Company: OCC
Filing Date: 2025-02-18
Form Type: PRE 14A
Source: 0001437749-25-004188
Chunk: 43

Company: OPTICAL CABLE CORP
Filing Date: 2025-02-18
Form: PRE 14A
Chunk 43
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 stock awards. The Company believes that the use of restricted stock awards, rather than stock options (by way of example), tends to be less dilutive to shareholders and also may tend to result in a lower expense to the Company under current U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.

When restricted stock award grants vest, participants incur a cash income tax withholding liability on non-cash taxable income (unlike stock options, by way of example). A participant can either “net vest” by surrendering a portion of the vesting Common Shares to cover his or her tax withholding liability or pay the tax withholding liability in cash to retain all of the vesting Common Shares, with the latter demonstrating an additional financial commitment by the participant.

The Company is a “smaller reporting company” as defined by the SEC, and is therefore not required to provide, and does not purport to provide, all of the disclosures required for a “Compensation Discussion and Analysis” as set forth in rules promulgated by the SEC.

Compensation Philosophy and Strategy

Compensation Committee Role

The Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors reviews and approves all compensation for the President and Chief Executive Officer (the “CEO”) and other named executive officers (currently only the Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”)), including base salary, annual cash incentive compensation, and long-term share-based incentive compensation. The Compensation Committee administers the Company’s stock incentive plans and approves all employee equity compensation granted under the 2017 Plan and other predecessor stock incentive plans.

The Compensation Committee also reviews recommendations of the CEO regarding compensation of other members of the senior leadership team of the Company (other than the executive officers, which are currently the CEO and the CFO), and has such other duties as set forth in the charter of the Compensation Committee, approved by the Board and which can be found on the Company’s website at www.occfiber.com/investor-relations/under“Corporate Governance”.

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The Compensation Committee engages an outside compensation consultant with a nationally recognized firm to make recommendations regarding appropriate compensation levels for executives—periodically and most recently during fiscal year 2023.

Compensation levels for executive officers are generally reviewed annually, but may be reviewed as deemed appropriate by the Compensation Committee.

Compensation Philosophy

The Company’s Compensation Philosophy is used by the Compensation Committee in reviewing and approving executive compensation, and also applies to other members of the Company’s leadership team, as well as to other employees (where appropriate).

The Company’s Compensation Philosophy is as follows