence.

25


CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS

Under our written Statement of Policy with respect to Related Party Transactions, a related party transaction (as defined below) may be consummated or may continue only if the Audit Committee of our Board, or in certain cases the full Board, approves or ratifies the transaction in accordance with the guidelines set forth in the policy. The policy applies to the following related parties:

 

our directors;

 

any of our executive or other officers who are required by Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, to file reports of ownership and changes in ownership of our common stock with the Securities and Exchange Commission;

 

any person who is the beneficial owner of more than 5% of our common stock;

 

any immediate family member, as defined in the policy, of any of the foregoing persons; and

 

any entity that is owned or controlled in substantial part by any of the foregoing persons.

“Related party transaction” is defined in the policy as a transaction between us and any of the foregoing persons.

Under the policy, the following transactions are deemed to be automaticallypre-approved:

 

any compensation paid to a related party that has been approved by the Compensation Committee;

 

any charitable contribution, grant or endowment by us to a charitable organization, foundation or university at which a related party’s only relationship is as an employee (other than an executive officer) or a director, if the aggregate amount involved does not exceed the lesser of $50,000 or two percent of the charitable organization’s total annual receipts;

 

any transaction where the related party’s interest arises solely from the ownership of our common stock and all holders of our common stock receive the same benefit on a pro rata basis (e.g. dividends);

 

any transaction where the related party’s interest arises solely from participation in an employee benefit plan maintained by us for the general benefit of all of our employees; and

 

any transaction with a related party involving services as a bank depositary of funds, transfer agent, registrar, trustee under a trust indenture, or similar services.

On January 15, 2015, we transferred 12 of our wholly owned hotels valued at approximately $89.8 million into 12 separate wholly owned subsidiaries of Our two current joint ventures—RL Venture, Holding LLC (“RLand RLS DC Venture Holding”). RL– and our two former joint ventures—RLS Alta Venture Holding is a wholly owned subsidiary of RL Venture LLC (“RL Venture”), a newly created entity that was initially wholly owned by us. On the same day, RL Venture Holding and the 12 wholly owned subsidiaries obtained a $53.8 million loan secured by the 12 hotels from Capital Source, a division of Pacific Western Bank. The loan proceeds were used primarilyRLS Balt Venture—have agreed to pay us approximately $18.1 million in cash and to pay off approximately $30.6 million of debt encumbering the 12 hotels, the agreed consideration for our transfer of the 12 hotels. On the following day, we sold a 45% member interest in RL Venture to Shelbourne Falcon RLHC Hotel InvestorsCapital LLC (“Shelbourne”) for approximately $18.5 million in cash.an investor relations fee each month equal to 0.50% of its total aggregate revenue. Shelbourne is anthe entity led bythat leads Shelbourne Falcon, Shelbourne Falcon II, Shelbourne Falcon III and Shelbourne Falcon IV, the minority interest holder in these joint ventures. The amount Shelbourne Capital LLCearned from all four joint ventures during the year ended December 31, 2019 and includes several other institutional real estate investors, including Columbia Pacific Real Estate Fund II, LP (the “Real Estate Fund”), an affiliate of2018 totaled $69,000 and $211,000, respectively. Columbia Pacific Opportunity Fund, LP one of our company’s largest shareholders (“Columbia Pacific”CP”). The Real Estate Fund is the majority equityan investor in Shelbourne.Shelbourne Falcon, our minority partner in RL Venture. Alexander Washburn, one of our directors,who served as a director until the 2019 Annual Meeting, is a managing member of Columbia Pacific Advisors, LLC, which serves as the investment manager of the Real Estate Fund,CP, and he also serves as one of three representatives of Shelbourne Falcon on the seven-person board of directors that governs RL Venture. All 12 hotels are managedFor the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, Shelbourne earned $50,000 and $161,000, respectively, from RL Venture. We did not pay any investor relations fee to Shelbourne Capital related to the RLS Balt Venture after October 2018.

In May 2019, RLH DC executed a new mortgage loan agreement with CP Business Finance I, LP, an affiliate of CP (“CPBF”), secured by our wholly owned subsidiary, Red Lion Hotels Management, Inc., underthe Hotel RL Washington DC and a $10.5 million principal guarantee by RLH Corporation. The initial principal amount of the loan was $16.5 million. The proceeds from the loan were immediately used to pay off the existing mortgage loan on the property held by Pacific Western Bank, which had an outstanding principal balance of $15.9 million at the time of closing. The CPBF loan had an initial five-year

maturity

management contract,26


date of June 21, 2019, with three five-year extensions. In connectiona first extension option through May 31, 2020 that was exercised in June 2019, and a second extension option through May 31, 2021. RLH paid a fee of $330,000 to exercise the first extension option in June 2019. The CPBF loan had a cash interest rate of 7.0% in addition to PIK interest of 3.0% through May 31, 2020. Upon the sale of the Hotel RL Washington DC on February 7, 2020, we repaid to CPBF $17.7 million, which included the principal balance on the loan, an accrued exit fee, and a prepayment penalty of $568,198, which was the amount of the remaining cash and PIK interest that would have been payable from the prepayment date through May 31, 2020.    

On April 17, 2018, we entered into a commitment letter with Shelbourne’s investment inCP that described the joint venture,general terms and conditions for a single advance term loan of $20 million. Upon execution of the commitment letter, we issuedpaid CP anon-refundable commitment fee of $200,000, and agreed to Shelbourne five-year warrants to acquirereimburse CP for all reasonableout-of-pocket costs and expenses, including reasonable legal fees, whether or not the loan was funded. The commitment was not used and terminated on May 31, 2018. At the time of the transaction, CP held beneficial ownership of 1,510,105 shares of our common stock, and 442,533 shares of common stock at $6.78 per share.

RL Venture has agreedsubject to pay to Shelbournea warrant held by an investor relations fee each month equal to 0.50% of RL Venture’s total aggregate revenue. During the year ended December 31, 2015, the amount of the investor relations fee paid to Shelbourne was $374,000.

RL Venture has also agreed to pay CPA Development, LLC,entity in which an affiliate of Columbia Pacific,CP holds an indirect interest. CP is also an investor in Shelbourne Falcon, which holds a construction management fee of $200,000. During the year ended December 31, 2015,45% interest in RL Venture paid $122,000 of this fee.Venture.

In May 2015, we entered into a management agreement with Columbia Woodlake LLC, the owner of Red Lion Hotel Woodlake Conference Center Sacramento. Alexander Washburn, a member of our Board, is a a manager and 50% owner of Columbia Pacific Advisors, LLC, the entity that serves as the managing member of Columbia Woodlake LLC. During the year ended December 31, 2015, we recognized management fee and brand marketing fee revenue from Columbia Woodlake LLC of $129,000.

Effective March 29, 2016, our wholly owned subsidiary, Red Lion Hotels Management, Inc., entered into aone-year contract to manage the Hudson Valley Resort and Spa, a hotel located in Kerhonkson, New York. The hotel is owned by HNA Hudson Valley Resort & Training Center LLC, an affiliate of HNA RLH Investments LLC, one of our largest shareholders, and is controlled by HNA Group North America LLC. Prior to disposing of all of their stock in June 2018 in a private sale, HNA RLH Investments LLC for whichwas one of our largest shareholders. Enrico Marini Fichera, one of our directors,a former director, serves as the Head of Investments.Investments for HNA Group North America LLC. Under that contract, our subsidiary is entitled to a monthly management fee equal to $8,333 or three percent of the hotel’s gross operating revenues, whichever is larger.greater. During the year ended December 31, 2018, we recognized management fee revenue from HNA Hudson Valley Resort & Training Center LLC of $75,000. On June 12, 2018, HNA RLH Investments LLC sold their common shares in RLH to a third party and Enrico Marini Fichera resigned from the Board effective June 18, 2018. The contract with Hudson Valley Resort and Spa was terminated in September 2018. As of December 31, 2019, we held an unpaid balance of $24,999 in management fees and $539,279 in unreimbursed expenses.    

On September 30, 2016, we completed our acquisition of the operating assets and assumption of certain liabilities (the “Assets”) relating to specified hotel brands and brand extensions from Thirty-Eight Street, Inc. (“TESI”), Vantage Hospitality Group, Inc. (“Vantage Hospitality”) and certain other parties, pursuant to an Asset Purchase Agreement dated September 13, 2016 (the “Purchase Agreement”). The Assets were acquired for $22.6 million in cash, after the working capital adjustment, and the issuance of 690,000 shares of the Company’s common stock. Of the cash consideration, $10.3 million (less approximately $250,000 that was placed into an indemnity escrow account) was paid to Vantage Hospitality, and the balance of $12.3 million was paid to TESI. The 690,000 shares of the Company’s common stock were issued to TESI. The Purchase Agreement is attached as Exhibit 2.1 to the Current Report on Form8-K we filed on September 14, 2016. In connection with the acquisition of the Assets, our board appointed Bernard T. Moyle as our Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer and Roger J. Bloss as our Executive Vice President and President of Global Development.

Mr. Moyle and Mr. Bloss served in these roles until their resignation effective May 31, 2018. In connection with their resignation, Mr. Bloss and Mr. Moyle each entered into an Independent Contractor Agreement (“ICA”) with the Company under which each will provide consulting services to the Company through December 31, 2020 for a consulting fee of $10,000 per month. In addition, each are eligible under their ICA to receive a mutually agreed upon referral fee for any new hotel franchisee referred to the Company that enters into a franchise agreement for a Red Lion brand. The Company may terminate the ICA at any time, but if an ICA is terminated without Cause (as defined therein) the Company remains obligated to pay the monthly consulting fees through the end of the term.

27


We have been informed that each of Messrs. Bloss and Moyle holds 50% of the outstanding common shares of TESI. Pursuant to the Purchase Agreement’s post-closing contingent consideration provisions, upon the achievement of certain performance measures as of September 30, 2017, the first anniversary of the closing date, additional consideration was to be paid to TESI. Pursuant to a First Amendment to the Purchase Agreement, TESI was also entitled to earn additional consideration in October 2018 provided their ICA had not been terminated for Cause prior to such date. In January 2018, we settled the firstearn-out payment in the amount of $7.6 million, including (i) $4 million in cash and (ii) 414,000 shares of the Company’s common stock, valued at $3.6 million based on the closing price of $8.65 per share on September 30, 2017. As a result, the approximate dollar value of each of Messrs. Bloss and Moyle’s interests in the firstearn-out was $3.8 million. In October 2018, we settled the secondearn-out payment in an amount of $6.45 million, including (i) $3 million in cash and (ii) 276,000 shares of the Company’s common stock, valued at $3.45 million based upon the closing price of $12.49 per share on October 1, 2018. As a result, the approximate dollar value of each of Messrs. Bloss and Moyle’s interests in the second earn-out was $1.725 million. All of the amounts disclosed in this paragraph and the paragraph above assume that the dollar values of the interests of Messrs. Bloss and Moyle are equal to their percentage ownership of the common shares of TESI times the consideration being paid. There may be liabilities of TESI or other factors that could result in the actual monetary benefit derived by each of Messrs. Bloss and Moyle from the consideration payable to TESI being more or less than the amounts disclosed.

Messrs. Bloss and Moyle each additionally indirectly own a 5.7% equity interest in a limited liability company that owns the Lexington Hotel and Conference Center in Jacksonville, Florida. During the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, the Company billed the property approximately $330,000 and $328,000 for franchise fees and related services, including royalty and marketing. This hotel, along with the Lexington Inn & Suites, Daytona Beach and the ABVI Las Vegas, are managed byCal-Vegas, Ltd.(Cal-Vegas), of which TESI (owned by Messrs. Bloss and Moyle) is the General Partner and holds a 2% general partner interest, and Mr. Moyle serves as the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer. The Company andCal-Vegas are not parties to any agreement with respect to these properties, as the management contracts are betweenCal-Vegas and the Company’s franchisees, who are unrelated third parties.Cal-Vegas, Ltd. is also the lessee of the ABVI Las Vegas hotel. No franchise fees were billed by the Company to each of these properties for the year ended December 31, 2019. Franchise fees billed by the Company to each of these properties for the year ended December 31, 2018 were $41,000 for Lexington Inn & Suites and $1,000 for ABVI Las Vegas.

During the fourth quarter of 2018, we transitioned management of our company operated Hotel RL Baltimore Inner Harbor and Hotel RL Washington DC from RL Management, Inc. to HEI Hotels and Resorts, of which one of the members of our Board of Directors, Ted Darnall, is currently the Chief Executive Officer. Additionally, during the first quarter of 2019, management of our company operated hotel Red Lion Hotel Seattle Airport was also transitioned from RL Management, Inc. to HEI Hotels and Resorts. During the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, we paid $1.1 million and $22,000, respectively in management fees to HEI Hotels and Resorts for management of these properties.

On January 14, 2019, the Company announced the appointment of Julie Shiflett as Chief Financial Officer of the Company. Prior to this appointment, the Company paid consulting fee to NorthWest CFO, a consulting firm of which Ms. Shiflett is a Principal. During the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 we paid consulting fees of $49,000 and $394,000 to NorthWest CFO. The payments made in 2019 were for services rendered by NorthWest CFO in 2018. No services have been performed by NorthWest CFO on behalf of the Company subsequent to Ms. Shiflett being appointed Chief Financial Officer.

Except as disclosed above, no related party transactions occurred during 20152019 or 2018 other than transactions that were deemed to be automaticallypre-approved under the policy.

28


PROPOSALS OF SHAREHOLDERS

Proposals of shareholders to be considered for inclusion in the proxy statement and proxy for our 20172021 Annual Meeting of Shareholders must be received by us on or prior to December 21, 2016.8, 2020.

A shareholder of record, who intends to submit a proposal at the 20172021 Annual Meeting of Shareholders that is not eligible for inclusion in the proxy statement or proxy, or who intends to submit one or more nominations for directors at the meeting, must provide us prior written notice. Written notice of any such proposal or nominations should be addressed to our Secretary and received at our principal executive office at 201 West North River Drive,1550 Market Street, Suite 100, Spokane, Washington 99201425, Denver, Colorado 80202 not later than December 21, 2016.8, 2020. The written notice must satisfy certain requirements specified in ourBy-Laws, which are included in the excerpt from theBy-Laws attached asAppendix B to this proxy statement. A complete copy of ourBy-Laws will be sent to any shareholder upon written request to our Secretary.

ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM10-K

A copy of our Annual Report on Form10-K for the year ended December 31, 20152019 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is being mailed with this proxy statement to each shareholder of record. Shareholders not receiving a copy of such Annual Report may obtain one without charge by writing or calling our Secretary, 201 West North River Drive,1550 Market Street, Suite 100, Spokane, Washington 99201425, Denver, Colorado 80202 ((509)459-6100).

IT IS IMPORTANT THAT PROXIES BE RETURNED PROMPTLY. EVEN IF YOU PLAN TO ATTEND THE MEETING AND VOTE IN PERSON, WE URGE SHAREHOLDERS TO PROMPTLY VOTE BY PHONE OR INTERNET FOLLOWING THE INSTRUCTIONS ON THE ENCLOSED WHITE PROXY CARD OR TO COMPLETE, SIGN, DATE AND RETURN THE WHITE PROXY CARD BY MAIL IN THE POSTAGE-PAID ENVELOPE PROVIDED.

29


APPENDIX A

Corporate Governance Guidelines Regarding Director Qualifications

Director Qualification Standards

 

1.

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee is responsible for recommending to the Board (1) nominees for Board membership to fill vacancies or newly created positions and (2) the persons to be nominated by the Board for election at our company’s annual meeting of shareholders.

 

2.

In connection with the selection and nomination process, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee shall review the desired experience, mix of skills and other qualities to assure appropriate Board composition, taking into account the current Board members and the specific needs of our company and the Board. The Board will generally look for individuals who have displayed high ethical standards, integrity and sound business judgment. This process is designed to ensure that the Board includes members with diverse backgrounds, skills and experience, including appropriate financial and other expertise relevant to the business of our company.

 

3.

Independent Directors must comprise a majority of the Board.

 

4.

A director will not be an “Independent Director” if any of the following situations set forth in the following categories apply:

 

 (a)

the director has been an employee of our company, or any of its consolidated subsidiaries, during the last three years, or the director has an Immediate Family Member who is, or who has been during the last 3 years, an executive officer of our company;

 

 (b)

the director or the director’s Immediate Family Member has received more than $120,000 per year in direct compensation from our company, or any of its consolidated subsidiaries, other than director and committee fees and pension or other forms of deferred compensation for prior service (provided such compensation is not contingent in any way on continued service) during any twelve-month period within the last three years;

 

 (c)

(i) the director is a current partner or employee of a firm that is our company’s independent auditor, (ii) the director has an immediate Family Member who is a current partner of such a firm, (iii) the director has an Immediate Family Member who is a current employee of such a firm and personally works on our company’s audit, or (iv) the director or an Immediate Family Member was within the last three years (but is no longer) a partner or employee of such a firm and personally worked on our company’s audit within that time;

 

 (d)

the director or the director’s Immediate Family Member is, or during the last three years, has been, part of an interlocking directorate in which a current executive officer of our company, or any of its consolidated subsidiaries, served on the compensation committee of another company that concurrently employed the director (or any of his or her Immediate Family Members) as an executive officer;

 

 (e)

the director is a current employee, or the director’s Immediate Family member is a current executive officer of a company that makes payments to, or receives payments (exclusive of charitable contributions that the Company discloses on its website or in its annual proxy statement) from, our company, or any of its consolidated subsidiaries, for property or services in an amount which, in any of the last three fiscal years, exceeds the greater of $1 million, or 2% of the consolidated gross revenues of such other company;

 

 (f)

the director has a material relationship with our company, or any of its consolidated subsidiaries, either directly or as a partner, shareholder or officer of an organization that has a material relationship with our company, or any of its consolidated subsidiaries. For this purpose, “material relationship” is defined as one in which the person, or an entity of which the director (or the director’s Immediate Family Member) is an employee, makes payments to, or receives payments from, our company for property or services in an amount which, in any single fiscal year, exceeds the greater of $1 million, or 2% of such other entity’s consolidated gross revenues.

A-1


5.

In addition to satisfying all of the independence criteria set forth in paragraph 4 of this Section, all members of the Audit Committee must also meet the following requirements:

 

 (a)

A member of the Audit Committee may not receive consulting, advisory or other compensatory fees from our company, or any of its consolidated subsidiaries, other than in his or her capacity as a member of the Audit Committee, the Board of Directors, or any other committee of the Board (compensatory fees do not include the receipt of fixed amounts under a retirement plan (including deferred compensation) for prior service with our company or any of its consolidated subsidiaries, provided that such compensation is not contingent in any way on continued service).

 

 (b)

No member of the Audit Committee may be an “affiliated person” of our company, or any of its consolidated subsidiaries, as such term is defined by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

6.

The number of boards on which a director may sit may be reviewed on acase-by-case basis by the Board.

 

7.

The Board has not established term limits for directors. Although term limits can promote the inclusion on the Board of people with diverse perspectives, the process described in paragraph 2 of this Section can achieve the same result. Moreover, term limits have the disadvantage of causing our company to lose the contributions of directors who have been able to develop, over a period of time, increasing insight into our company and its operations, thereby increasing their contributions to our company. However, in order to promote both continuity and turnover, and to further the expectation that Board members will be very actively involved in both the affairs of our company and the communities which our company serves, the Board will normally not nominate a person who would be serving on the Board after the age of 75.

 

8.

Each director shall be obligated to notify the Chairman of the Board of our company promptly upon learning of any fact which causes such director not to be considered an Independent Director, as set forth in paragraph 4 above, or if any entity of which such director is an officer or director becomes a competitor of our company. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee shall review the situation and make a prompt recommendation to the Board.

A-2


APPENDIX B

Provisions ofBy-Laws Regarding Director Nominations

Section 3.3 Nominations and Qualifications of Directors.

 

(1)

Nominations of candidates for election as directors at an annual meeting of shareholders may only be made (i) by, or at the direction of, the Board of Directors or (ii) by any shareholder of the Corporation who is entitled to vote at the meeting and who complies with the procedures set forth in the remainder of this Section 3.3.

 

(2)

If a shareholder proposes to nominate one or more candidates for election as directors at an annual meeting, the shareholder must have given timely notice thereof to the Secretary of the Corporation. To be timely, a shareholder’s notice must be delivered to, or mailed and received at, the Principal Office (i) not less than one hundred twenty (120) days prior to the first anniversary of the date that the Corporation’s proxy statement was released to shareholders in connection with the previous year’s annual meeting; (ii) a reasonable time before the Corporation begins to print and mail its proxy materials if the date of this year’s annual meeting has been changed by more than thirty (30) days from the date of the previous year’s meeting; or (iii) not more than seven (7) days following the delivery to shareholders of the notice of annual meeting with respect to the current year’s annual meeting, if the Corporation did not release a proxy statement to shareholders in connection with the previous year’s annual meeting, or if no annual meeting was held during such year.

 

(3)

A shareholder’s notice to the Secretary under Section 3.3(2) shall set forth, as to each person whom the shareholder proposes to nominate for election as a director (i) the name, age, business address and residence address of such person, (ii) the principal occupation or employment of such person, (iii) the number and class of shares of stock of the Corporation that are beneficially owned on the date of such notice by such person and (iv) if the Corporation at such time has a class of securities registered pursuant to Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), any other information relating to such person required to be disclosed in solicitations of proxies with respect to nominees for election as directors pursuant to Regulation 14A under the Exchange Act, including but not limited to information required to be disclosed by Schedule 14A of Regulation 14A, and any other information that the shareholder would be required to file with the Securities and Exchange Commission in connection with the shareholder’s nomination of such person as a candidate for director or the shareholder’s opposition to any candidate for director nominated by, or at the direction of, the Board of Directors. In addition to the above information, a shareholder’s notice to the Secretary under Section 3.3(2) shall (A) set forth (i) the name and address, as they appear on the Corporation’s books, of the shareholder and of any other shareholders that the shareholder knows or anticipates will support any candidate or candidates nominated by the shareholder and (ii) the number and class of shares of stock of the Corporation that are beneficially owned on the date of such notice by the shareholder and by any such other shareholders and (B) be accompanied by a statement in the form of a record, executed and acknowledged by each candidate nominated by the shareholder, that the candidate agrees to be so nominated and to serve as a director of the Corporation if elected at the annual meeting.

 

(4)

The Board of Directors, or a designated committee thereof, may reject any shareholder’s nomination of one or more candidates for election as directors if the nomination is not made pursuant to a shareholder’s notice timely given in accordance with the terms of Section 3.3(2). If the Board of Directors, or a designated committee thereof, determines that the information provided in a shareholder’s notice does not satisfy the requirements of Section 3.3(3) in any material respect, the Secretary of the Corporation shall notify the shareholder of the deficiency in the notice. The shareholder shall have an opportunity to cure the deficiency by providing additional information to the Secretary within such period of time, not to exceed five (5) days from the date such deficiency notice is given to the shareholder, as the Board of Directors or such committee shall reasonably determine. If the deficiency is not cured within such period, or if the Board of Directors or such committee determines that the additional information provided by the shareholder, together with information previously provided, does not satisfy the requirements of Section 3.3(3) in any material respect, then the Board of Directors or such committee may reject the shareholder’s notice.

B-1


(5)

Notwithstanding the procedures set forth in Section 3.3(4), if a shareholder proposes to nominate one or more candidates for election as directors at an annual meeting, and neither the Board of Directors nor any committee thereof has made a prior determination of whether the shareholder has complied with the procedures set forth in this Section 3.3 in connection with such nomination, then the chairman of the annual meeting shall determine and declare at the annual meeting whether the shareholder has so complied. If the chairman determines that the shareholder has so complied, then the chairman shall so state and ballots shall be provided for use at the meeting with respect to such nomination. If the chairman determines that the shareholder has not so complied, then, unless the chairman, in his or her sole and absolute discretion, determines to waive such compliance, the chairman shall state that the shareholder has not so complied and the defective nomination shall be disregarded.

 

(6)

All directors of the Corporation shall be at leasttwenty-one years of age. Directors need not be shareholders or residents of the State of Washington. At each meeting of shareholders for the election of directors at which a quorum is present, the persons receiving a plurality of the votes cast shall be elected directors.

APPENDIX C

2016 RLHC Executive Officers Bonus Plan

Purpose

RLHC is committed to compensating employees through comprehensive and competitive pay packages that include base salary, bonus programs, incentive plans, competitive benefits plans, and reward and recognition programs. These programs are designed to motivate employees to exceed performance expectations in support of the company’s business objectives.

The Executive Officers Bonus Plan (“Plan”) provides the opportunity for annual bonus payments to the contributors who drive the successful attainment of company goals. The success of the company relies on many factors. Adjusted EBITDA is the main driver behind this plan, however; our success also depends on department and individual goals.

Plan Year

January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2016

Eligible Employees; Target Bonus and Maximum Bonus

Eligible Employees

Target Bonus

Maximum Bonus

Executive Vice President

50% of Base Salary100% of Base Salary

Chief Executive Officer

75% of Base Salary150% of Base Salary

An employee must hold one of the above positions at the beginning of the Plan Year in order to be eligible to participate in this Plan.

Plan Components

Whether a participant will receive a bonus under the Plan depends on the extent to which the following goals are achieved:

(1)A company goal based on budgeted Adjusted EBITDA for 2016 (“Budgeted Adjusted EBITDA”);

 

(2)A department goal based on RLHC’s 2016 earnings per share; and

B-2

(3)An individual goal based on one or more of the following business criteria: gross operating profit; revenues from group business; RevPar growth; increase in RevPar index; development of tools to measure guest experience; and addition of franchised and managed hotels to RLHC’s system of hotels.

The department


LOGO

Fold and individual goals are established bydetach the Compensation Committee.

Bonus Calculation

For purposesabove Proxy Card here lRED LION HOTELS CORPORATIONlProxylCommon StocklANNUAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS OFlRED LION HOTELS CORPORATIONlMAY 19, 2020lTHIS PROXY IS SOLICITED ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORSlThe undersigned hereby constitutes and appoints Thomas L. McKiernan, Nate Troup and John J. Russell, Jr. and eachlof them, the undersigned’s true and lawful agents and proxies with full power of calculatingsubstitution in each, to represent and tolvote, in such manner as in their discretion shall be deemed appropriate to carry out the bonuses, if any, due under this Plan,authority as designated on thelreverse side, all shares of Common Stock of Red Lion Hotels Corporation that the company goal achievement (“EBITDA Goal Achievement”) will be the fraction (expressed as a percentage) determined by dividing (i) RLHC’s 2016 Adjusted EBITDA, as disclosed in the 2016Form 10-K, by (ii) Budgeted Adjusted EBITDA. There will be no bonus payout to the participants unless this percentage exceeds 90%.


The EBITDA Goal Achievement percentage will determine the tentative payouts, if any, to which the participants are entitled, as set forth in or determined from the following table:

   EBITDA
Goal Achievement
  Target
Multiplier(1)
  Tentative
EVP Payout:
% of base salary
  Tentative
CEO Payout:
% of base salary
 

Maximum

   150  200  100  150
   140  180  90  135
   130  160  80  120
   120  140  70  105
   110  120  60  90  

Target

   100  100  50  75
   99  85  42.5  63.75
   98  70  35  52.5
   97  55  27.5  41.25
   96  40  20  30

Threshold 2

   95  25  12.5  18.75
   94  20  10  15
   93  15  7.5  11.25
   92  10  5  7.5
   91  5  2.5  3.75

Threshold 1

   90  0  0  0

(1)The Target Multiplier and tentative payout percentages will be linearly interpolated for EBITDA Goal Achievement percentages that are between two percentages shown in the table.

If a participant achieves both his department and individual goals, he willundersigned would be entitled to a payout (“Full Payout”) equalvote iflpresent in person at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders of Red Lion Hotels Corporation to be held on Tuesday, May 19,l2020 at 9:00 a.m. MDT at Red Lion Hotels Corporation, 1550 Market Street, Suite 500, Denver, Colorado, 80202 and atlany adjournments thereof, on all matters that may come before the meeting including matters incident to the percentage of base salary determinedconduct oflthe meeting and any shareholder proposal omitted from the above table for the EBITDA Goal Achievement percentage. If the participant only achieves one of his departmentproxy statement, and individual goals, he will be entitled to 90% of the Full Payout. If the participant achieves neither his department nor his individual goal, he will be entitled to 80% of the Full Payout.

Clawback

A participant who receives a bonus under the Plan will be required to repay the bonus to RLHCthis proxy pursuant to the extent requiredrules of thelSecurities and Exchange Commission.lYou are encouraged to specify your choices by (i)marking the appropriate boxes, SEE REVERSE SIDE, but you need notlmark any “clawback” or recoupment policy adopted by RLHCboxes if you wish to comply with the requirements of any applicable laws, rules or regulations, or (ii) any applicable law, rule or regulation that imposes mandatory recoupment.

Administration

The Director of Compensation and Benefits, SVP HR, and CFO will administer the Plan.

Calculation, Approval and Payment

As soon as the necessary information is available following the end of the Plan Year, the SVP, HR and the VP, Accounting will complete the bonus calculations for each participant and submit them to the CFO for review and approval. Once approved by the CFO, he will submit the bonus calculations to the Compensation Committee for final approval. Upon Compensation Committee approval, the CFO will provide the payment information to the VP, Accounting and SVP, HR for record keeping, who will in turn submit it to the payroll office for payments. Payments will be made to participants as soon as administratively possible following the end of the bonus period. Typically, payments are approved following the February Board meeting and paid as soon as practical thereafter. Calculations are based on the base salary of the participant on the last day of the Plan Year.

Effect of Change in Employment Status/Termination

Leaves of Absences: To the extent a participant qualifies for an approved leave of absence, that participant’s bonus will not be forfeited, but rather will be prorated. If the leave involves accrued paid leave, the bonus will be unaffected. If the leave involves unpaid leave, the bonus will be prorated based upon the actual number of days worked plus any paid leave as a proportion of the full Plan Year.

Terminations: Bonuses for this Plan are not earned or vested until they are approved by the Compensation Committee and paid. Any bonuses earned will be determined and paid on or before March 31, 2017. To encourage continued employment with RLHC, participants must be employed as of the date of payout in order to earn a bonus. Therefore, any participant whose employment terminates prior to the date of payout will not earn, vest in, or receive a bonus.

General Provisions

There is an overriding discretionary analysis of each participant’s eligibility to receive a bonus. Even though an individual might earn a bonus based on the terms of this Plan, a bonus can be adjusted down or not paid entirely in the sole discretion of the Compensation Committee Directors. Instances when this might occur include overall substandard work performance of the participant, including, but not limited to the below. For example, if a participant fails to follow company policy and procedures, exposes the company to legal liability, exhibits inappropriate behavior, withholds information, or does not adequately follow through on critical incidents, he or she may be disqualified from receiving a bonus. Other disqualifiers may include unacceptable performance against established performance objectives, unacceptable scores on internal audit processes (e.g., HR, Accounting, Risk Management, Internal Audit, Quality Assurance), or poor associate or customer satisfaction scores.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Plan, individual bonus payments may be deferred, partially paid or withheld in their entirety, at the sole discretion of the Compensation Committee, in consideration of the overall best interests of the company. RLHC reserves the right to cancel, change, modify or interpret any and all provisions of the Plan at any time without notice. Participation in the Plan does not create any entitlement to continued employment and does not alter the at-will status of participants. This Plan will be governed and construedvote in accordance with the lawsBoard of Directors’ recommendations.l(Continued and to be signed on the statereverse side)lSPEED.ACCURACY. R E S U LT S . ES Client: Red Lion HotelslProject: Proxy CardlJob Number:q20-01428lDate: 04/01/2020 5:43 PMlVersion: 4lPage 1 of Washington.2lTrim Size: 8.5” x 11“lColor: BlacklRevisions: Cleanl

This Plan supersedes all previous plans in existence


LOGO

l Fold and any past written or verbal communicationdetach the above Proxy Card here l1. To elect seven directors to any participant regarding the termsBoard of any incentive plan.

LOGO

ANNUAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS OF

RED LION HOTELS CORPORATION

May 24, 2016 PROXY VOTING INSTRUCTIONS

INTERNET - Access “www.voteproxy.com”DirectorslFOR AGAINST ABSTAINlR. Carter Pate £ £ £lFrederic F. “Jake” Brace £ £ £lLinda C. Coughlin £ £ £lTed Darnall £ £ £lJanet L. Hendrickson £ £ £lJoseph B. Megibow £ £ £lKenneth R. Trammell £ £ £l2. Ratification of selection of £ £ £lBDO USA, LLP to serve aslour Independent RegisteredlPublic Accounting Firm for 2020l3. Approval, on an advisory basis, £ £ £lof the compensation of thelnamed executive officerslThe Board of Directors recommends a vote “FOR ALL NOMINEES” listedlin Proposal 1, “FOR” Proposals 2 and follow3.lSignature of Shareholder:_ Date:lSignature of Shareholder:_ Date:lTo change the on-screen instructions or scanaddress on your account, please check the QR code withbox belowland indicate your smartphone. Have your proxy card available when you access the web page.

TELEPHONE - Call toll-free 1-800-PROXIES (1-800-776-9437)new address in the United States or 1-718-921-8500 from foreign countries from any touch-tone telephone and followspace below. Please notelthat changes to the instructions. Have your proxy card available when you call.

Vote online/phone until 11:59 PM ESTregistered name(s) on the day before the meeting.

MAIL - Sign, date and mail your proxy card in the envelope provided as soon as possible.

IN PERSON - Youaccount may vote your shares in person by attending the Annual Meeting.

GO GREEN - e-Consent makes it easy to go paperless. With e-Consent, you can quickly access your proxy material, statements and other eligible documents online, while reducing costs, clutter and paper waste. Enroll todaynot belsubmitted via www.amstock.com to enjoy online access.

COMPANY NUMBER

ACCOUNT NUMBER

Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for the Shareholder Meeting to Be Held on May 24, 2016:

The Notice of Meeting, Proxy Statement, Proxy Card and 2015 Annual Report are available at http://investor.shareholder.com/rlhcorp/annuals-proxies.cfm.

Please detach along perforated line and mail in the envelope provided IF you are not voting via telephone or the Internet.

00003333333333033000 6 052416

PLEASE SIGN, DATE AND RETURN PROMPTLY IN THE ENCLOSED ENVELOPE. PLEASEthis method. ï,£lAddress change llPLEASE MARK YOUR VOTE IN BLUE OR BLACK INK AS SHOWN HEREx

THIS PROXY WHEN PROPERLY EXECUTED WILL BE VOTED IN THE MANNER DIRECTED HEREIN. EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE DIRECTED, THIS PROXY WILL BE VOTED:

“FOR” THE ELECTION OF ALL DIRECTORS LISTED IN PROPOSAL 1

“FOR” PROPOSALS 2, 3 AND 4

IN THE DISCRETION OF THE PROXIES ON ALL OTHER MATTERS THAT MAY PROPERLY COME BEFORE THE MEETING

The Board of Directors recommends a vote “FOR” all nominees listed in Proposal 1 and “FOR” Proposals 2, 3 and 4

TO INCLUDE ANY COMMENTS, USE THE COMMENTS BOX ON THE REVERSE SIDE HEREOF.

To change the address on your account, please check the box at right and indicate your new address in the address space above. Please note that changes to the registered name(s) on the account may not be submitted via this method.

1. TO ELECT NINE DIRECTORS TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS:

FOR AGAINST ABSTAIN

RAYMOND R. BRANDSTROM

JAMES P. EVANS

ENRICO MARINI FICHERA

DAVID J. JOHNSON

MELVIN L. KEATING

GREGORY T. MOUNT

MICHAEL VERNON

ALEXANDER WASHBURN

ROBERT G. WOLFE

2. RATIFICATION OF SELECTION OF BDO USA, LLP TO SERVE AS OUR INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM FOR 2016.

3. APPROVAL OF THE 2016 RLHC EXECUTIVE OFFICERS BONUS PLAN.

4. APPROVAL, ON AN ADVISORY BASIS, OF THE COMPENSATION OF THE NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS.

Signature of Shareholder Date:

Signature of Shareholder Date:

Note: ï“ RED LION HOTELS CORPORATIONlNOTE: Please sign exactly as your name or namesname(s) appear on this Proxy. When shares are held jointly, each holder should sign. When signing as executor, administrator, attorney, trustee or guardian, pleaselplease give full title as such. If the signer is a corporation, please sign full corporate name by duly authorized officer, giving full title as such. If signer is a partnership, please sign in partnership namepartnershiplname by authorized person.


LOGO

ANNUAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS OF

RED LION HOTELS CORPORATION

Mayperson.lYour vote is important regardless of the number of shares you own.lPlease vote today.l1.lVote by MaillPlease complete, sign, date and return the Proxy Card in the postage paidlenvelope provided.l2.lVote by Internet Please go to: www.MyProxyOnline.com Enter the control number printed onlyour proxy card into the box located on the upper right hand side of the web page.lBe sure to enter the entire control number correctly.l3.lVote by TelephonelPlease call:866-458-9858 and follow the recorded instructions.lAvailable 24 2016

GO GREEN

e-Consent makes it easy to go paperless. With e-Consent, you can quickly accesshours a day/7 days a week.l4. Vote in Person You may vote your proxy material, statements and other eligible documents online, while reducing costs, clutter and paper waste. Enroll today via www.amstock.com to enjoy online access.

Important Notice Regardingshares in person by attending the Availability of Proxy Materials for the Shareholder Meeting to Be Held on May 24, 2016:

TheAnnual Meeting.lThe Notice of Meeting, Proxy Statement, Proxy Card and 20152019 Annual Report are available at http:atlhttp://investor.shareholder.com/rlhcorp/annuals-proxies.cfm.

Please sign, date and mail your proxy card in the envelope provided as soon as possible.

Please detach along perforated line and mail in the envelope provided.

000033333333330330006 052416

PLEASE SIGN, DATE AND RETURN PROMPTLY IN THE ENCLOSED ENVELOPE. PLEASE MARK YOUR VOTE IN BLUE OR BLACK INK AS SHOWN HERE

THIS PROXY WHEN PROPERLY EXECUTED WILL BE VOTED IN THE MANNER DIRECTED HEREIN. EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE DIRECTED, THIS PROXY WILL BE VOTED:

• “FOR” THE ELECTION OF ALL DIRECTORS LISTED IN PROPOSAL 1

• “FOR” PROPOSALS 2, 3 AND 4

• IN THE DISCRETION OF THE PROXIES ON ALL OTHER MATTERS THAT MAY PROPERLY COME BEFORE THE MEETING

The Board of Directors recommends a vote “FOR” all nominees listed in Proposal 1 and “FOR” Proposals 2, 3 and 4

TO INCLUDE ANY COMMENTS, USE THE COMMENTS BOX ON THE REVERSE SIDE HEREOF.

To change the address on your account, please check the box at right and indicate your new address in the address space above. Please note that changes to the registered name(s) on the account may not be submitted via this method.

1. TO ELECT NINE DIRECTORS TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS:

RAYMOND R. BRANDSTROM

JAMES P. EVANS

ENRICO MARINI FICHERA

DAVID J. JOHNSON

MELVIN L. KEATING

GREGORY T. MOUNT

MICHAEL VERNON

ALEXANDER WASHBURN

ROBERT G. WOLFE

2. RATIFICATION OF SELECTION OF BDO USA, LLP TO SERVE AS OUR INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM FOR 2016.

3. APPROVAL OF THE 2016 RLHC EXECUTIVE OFFICERS BONUS PLAN.

4. APPROVAL, ON AN ADVISORY BASIS, OF THE COMPENSATION OF THE NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS.

FOR AGAINST ABSTAIN

Signature of Shareholder Date: Signature of Shareholder Date:

Note: Please sign exactly as your name or names appear on this Proxy. When shares are held jointly, each holder should sign. When signing as executor, administrator, attorney, trustee or guardian, please give full title as such. If the signer is a corporation, please sign full corporate name by duly authorized officer, giving full title as such. If signer is a partnership, please sign in partnership name by authorized person.


LOGO

1

PROXY FOR THE ANNUAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS OF RED LION HOTELS CORPORATION

THIS PROXY IS SOLICITED ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

As an alternative to completing this form, you may enter your voting instructions by telephoning I-800-PROXIES, or going to WWW.VOTEPROXY.COM, and following the simple instructions. Use the Company Number and Account Number shown on your proxy card.

The undersigned hereby constitutes and appoints Thomas L. McKeirnan and Gregory T. Mount, and each of them, the undersigned’s true and lawful agents and proxies with full power of substitution in each, to represent and to vote, in such manner as in their discretion shall be deemed appropriate to carry out the authority as designated on the reverse side, all shares of Common Stock ofir.redlion.com/annual-reports-and-proxieslSPEED.ACCURACY. R E S U LT S . ES Client: Red Lion Hotels Corporation that the undersigned would be entitled to vote if present in person at the Annual MeetingHotelslProject: Proxy CardlJob Number:q20-01428lDate: 04/01/2020 5:43 PMlVersion: 4lPage 2 of Shareholders of Red Lion Hotels Corporation to be held on Tuesday, May 24, 2016, at 9:00 a.m. local time at the Hotel RL Baltimore Inner Harbor, 207 E. Redwood St., Baltimore, MD 21202 and at any adjournments thereof, on all matters that may come before the meeting, including matters incident to the conduct of the meeting and any shareholder proposal omitted from the proxy statement and this proxy pursuant to the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission.2lTrim Size: 8.5” x 11“lColor: BlacklRevisions: Cleanl

You are encouraged to specify your choices by marking the appropriate boxes, SEE REVERSE SIDE, but you need not mark any boxes if you wish to vote in accordance with the Board of Directors’ recommendations.

(Continued and to be signed on the reverse side)

COMMENTS:

1.1

14475