UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

SCHEDULE 14A INFORMATION

Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934

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OceanFirst Financial Corp.

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	Oceanfirst Financial Corp. 110 West Front Street Red Bank, New Jersey 07701

Wednesday, May 20, 2020

9:00 a.m.

OceanFirst Bank Administrative Offices, 110 West Front Street, Red Bank, New Jersey 07701 Virtually at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/OCFC2020

ITEMS OF BUSINESS

The Board of Directors is not aware of any other business to come before the Annual Meeting.

RECORD DATE

In order to vote, you must have been a stockholder at the close of business on April 3, 2020.

PROXY VOTING

It is important that your shares be represented and voted at the meeting. You can vote your shares by completing and returning the enclosed proxy card, or electronically or by telephone by following the voting instructions printed on your proxy card and included in the accompanying proxy statement. You can revoke a proxy at any time prior to its exercise at the meeting by following the instructions in the proxy statement.

Steven J. Tsimbinos

Corporate Secretary

Table of Contents

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OCEANFIRST FINANCIAL CORP.

PROXY STATEMENT

ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS
MAY 20, 2020

PROXY SUMMARY

Proposals to be Voted on

Nominees for Director

Name	Age	Director Since	Independent	Committees
Angelo Catania	70	2006		Audit, Finance, and Leadership
Anthony R. Coscia	60	2018		None
Michael D. Devlin	69	2016		Finance, Information Technology, and Risk
Jack M. Farris	61	2015		Human Resources/Compensation, Information Technology, and Risk
Kimberly M. Guadagno	60	2018		Human Resources/Compensation
Nicos Katsoulis	60	2019		Finance and Risk
John K. Lloyd	73	2018		Human Resources/Compensation and Leadership
Christopher D. Maher	53	2014		None
William D. Moss	62	2020		None
Joseph M. Murphy, Jr.	61	2020		Finance and Information Technology
Steven M. Scopellite	54	2019		Information Technology
Grace C. Torres	60	2018		Audit, Finance, and Human Resources/Compensation
Grace M. Vallacchi	56	2019		None
John E. Walsh	66	2000		Audit, Information Technology, and Leadership

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Corporate Governance Highlights

	Comprehensive annual self-assessment of the Board, Committee, and individual director performance by the Leadership Committee			Board refreshment – Three new directors added: •   Steven Scopellite, former CIO of Goldman Sachs, appointed in June 2019 •   William Moss, former President/Chief Executive Officer of Two River Community Bank, appointed in January 2020 •   Joseph M. Murphy, Jr., former President/Chief Executive Officer of Country Bank, appointed in January 2020
	Reorganization of Executive Management: •   Appointment of Karthik Sridharan as Chief Information Officer, following the retirement of Joseph R. Iantosca •   Anthony Giordano III appointed as Chief Retail Banking Officer			Continued Focus on Information Technology Governance with the appointment of Mr. Sridharan as Chief Information Officer, the hiring of IT Governance and Vendor Contract Managers, and the creation of a Board-level Information Technology Committee
	Continued emphasis on social and environmental matters through the Corporate Social Responsibility Committee, the Woman LEAD program, the OceanFirst Foundation, and the WaveMakers volunteerism program			Quarterly Dividend paid for ninety-second consecutive quarter
	Continued usage of performance-based grants for executive officers

Executive Compensation Overview

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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

The Company periodically reviews its corporate governance policies and procedures to ensure that the Company meets the highest standards of ethical conduct, reports results with accuracy and transparency, and maintains full compliance with the laws, rules and regulations that govern the Company’s operations. As part of this periodic corporate governance review, the Board of Directors reviews and adopts best corporate governance policies and practices for the Company.

Corporate Governance Highlights

The Company has taken several actions to improve its internal governance since the mailing of its last proxy statement. These actions include:

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Corporate Governance Policies and Procedures

The Company has adopted a Corporate Governance Policy to govern certain activities, including:

In accordance with the Corporate Governance Policy, at least a majority of the directors on the Board must be “independent directors” as defined in the listing requirements of the Nasdaq Stock Market (“Nasdaq”).

Board Leadership Structure

The Board is led by the Chairman of the Board, Christopher D. Maher, who also serves as President and CEO of the Company and the Bank. The Board believes that combining the Chairman and CEO positions, together with the appointment of an independent lead director, is the appropriate Board leadership structure for the Company at this time. The Company has historically been led by a combined Chairman and CEO and the Board believes that the CEO is most knowledgeable about our business and corporate strategy and is in the best position to lead the Board of Directors, especially in relation to its oversight of corporate strategy formation and execution. In addition, having a combined Chairman and CEO provides a complete alignment on corporate strategy and vision. To assure effective independent oversight, the Board has adopted a number of governance practices, including:

The Company’s Corporate Governance Policy provides that the Chair of the Leadership Committee, currently John E. Walsh, shall also serve as the Lead Director. The Corporate Governance Policy provides that the duties of the Lead Director include assisting the Board in assuring compliance with and implementation of the Company’s Corporate Governance Policy, coordinating the agenda for and moderating sessions of the Board’s independent directors, and acting as principal liaison on certain issues between the independent and inside directors, including the Chairman of the Board, as applicable.

While the Board believes that the current leadership structure is best suited for the Company, it recognizes that other leadership models in the future might be appropriate, depending on the circumstances. Accordingly, the Board periodically reviews its leadership structure.

Board Role in the Oversight of Risk/Risk Committee

Under the Company’s Corporate Governance Policy, the business and affairs of the Company are managed by the officers under the direction of the Board. The Board is charged with providing oversight of the Company’s risk management processes. In January 2013, the Board created the Joint Risk Committee of the Company and the Bank (the “Risk Committee”) and delegated it primary responsibility for overseeing the risk management function at the Company on behalf of the Board. In addition, the Compensation Committee and the Company and Bank’s senior management are tasked with oversight of the Company’s risk management process. The duties of each of the Risk Committee, the Compensation Committee, and senior management with respect to such oversight is summarized below.

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Committees of the Board of Directors

The Board of Directors of the Company also maintains the Audit Committee, the Compensation Committee, the Leadership Committee, the Risk Committee, the Finance Committee, and the Information Technology Committee. The following is a description of each of the Company’s Board committees.

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The following table identifies the standing committees and their members as of December 31, 2019.

			Human
			Resources/			Information
	Audit	Leadership	Compensation	Risk	Finance	Technology
Director	Committee	Committee	Committee	Committee	Committee	Committee
Steven E. Brady
Angelo Catania
Michael D. Devlin
Jack M. Farris
Kimberly M. Guadagno
Nicos Katsoulis
John K. Lloyd
Steven M. Scopellite
Grace C. Torres
John E. Walsh
Samuel R. Young(1)

	Chairperson
(1)	Samuel R. Young retired from the Board on March 31, 2020.

Code of Ethics and Standards of Personal Conduct

The Company and Bank have adopted a Code of Ethics and Standards of Personal Conduct that is designed to ensure that all directors, executive officers and employees of the Company and Bank meet the highest standards of ethical conduct. The Code of Ethics and Standards of Personal Conduct requires that all directors, executive officers and employees avoid conflicts of interest, protect confidential information and customer privacy, comply with all laws and other legal requirements, conduct business in an honest and ethical manner and otherwise act with integrity and in the Company’s best interest. Under the terms of the Code of Ethics and Standards of Personal Conduct, all directors, executive officers and employees are required to report any conduct that they believe in good faith to be an actual or apparent violation of the Code.

As a mechanism to encourage compliance with the Code of Ethics and Standards of Personal Conduct, the Company and Bank established procedures to receive, retain and treat complaints received regarding accounting, internal accounting controls or auditing matters. These procedures ensure that individuals may submit concerns regarding questionable accounting or auditing matters in a confidential and anonymous manner. The Code of Ethics and Standards of Personal Conduct also prohibits the Company from retaliating against any director, executive officer or employee who reports actual or apparent violations of the Code.

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Corporate Social Responsibility

The Company recognizes the importance in conducting its business in a manner that both benefits its stockholders and contributes to the well-being of its customers, employees and the communities it serves. The Company strives to integrate corporate social responsibility (“CSR”) within all of its activities, and the Board considers the role of CSR when making decisions that affect the Company as a whole.

The following examples demonstrate the Company’s commitment to CSR and its responsibility to the communities where its customers, employees, and stockholders live and work:

Meetings of the Board of Directors

The Board of Directors of the Company and the Bank conduct business through meetings and the activities of the Boards and their committees. Board members are encouraged to attend all Board and Committee meetings. Their attendance and performance are among the criteria considered for re-nomination to the Board of Directors. During the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019, the Company’s Board of Directors held ten meetings and one special meeting. All of the Directors of the Company attended at least 75% of the Board meetings and the meetings of committees held on which such Directors served during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019.

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STOCKHOLDER-RECOMMENDED DIRECTOR NOMINATIONS

General

It is the policy of the Company’s Leadership Committee to consider director candidates recommended by stockholders who appear to be qualified to serve on the Company’s Board of Directors. The Leadership Committee may choose not to consider an unsolicited recommendation if no vacancy exists on the Board of Directors and the Leadership Committee does not perceive a need to increase the size of the Board of Directors. In order to avoid the unnecessary use of the Leadership Committee’s resources, the Leadership Committee will consider only those director candidates recommended in accordance with the procedures set forth below.

Procedures to be Followed by Stockholders

To submit a recommendation of a director candidate to the Leadership Committee, a stockholder should submit the following information in writing, addressed to the Chair of the Leadership Committee, care of the Corporate Secretary, at the main office of the Company:

In order for a director candidate to be considered for nomination at the Company’s Annual Meeting of stockholders, the recommendation must be received by the Leadership Committee at least 120 calendar days prior to the date the Company’s proxy statement was released to stockholders in connection with the previous year’s Annual Meeting, advanced by one year.

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Proposal 1 Election of Directors

The Company’s Board of Directors currently consists of fifteen directors. All of the directors are independent under current Nasdaq listing standards, with the exceptions of Christopher D. Maher, President and CEO of the Company and the Bank, Grace Vallacchi, Executive Vice President and CRO of the Company and the Bank, and Nicos Katsoulis, who was briefly Executive Vice President/ Commercial Real Estate for the Bank following the acquisition of Sun National Bank, where he was Chief Lending Officer. Pursuant with the shareholder approval to amend the Company’s Certificate of Incorporation to declassify the Board at the 2018 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, all directors are now elected to a one-year term expiring at the Annual Meeting of Stockholders. Each of the members of the Board also serves as a director for the Bank. The experience and qualifications of each director are set forth under “Nominees for Election of Director.”

Mr. Brady will retire from the Board and his term will expire at that Annual Meeting. At that time, the size of the Board will be reduced to fourteen members. The Company is grateful for Mr. Brady’s contributions to the Company’s success and wishes him continued prosperity in his future.

It is intended that the proxies solicited by the Board of Directors will be voted for the election of the nominees named in the following section. If any nominee is unable to serve, the persons named in the proxy card will vote your shares and approve the election of any substitute nominee proposed by the Board of Directors. Alternatively, the Board of Directors may adopt a resolution to reduce the size of the Board. At this time, the Board of Directors knows of no reason why any nominee might be unable to serve.

The Board of Directors recommends a vote “FOR” the election of all Directors listed in the “Nominees for Director”.

Criteria for Director Nominees

The Leadership Committee has adopted a set of criteria that it considers when it selects individuals to be nominated for election to the Board of Directors. The same criteria are used for persons nominated by the Committee or by a stockholder. A candidate must meet any qualification requirements set forth in any Board or committee governing documents.

The Leadership Committee will consider the following criteria in selecting nominees:

The Leadership Committee may weigh the foregoing criteria differently in different situations, depending on the composition of the Board of Directors at the time, and whether a director is expected to retire in the near future. While no single nominee may possess all of the skills needed to be a director, the Committee seeks to maintain a diversity of skills among the Board members necessary for the optimal functioning of the Board in its oversight of the Company. The Committee will strive to maintain at least one director who meets the definition of “audit committee financial expert” under the Commission’s regulations.

In addition, prior to nominating an existing director for re-election to the Board of Directors, the Leadership Committee will consider and review an existing director’s Board performance and attendance at Board and Committee meetings and other Company functions; length of Board service; experience, skills and contributions that the existing director brings to the Board; and independence.

Process for Identifying and Evaluating Nominees

Pursuant to the Leadership Committee Charter as approved by the Board, the Leadership Committee is charged with the central role in the process relating to director nominations, including identifying, interviewing and selecting individuals who may be nominated for election to the Board of Directors. The process the committee follows when it identifies and evaluates individuals to be nominated for election to the Board of Directors is as follows:

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Identification

For purposes of identifying nominees for the Board of Directors, the Leadership Committee relies on personal contacts of the committee and other members of the Board of Directors as well as its knowledge of members of the Company’s local communities. The Leadership Committee will also consider director candidates recommended by stockholders in accordance with the policy and procedures set forth above. The Leadership Committee has not received any recommended nominees from the Company’s stockholders to be considered for election at this Annual Meeting. The Leadership Committee has in the past used, and may in the future use, an independent search firm to assist in identifying candidates to fill a vacancy on the Board of Directors, but does not use a search firm to identify or evaluate potential director nominees in the ordinary course.

Evaluation

The Leadership Committee, in evaluating potential director candidates, conducts a check of the individual’s background, interviews the candidate, and determines whether the candidate is eligible and qualified for service on the Board of Directors by evaluating the candidate under the selection criteria set forth above.

Nominees for Election of Director

The biography of each of the nominees and continuing directors below contains information regarding the person’s service as a director, business experience, director positions held currently or at any time during the last five years, information regarding involvement in certain legal or administrative proceedings, if applicable, and the experiences, qualifications, attributes or skills that caused the Leadership Committee and the Board to determine that the person should serve as a director for the Company. The Board of Directors has determined that the Board as a whole must have the right diversity and complementary mix of characteristics and skills for the optimal functioning of the Board in its oversight of the Company. The Company considers the following requirements for each of its members of the Board:

The Board adopted the skills matrix that represents certain skills that the Board identified as particularly valuable to the effective oversight of the Company and execution of its business. The following matrix shows those skills and the number of directors having each skill, highlighting the diversity of skills on the Board.

	*	Includes prior service as Director of Financial Institutions acquired by the Company

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Nominees for Director

Unless otherwise stated, each individual has held his or her current position for the last five years. The age indicated for each individual is as of December 31, 2019. The indicated period of service as a director includes service as a director of OceanFirst Bank. The following directors have been nominated by the Leadership Committee for election to the Board with terms to expire at the 2021 Annual Meeting of Stockholders:

ANGELO CATANIA

Age 70

Director since 2006

Committees: Audit, Finance, and Leadership

Angelo Catania was the CEO and Managing Member of HomeStar Services LLC, an air conditioning, heating, plumbing and electrical service company until its sale and his retirement in 2015. Prior to joining HomeStar in February 2005, he was President and Chief Operating Officer (“COO”) of Petro, Inc., one of the largest home heating oil and services companies in the United States. As President and COO of Petro, Mr. Catania was responsible for the oversight of approximately 2,800 employees that serviced over 535,000 residential and commercial accounts. Mr. Catania has also served as the corporate controller of a publicly-owned home heating oil delivery and service company, where he was responsible for accounting systems, bank relations, benefits, information technology and acquisitions.

Mr. Catania’s experience as a senior officer brings to the Board significant management expertise and leadership skills, particularly as they relate to the use of technology to improve efficiency and customer service.

ANTHONY R. COSCIA

Age 60

Director since 2018

Committees: None

Anthony R. Coscia was the Chairman of the Boards of Sun Bancorp, Inc. and Sun National Bank since December 2016. Mr. Coscia served as a Director of Sun Bancorp, Inc. since 2010 and Sun National Bank since 2011 and was a member of the ALCO Committee and Chair of the Executive Committee. Sun Bancorp, Inc. and Sun National Bank were acquired by the Company in January 2018, at which time Mr. Coscia joined the Company’s Board. Mr. Coscia is admitted to the state bars of New Jersey and New York and is a Partner of Windels Marx Lane & Mittendorf, LLP, having been with the firm for over 30 years. Mr. Coscia’s legal practice focuses on corporate, commercial, and real estate matters, with a concentration on the financial and real estate elements of these transactions. Mr. Coscia serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak), having been appointed to the Board of Amtrak by President Obama in 2010 and reappointed in 2015. Mr. Coscia is Chairman of Suez North America, Inc., the U.S. subsidiary of Suez Environnement SAS. Mr. Coscia previously served as Chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey for over eight years, stepping down in 2011. Mr. Coscia is a graduate of Georgetown University School of Foreign Service and received his law degree from Rutgers University School of Law.

Mr. Coscia serves as trustee of Georgetown University and the New Jersey Community Development Corporation and is a member of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center Council of Trustees, the Partnership for New York City, The Economic Club of New York and the Regional Plan Association. In 2007, Mr. Coscia was awarded an honorary doctorate of humane letters from the New Jersey Institute of Technology. Mr. Coscia’s extensive background and reputation as a well-respected business leader actively involved in both the private and government sectors brings significant management and leadership skills to the Board.

MICHAEL D. DEVLIN

Age 69

Director since 2016

Committees: Finance, Information Technology and Risk

Michael D. Devlin has served as a Director since May 2016 when the Company acquired Cape Bancorp, Inc. and Cape Bank, of which Mr. Devlin was a Director since January 31, 2008, and President and Chief Executive Officer since January 27, 2009. Mr. Devlin currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors of Marquette National Corporation, a bank holding company based in Chicago, Illinois.

Mr. Devlin brings extensive banking and management expertise to the Board of Directors, particularly as to the southern markets and communities served by the Company.

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JACK M. FARRIS

Age 61

Director since 2015

Committees: Human Resources/Compensation, Information Technology and Risk

Jack M. Farris was the Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, InfoSec & Cybersecurity for Verizon Communications, Inc., one of the world’s leading wireline, wireless and business communications companies, until his retirement. Mr. Farris was appointed to this position in early 2017 and prior to that had served in a variety of legal and management functions, providing legal support for systems and technology procurement, global operations security, finance operations, regulatory compliance and transactional matters, as well as information technology and information security matters. Mr. Farris recently formed Practical RM Associates, a company established to provide cyber and technology risk management services. In addition to his undergraduate and law degrees, Mr. Farris holds a Master of Science in computer engineering and is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional under (ISC)².

Mr. Farris’s experience as a senior manager of a large corporation and his expertise in information technology and information security brings to the Board extensive knowledge and capability relating to communications, information technology, and cybersecurity, as well as significant experience in litigation, transactional matters and regulatory compliance.

KIMBERLY M. GUADAGNO

Age 60

Director since 2018

Committees: Human Resources/Compensation

Kimberly M. Guadagno is the president and CEO of Fulfill, a non-profit food bank committed to fighting hunger in Monmouth and Ocean Counties, which serves 135,000 food-insecure individually annually. She is also a partner with the law firm Connell Foley LLP and previously was the first Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey, serving from 2010-2018. She has also served as New Jersey’s 33^rd Secretary of State and in 2007 was elected the first woman sheriff of the Office of the Sheriff in Monmouth County, New Jersey. Ms. Guadagno founded the New Jersey Partnership for Action, a public-private partnership that promotes New Jersey businesses and job creation and chaired the Red Tape Review Commission, a bipartisan group charged with streamlining government services, cutting red tape, and proposing policy recommendations to further reduce the regulatory burdens on businesses. Ms. Guadagno has served 13 years in public service and has been an attorney for more than three decades.

Ms. Guadagno is a well-regarded leader in the both the private and government sectors and brings significant managerial and legal skills to the Board.

NICOS KATSOULIS

Age 60

Director since 2019

Committees: Finance and Risk

Nicos Katsoulis is the former Executive Vice President/Commercial Real Estate of OceanFirst Bank, N.A., having retired in November 2018. Mr. Katsoulis joined the Bank upon the Bank’s acquisition of Sun National Bank in February 2018. At Sun, Mr. Katsoulis was Executive Vice President and Chief Lending Officer, overseeing all lending activities including commercial and industrial and commercial real estate lending. During his banking career, Mr. Katsoulis served as a director of State Bancorp., Inc. and as Executive Vice President and Chief Lending Officer of Atlantic Bank of New York. Mr. Katsoulis is a graduate of the London School of Economics and Columbia University’s graduate school of business.

Mr. Katsoulis brings extensive banking and managerial experience to the Board, particularly with the commercial lending environment within the Bank’s current footprint and potential areas for expansion.

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JOHN K. LLOYD

Age 73

Director since 2018

Committees: Human Resources/Compensation and Leadership

John K. Lloyd was the Co-CEO of Hackensack Meridian Health until his retirement in December 2018. Under his leadership, Hackensack Meridian Health became the largest most comprehensive and integrated health network in New Jersey, including 16 hospitals, 33,000 team members and more than 6,000 physicians, and over 165 ambulatory facilities throughout the state, and had total revenues of $5.5 billion. Prior to his role as Co-CEO, Mr. Lloyd served as president of Meridian Health, a $2.1 billion, New Jersey-based health network of seven hospitals, one academic medical center, Jersey Shore University Medical Center, and 120 ambulatory facilities in Monmouth and Ocean Counties. Mr. Lloyd graduated from Princeton University and proudly served his country in the United States Marine Corps before attaining a Masters of Business Administration in Health Administration at Temple University. Mr. Lloyd has been recognized nationally and regionally with various awards including the Medical Executive Award from the Academy of Medicine of New Jersey and the Distinguished Business Leader Award from Monmouth University. He also received the Icon Award by NJBiz, the Maurice Pollack Award for Community Service from Monmouth University, the Lifetime Achievement Award by the American College of Healthcare Executives in New Jersey, and recently was awarded Hackensack Meridian Health’s first-ever lifetime achievement award.

Mr. Lloyd has significant expertise in the healthcare industry, prior service on publicly-traded boards, and excellent leadership skills developed over his 35 years as a CEO.

CHRISTOPHER D. MAHER

Age 53

Director since 2014

Committees: None

Christopher D. Maher has served as Chairman of the Company and the Bank since January 1, 2017 and as President and CEO of the Company and the Bank since January 1, 2015. He joined the Company and the Bank on March 25, 2013 as President and Chief Operating Officer and was appointed to the Board of Directors on February 19, 2014. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Maher served as President and CEO of Patriot National Bancorp and Patriot National Bank since 2010.

Mr. Maher is active in the non-profit community, serving as a Trustee of both Helen Keller Services for the Blind and Monmouth University and as a Director of Hackensack Meridian Home Care Services, Inc. and Hackensack Meridian Nursing & Rehabilitation. He is also active within the banking industry, becoming a director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia effective January 1, 2020 and as a member of the Board of the New Jersey Bankers Association.

WILLIAM D. MOSS

Age 62

Director since 2020

Committees: None

William D. Moss was the Chairman of the Board of Directors and President and Chief Executive Officer of Two River Community Bank and Two River Bancorp, having served in various capacities at Two River Community Bank since its inception in 2000. Two River and Two River Bancorp were acquired by OceanFirst Financial Corp. on January 1, 2020, at which time Mr. Moss joined the Board of OceanFirst Financial Corp.  Mr. Moss previously served in various officer positions with several banks, including Midlantic National Bank and the Central Jersey Bank and Trust Company.

Mr. Moss is a 1987 graduate of the Stonier Graduate School of Banking and is a past Chairman of the New Jersey Bankers Association.  He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Atlantic Community Bancshares, Inc. and its subsidiary, Atlantic Community Bankers Bank, as well as several non-profit boards. He is past president of the Community Bankers Association of New Jersey and the American Cancer Society/Jersey Shore Region. He previously served on the New Jersey State Banking Advisory Council and has also served as Councilman in the Borough of Shrewsbury, NJ and chair of its finance committee.

Mr. Moss brings extensive knowledge of the commercial banking industry, which includes over 40 years of experience, to the Company’s governance and leadership.

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JOSEPH M. MURPHY, JR.

Age 61

Director since 2020

Committees: Finance and Information Technology

Joseph M. Murphy, Jr. had served on the Board of Directors of Country Bank Holding Company since 2003 and on the Board of Country Bank since 1995. Country Bank was a Manhattan-based community bank acquired by OceanFirst on January 1, 2020. He served as Executive Vice President in 1997, President in 2008 and President/CEO since 2012. He was Chairman of the Loan and Technology Committees throughout his tenure. Country Bank specialized in real estate lending to small businesses and commercial real estate investors and was ranked in the “Top 200 Community Banks” nationwide by US Banker magazine five of the past ten years.

Prior to joining Country Bank, Mr. Murphy co-founded a commercial mortgage conduit, ValuExpress LLC, which has originated over $2.0 billion in loans for the real estate capital markets. For over 30 years he has owned and managed family real estate investments in various commercial properties throughout the United States. He currently serves as EVP of ValuExpress LLC and as President of Value Investors, Inc., his family’s investment office.

Mr. Murphy has served on the Board of Directors for the New York Chapter of Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the Finance Advisory Committee of the Congregation of Christian Brothers, and the Board of Trustees for the Greater New York Chapter of the American Red Cross. He also served on the Community Bankers Council of the American Bankers Association. He currently sits on the Board of the St. Patrick’s Parade Foundation, NYC and is a Knight of St. Patrick, which both support the New York City St. Patrick’s Day Parade.

Mr. Murphy is a graduate of the University of Denver with a BSBA. He also holds a Masters of Science in Real Estate Finance from New York University. Mr. Murphy provides the Company with extensive banking knowledge and particularly with respect to the New York markets.

STEVEN M. SCOPELLITE

Age 54

Director since 2019

Committees: Information Technology

Steven M. Scopellite was appointed to the Board of Directors in June 2019. Mr. Scopellite retired from Goldman Sachs in 2013, having served as Global Chief Information Officer. Among his accomplishments during his distinguished career of nearly 30 years were leading Goldman Sach’s penetration into new markets, pioneering the bank’s expansion into electronic trading, and developing the global funding platform. Mr. Scopellite currently serves as a Director of Soltage, LLC, a leading renewable energy provider; a Director at Ionic Security, a secure platform to protect and control data; and is Co-Founder and Advisor to Aspec Scire, a groundbreaking drone-data analytics company.

Mr. Scopellite is on the Dean’s Executive Advisory Counsel for the College of Computing and Informatics at Drexel University and Chairman to the Riverview Medical Center Foundation Board of Trustees. Mr. Scopellite provides the Board with significant management and risk management experience, particularly as they relate to information technology.

GRACE C. TORRES

Age 60

Director since 2018

Committees: Audit, Finance, and Human Resources/Compensation

Grace C. Torres has been a Trustee of Prudential Retail Mutual Funds, a retail mutual funds complex of more than 90 mutual funds, since 2014. Prior to that, Ms. Torres was Chief Financial Officer, Treasurer and Principal Financial Officer of Prudential Mutual Funds and Senior Vice President of Prudential Investments LLC from 1994 through 2014. Ms. Torres also previously served as Vice President, Mutual Funds Administration at Bankers Trust and as a Senior Manager, Audit Practice with Ernst & Young. Ms. Torres is a CPA in the State of New York and received a BS in Accounting and Management from New York University. Ms. Torres served as a Director of Sun Bancorp, Inc. and Sun National Bank since 2015, serving on the Audit, Nominating & Corporate Governance and Risk Committees and Chair of the ALCO Committee, until their acquisition by the Company in January 2018, at which time Ms. Torres joined the Board.

Ms. Torres brings to the Board additional financial reporting and audit experience, particularly with respect to large complex financial services organizations. Ms. Torres has been recognized as one the Top 50 business executives by Hispanic Business magazine and LATINA Style Magazine and brings in-depth experience and expertise regarding the financial industry.

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GRACE VALLACCHI

Age 56

Director since 2019

Committees: None

Grace Vallacchi was appointed Director in January 2019 and has served as Executive Vice President and CRO of the Company and the Bank since September 2017. Prior to joining OceanFirst, Ms. Vallacchi was Associate Deputy Comptroller in the Northeastern District of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) since February 2016. Prior to that position, she was Assistant Deputy Comptroller at the OCC since October 2012, and a National Bank Examiner since 2007.

Ms. Vallacchi’s experience provides the Board with enhanced risk management, banking industry knowledge, and regulatory and government relations.

JOHN E. WALSH

Age 66

Director since 2000

Committees: Audit, Information Technology and Leadership

John E. Walsh is a licensed professional engineer and a partner with T&M Associates where he has been employed since 2010. He currently serves as Senior Vice President, Corporate Practice Leader for Municipal Services and a member of the Board of Directors. T&M Associates is a privately owned engineering, planning and environmental consulting company with fourteen offices in seven states. Before joining T&M Associates, he served in various management capacities with CMX Engineering, Inc., a privately owned engineering company, from 2001 to 2010. At CMX, Mr. Walsh was responsible for all operational aspects of the business, including operational profitability and oversight of 380 professional engineers and technical staff. Prior to joining CMX Engineering, he was President of Bay Pointe Engineering Associates, Inc., from 1987 to 2001.

Mr. Walsh’s experience with T&M and CMX provides the Board with management and leadership skills, as well as extensive knowledge of business and marketing plans, annual budgets, personnel/resource management, sales initiatives, financial reporting and client management.

Directors Whose Terms are Expiring

On March 25, 2020, the Board of Directors accepted the recommendation of the Leadership Committee that Mr. Brady not be renominated to the Board. Mr. Brady joined the Board in 2016 as part of the Ocean Shore Holding Company acquisition and recently served on the Risk Committee. The decision not to renominate Mr. Brady was based upon, among other factors, the Leadership Committee’s view of the appropriate size of the Board, the Company’s commitment to add Messrs. Moss and Murphy as part of the Two River Bancorp and Country Bank Holding Company acquisitions, and the overlapping skill sets possessed by Messrs. Brady, Moss, and Murphy.

The Company is grateful for Mr. Brady’s contributions to the Company.

No director of the Company is also currently a director of a company having a class of securities registered under Section 12 of the Exchange Act or subject to the requirements of Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act or any company registered as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, other than Grace Torres’s service noted above.

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STOCK OWNERSHIP

The following table provides information as of April 3, 2020 with respect to the persons known by the Company to be the beneficial owners of more than 5% of its outstanding stock. A person is considered to beneficially own any shares of common stock over which he or she has, directly or indirectly, sole or shared voting or investment power.

The following table provides information as of April 3, 2020, about the shares of the Company common stock that may be considered to be beneficially owned by each director, nominee for director and each NEO and by all such directors and NEOs of the Company as a group. A person may be considered to beneficially own any shares of common stock over which he or she has, directly or indirectly, sole or shared voting or investment power. Unless otherwise indicated, each of the named individuals has sole voting power and sole investment power with respect to the shares shown.

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Each director and executive officer maintains a mailing address at 110 West Front Street, Red Bank, New Jersey 07701. As of April 3, 2020, none of the above directors or executive officers have pledged any shares of the Company.

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DELINQUENT SECTION 16(A) REPORTS

Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act requires the Company’s executive officers and directors, and persons who own more than 10% of a registered class of the Company’s equity securities, to file reports of ownership and changes in ownership with the Commission. Executive officers, directors and greater than 10% stockholders are required by Commission regulation to furnish the Company with copies of all Section 16(a) forms they file.

Based solely on a review of copies of such reports it has received and written representations provided to the Company from the individuals required to file the reports, the Company believes that each of the Company’s executive officers and directors, and greater than 10% beneficial owners have complied with all applicable reporting requirements for transactions in the Company’s common stock during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019.

Senior Executive Officers Who Are Not Also Directors

MICHAEL J. FITZPATRICK

Age 64

Michael J. Fitzpatrick has been Executive Vice President and CFO of the Company since 1995. He has also been Executive Vice President and CFO of the Bank since joining the Bank in 1992.

JOSEPH J. LEBEL III

Age 57

Joseph J. Lebel III was appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Bank on January 1, 2019, previously serving as Executive Vice President and Chief Banking Officer since January 2017 and Chief Lending Officer of the Bank from 2013 to 2017. Before then, he was First Senior Vice President and Chief Lending Officer since May 2007. When he first joined the Bank in April 2006, he was Senior Vice President of the Bank, in charge of Commercial Lending. Before then, he was employed with Wachovia Bank N.A. for approximately 22 years, most recently as Senior Vice President.

STEVEN J. TSIMBINOS

Age 50

Steven J. Tsimbinos was appointed Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of the Company and the Bank in June 2016, having previously served in those roles as First Senior Vice President since September 2010. Prior to joining OceanFirst, he was General Counsel of Copper River Management, L.P., the investment manager to a family of hedge funds, since May 2006, and prior to that a partner with Lowenstein Sandler PC, where he practiced corporate and securities law.

MICHELE B. ESTEP

Age 50

Michele B. Estep was appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of the Bank on January 1, 2019. Prior to joining OceanFirst, Ms. Estep was the Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of Sun National Bank. Before then, she held leadership roles at KeyBank in Albany, New York.

KARTHIK SRIDHARAN

Age 50

Karthik Sridharan was appointed Chief Information Officer of the Bank on September 9, 2019, following the retirement of Joseph Iantosca. Prior to joining OceanFirst, Mr. Sridharan was the Chief Technology Officer at Citigroup and previously held leadership roles in global technology management with JP Morgan Chase and Bank of America Corp. Mr. Sridharan was also an Industry Manager at Microsoft prior to joining the financial services industry.

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ANTHONY GIORDANO III

Age 63

Anthony Giordano III was appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Retail Banking Officer of the Bank on January 1, 2020, having previously served as the Bank’s Senior Operations Officer since 2015 and served as Interim Chief Information Officer until Mr. Sridharan’s appointment. Prior to joining OceanFirst, Mr. Giordano was Chief Executive Officer of Colonial American Bank until its acquisition by OceanFirst.

ANGELA K. HO

Age 36

Angela K. Ho was appointed Chief Accounting Officer of the Company in March 2017 and had served as the Chief Accounting Officer of the Bank since September 2016. Prior to joining OceanFirst, Ms. Ho served as the controller of Northfield Bank since 2012 and had significant accounting responsibilities at Signature Bank and KPMG.

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COMPENSATION DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS

Overview

This section describes the objectives, design and rationale of the Company’s compensation program for its Named Executive Officers (NEOs) and discusses each material element of the Company’s NEO compensation program, how compensation is determined, and recent developments in the Company’s compensation program.

For 2019, the Company’s NEOs were:

Executive Summary

2019 Business Highlights

The Company completed another successful year in 2019. The Company completed its acquisition of Capital Bank of New Jersey (“Captial Bank”) on January 31, 2019. Based on the $24.01 per share closing price of the Company’s common stock on January 31, 2019, the total transactional value was $76.8 million. The Capital Bank acquisition added $495 million to assets, $308 million to loans, and $449 million to deposits.

On August 9, 2019, the Company announced the acquisition of Two River Community Bancorp (“Two River”), and its subsidiary Two River Community Bank, and of Country Bank Holding Company, Inc. (“Country”) and its subsidiary Country Bank. These acquisitions closed on January 1, 2020. Based on the $25.54 closing price of the Company’s stock on December 31, 2019, the total transactional values for the Two River and Country acquisitions were $197.0 million and $112.8 million, respectively. These acquisitions added $1.92 billion to assets, $1.74 billion to loans, and $1.60 billion to deposits.

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Executive Compensation Program Highlights

Our executive compensation program contains the following components and features that are designed to align the interests of our NEOs and stockholders.

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Objectives of Compensation Program

The Company’s mission is to build relationships and financial solutions that empower clients to achieve their goals. To accomplish its mission, it strives to provide outstanding service and responsiveness to the markets and customers it serves, and the Company’s executive officer compensation program has stated objectives to:

The NEOs are one of the Company’s greatest assets, as their leadership and example to all employees drive the Company’s success and customer-centered excellence.

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Compensation Program Design and Rationale

To attract qualified executives as NEOs and to incentivize, reward and retain NEOs who meet the Company’s performance expectations, the Company used the following major elements in its 2019 total compensation for executives:

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Mix of Compensation Elements; Risk Mitigation.

The Committee believes that it maintains the appropriate balance of compensation elements to motivate executives and reward accomplishments. Performance-based incentive awards play an important role in the executive compensation program, but their use is balanced to provide stability and to avoid encouraging strategies and risk-taking that might not align with the long-term best interests of the Company and its stockholders and safe and sound banking practices.

The Company is mindful of sound regulatory compensation practices that are designed to cause banking institutions to structure compensation programs in a way that does not provide incentives for executives to take imprudent or excessive risks. The Company’s compensation program for NEOs is designed to mitigate risk by:

To further mitigate risk resulting from performance-based compensation, the Committee considers, and uses when appropriate, metrics and performance goals that incorporate risk management, “claw backs” to recover prior payments, and performance periods longer than one year. The use of equity-based long-term compensation, in combination with executive stock ownership requirements, reflects the Company’s compensation program’s goals of aligning the interests of executives and stockholders, thereby reducing the exposure to imprudent or excessive risk-taking. The Company believes these features balance the need to accept risk exposure in the successful operation of its business with the need to identify, monitor and prudently manage that risk.

In the first quarter of each year, the Chief Risk Officer conducts a compensation risk assessment to review any actual and potential risk created by the Company’s compensation program, as well as analyze the Company’s controls and risk mitigation mechanisms. This risk assessment is presented to and reviewed by the Committee. After review of the risk assessment presented in 2019, the Committee believes that the Company’s compensation policies and practices do not create risks that are reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on the Company and that the policies (1) appropriately balance risk and financial results in a manner that does not encourage employees to expose the Company to imprudent risk, (2) are compatible with effective controls and risk management, and (3) are supported by strong corporate governance, including active and effective oversight by the Company’s Board of Directors.

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The following chart illustrates the mix of the Company’s compensation for 2019 for its CEO, as specified on the Summary Compensation Table.

Consideration of Last Year’s Advisory Stockholder Votes on Executive Compensation

At the 2019 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, approximately 83% of the shares voting on the Company’s non-binding advisory vote on executive compensation (commonly known as “say on pay”) were cast in favor of the compensation of the Company’s executive officers, as described in the 2019 Proxy Statement. The Board and the Compensation Committee appreciate and value the views of our stockholders. In making compensation decisions for the remainder of 2019 and to date in 2020, the Board and the Committee have considered, among other factors, the stockholders’ support and the Board’s overall satisfaction with the current compensation structure. The Compensation Committee and the Board are mindful of the view and the trend towards the increased use of performance-based compensation and took that into account in making equity grants in 2019 and 2020 as further described below. The Committee and the Board believe that the compensation paid to our executive officers and the Company’s overall pay practices are fair and well-balanced. Further, advisory votes on executive compensation and stockholder outreach will continue to serve as a tool to guide the Committee and the Board in their ongoing assessment of the Company’s executive compensation program.

How Compensation Is Determined

The Compensation Committee reviews compensation for the CEO, the other NEOs and the other officers subject to the reporting requirements of Section 16 under the Exchange Act (including the NEOs, the “Section 16 Officers”), and establishes certain guidelines and limits for compensation and benefits programs for other employees of the Company and the Bank. The Compensation Committee annually reviews and evaluates the recommendations made by the CEO regarding compensation, including base salary, bonuses and equity grants for the Section 16 Officers, other than the CEO. The Compensation Committee then determines the compensation for the CEO and Section 16 Officers and reports its determination to the Board. In establishing compensation levels, the Compensation Committee considers the Company’s overall strategic objectives, annual performance goals, the report of the compensation consultant regarding peer group comparisons, market data for other institutions, individual executive performance, the relative level of compensation among executive officers and regulatory requirements. The Compensation Committee also has the Chief Risk Officer perform the risk assessment described above.

Executive management and outside advisors from time-to-time may be invited to Compensation Committee meetings to provide their views on compensation matters. The CEO participates in the process of determining compensation for the other NEOs by making recommendations regarding base salary adjustments and awards under incentive and equity plans. The CEO does not participate in the Compensation Committee’s decision as to his own compensation package. See “Corporate Governance – Committees of the Board of Directors” for further information regarding the Compensation Committee.

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Role of Compensation Consultant

The Compensation Committee first retained Mosteller & Associates (“MA”) in 2012 and again retained MA as its independent compensation consultant for 2019. The Compensation Committee considers competitive market data, advice and recommendations received from MA in making compensation decisions. MA and its representatives are independent of the Bank’s management, report directly to the Compensation Committee, and have no economic relationship with the Company other than MA’s role as advisor to the Compensation Committee. On November 20, 2019, the Compensation Committee reviewed information provided by MA regarding its independence. Based on this information and additional review, the Compensation Committee concluded that the work performed by MA does not raise any conflicts of interest.

Compensation Study

The Compensation Committee has historically relied on a peer group to assess relative performance for its annual incentive plans and uses this information as a factor when making compensation decisions. MA conducts peer group studies annually for the Compensation Committee. Two studies were used as a tool in making the Committee’s compensation decisions for 2019.

The first study was conducted in October 2018 (“2018 MA Report”) and used, in part, to determine 2019 compensation. Given the Company’s growth and possibility for continued acquisition growth, MA focused the 2018 MA Report peer group on peer organization between $5.0 billion and $10.0 billion in assets. This includes 23 similar banks in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern states with assets ranging from $5.3 billion to $11.6 billion at the end of 2017. The 23 bank peer group for the 2018 MA Report consisted of the following:

MA reviewed the Bank’s current level of executive compensation relative to its peers and provided the Compensation Committee with its report at its November 26, 2018 meeting. A strong alignment existed between performance and executive compensation at OceanFirst. The financial performance indicators in the review were as follows:

In reviewing the 2018 MA Report, the Committee considered that the Company’s performance in 2017 was impacted by merger related expenses, branch consolidation expenses, and additional income tax expense from the revaluation of deferred tax assets as a result of the reduction in the corporate income tax rate related to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“Tax Reform”). Excluding those factors, the Company’s performance for ROA and ROE would have both reflected performance in the upper tier of the peer group. For 2018, the Compensation Committee benchmarked compensation at the 50^th percentile of the peer group. Overall, the base salaries were 16.8% below the 23 bank peer group average while the target bonuses trended above the peer group average.

Total compensation, including equity awards, was below the peer group, averaging 89.4% of the peer group average with individual ranges from 79.4% to 115.6% of the peer group average. The 2018 MA Report was taken into account by the Compensation Committee in its review of 2018 executive compensation previously established in part by the Committee’s use of the November 2017 MA Report (“2017 MA Report”) to align with the 50% peer group percentile benchmark. The 2018 MA Report was also used to determine actual 2018 bonus payouts, to the extent of the Compensation Committee’s discretion in assessing individual performance, and 2019 compensation. Of the respective peer group average for CEO compensation, Mr. Maher’s base salary was 91.5% of the peer group average, target bonus was 142.8% of the peer group average, and total compensation (including equity awards) and all other compensation was 79.4%.

The second study was conducted in October 2019 (“2019 MA Report”) and used to evaluate peer market data to ensure that 2019 executive compensation was aligned with the 50% percentile peer group benchmark, to assist the Compensation Committee in its determination of actual 2019 bonus payouts to the extent of the Committee’s discretion, and to determine 2020 compensation (including base compensation and target bonuses). Given the Company’s growth and possibility for continued acquisition growth, MA focused the 2019 MA Report peer group on peer organizations between $5.0 billion and $10.0 billion in assets. This includes 24

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similar banks in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern states with assets ranging from $5.0 billion to $12.5 billion at the end of 2018. The 24 bank peer group for the 2019 MA Report consisted of the following:

MA reviewed the Bank’s current level of executive compensation relative to its peers and provided the Compensation Committee with its report at its November 20, 2019 meeting. The results show there is a strong alignment between OceanFirst’s performance and its executive compensation program as compared to its peers. The financial performance indicators in the review were as follows:

In reviewing the 2019 MA Report, the Committee considered that the Company’s performance in 2018 was impacted by merger related expenses, branch consolidation expenses, and a reduction of tax income expense from the revaluation of the Company’s deferred tax assets as a result of Tax Reform. Excluding those factors, the Company’s performance for ROA and ROE would have both reflected performance in the upper tier of the peer group. For 2019, the Compensation Committee benchmarked compensation at the 50^th percentile of the peer group. Overall, the base salary compensation was within 10% of the 24 bank peer group average while the target bonuses paid trended above the peer group average. Management and the Compensation Committee also reviewed the 75^th percentile peer compensation while evaluating both base pay and bonuses. Overall, the base salary compensation was under the 75^th percentile of the 24 banks peer group average by 16% and target bonuses paid were lower than the 75^th percentile average by 7%. Total compensation, including equity awards, was above the peer group averaging 131.5% of the peer group average with individual ranges from 95.4% to 161.3% of the peer group average. The 2019 MA Report was taken into account by the Compensation Committee in its review of 2019 executive compensation (previously established in part by the Committee’s use of the 2018 MA Report to align with the 50% peer group percentile benchmark). The 2019 MA Report was also used to determine actual 2019 bonus payouts, to the extent of the Compensation Committee’s discretion in assessing individual performance, and 2020 compensation. Of the respective peer group average for CEO compensation, Mr. Maher’s base salary was 114.1% of the peer group average, target bonus was 170.1% of the peer group average, and total compensation (including equity awards) and all other compensation was 136.0%. of the peer group average.

Elements of Compensation

The following describes the elements of compensation and provides information on certain decisions regarding 2019 compensation.

Base Salary

The base salary levels for the NEOs are intended to be competitive with those of comparable positions at peer financial institutions at levels appropriate to attract, retain, motivate and reward individuals to discharge their responsibilities, while being mindful of managing costs, particularly “fixed” costs. After the Compensation Committee’s consideration of various factors, including the growth of the Company, the 2018 MA Report, prevailing market conditions, current and anticipated Company performance, the performance and responsibilities of individual executives, and current pay levels, as applicable, the Company increased NEO base salaries in January 2019. The salaries for 2019 are as follows:

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Cash Incentive Awards

A significant portion of each NEO’s annual cash compensation is contingent on the performance of the Company, the Bank and the individual under a cash incentive compensation plan. Annual non-discretionary cash bonuses for the NEOs are contingent on the performance of the Company, the Bank and the individual, by comparing actual Company performance against targets that are approved by the Compensation Committee at the beginning of 2019, considering the 2018 MA Report. The Committee further considered the 2018 MA Report in setting the cash incentive compensation to be at the 50% percentile of the 2019 peer group. For 2019, Mr. Maher’s bonus target was set as a component of his employment contract. Ordinarily, if cash incentive compensation is paid out under the plan, actual bonus payments may range from 50% of targeted bonus levels for Threshold performance to 150% for Superior performance. For 2019, incentive payments were based on Core Earnings and Core Efficiency Ratio utilizing the following matrix:

For purposes of the matrix, the Core Earnings and Core Efficiency Ratio values were derived from the Company’s 2019 Business Plan as proposed by senior management and approved by the Board in December 2018. The results for 2019 were Core Earnings at $104,841,000 (below Target) and the Core Efficiency Ratio at 55.70% (below Threshold), resulting in overall funding of 53.2% of Target. Funding is then adjusted for individual performance. “Core” measures exclude merger related expenses, branch consolidation expenses, non-recurring professional fees, compensation expense due to the retirement of an executive officer, and reduction in income tax expense from the revaluation of state deferred tax assets as a result of a change in the New Jersey tax code. The incentives are determined based upon the Company’s success in achieving its financial goals, as adjusted for individual performance, as well as consideration of the 2018 and 2019 MA Reports, the most recent compensation studies reviewed by the Committee. Individual allocation of incentive was based upon individual performance in the threshold to superior range as described above. The following table provides a summary of the incentive payments to the Company’s NEOs for 2019:

For 2020, the Compensation Committee has determined that, in light of the economic uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Committee will take a less formulaic approach to awards under the Company’s cash incentive award program, based on the difficulty of setting appropriate metrics in the current economic environment. While the Compensation Committee will still set performance goals, it will reserve a discretionary component based on the Committee’s view of the Company’s overall performance in 2020 in light of market conditions.

Discretionary Bonus Payments

The Compensation Committee limits the use of discretionary bonus payments to extraordinary circumstances (like those the Committee believes will exist in 2020) to rectify inequities or reward extraordinary performance. The Compensation Committee reviewed the application of the performance goals set for 2019 under the cash incentive plan against the overall results of the Company for 2019, a year when the Company achieved:

Specifically, the Compensation Committee considered that the Company’s Core Efficiency Ratio, a significant performance goal weighted at 40% of the bonus amount, was set, even at the Threshold level to an aggressive value, and was in actuality negatively affected by the multiple interest rate cuts that occurred in 2019, causing it to narrowly miss the Threshold value and not fund at all. In order to recognize management’s efforts in leading the Company to a successful year with record profitability, and to avoid an inequitable disconnect between the performance assessment and related bonus opportunity for the NEOs, the Compensation

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Committee approved discretionary bonuses for the Section 16 Officers. These discretionary bonuses, and the cash incentive bonuses previously described in the Cash Incentive Award section, are listed in the following table:

Even with the above discretionary bonuses, total NEO bonuses for 2019, other than for Ms. Vallacchi, were significantly below bonus payments for 2018 (which were entirely cash incentive payments). The Compensation Committee had not utilized discretionary bonuses since 2013 and continues to believe their use should be limited to extraordinary circumstances and to recognize outstanding performance.

Executive Incentive Awards

During 2019, the Compensation Committee approved the grants of stock options and restricted stock awards under the Company’s stock incentive plans. The grants vest over five years, with the exception of the time-based restricted stock and stock option grants to Mr. Fitzpatrick, which vest over three years. The award levels and vesting schedules were determined based on various factors, including prevailing market conditions, performance and responsibilities of individual executives, current pay levels, the value of awards previously granted and the 2018 MA Report. Awards in 2019 to the NEOs are presented in “Executive Compensation” under the “Stock Options” and “Stock Awards” columns of the Summary Compensation Table and the Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table, and can be illustrated as follows:

To align NEOs’ interests with stockholders, a significant portion of each executive’s total equity award was awarded as performance-based restricted stock with the remaining portion of the award granted as time-vested restricted stock and stock options. For Mr. Maher, approximately 44% (determined by dollar value) of his 2019 award was granted in performance-based restricted stock (assuming vesting at the Target level), 14% was granted in time-bested restricted stock and 42% in options. For all other executives, approximately 30% of their awards during 2019 were granted as performance-based restricted stock (assuming vesting at the Target level), 20% as time-vested restricted stock, and 50% in stock options. Performance-based shares awarded vest equally over five years but only when specific performance metrics for Return on Assets (“ROA”) have been met or exceeded. The Compensation Committee selected ROA as the performance goal because it is one of the primary goals tracked by the Company and its stockholders. The Compensation Committee believes that the grants made in 2019 appropriately balance the goal of creating an incentive to increase stockholder value with the goal of risk mitigation and promoting sound banking practices. The number of shares of performance-based restricted stock earned for each of 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 will vary based on performance relative to established goals for ROA at Threshold, Target, and Superior performance levels. For 2019, the ROA performance goals

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were 1.30% at Threshold, 1.40% at Target, and 1.50% at Superior performance. Based on 2019 results, the executives earned at the Threshold level for the 2019 grant and the shares vested on March 1, 2019. However, the executives failed to earn at the Threshold level for the 2018 grant and this tranche of performance shares was forfeited. See “Compensation Program Design and Rationale – Mix of Compensation Elements; Risk Mitigation.”

Benefits

All NEOs participate in the benefit plans generally available to the employees, including medical, life and disability insurance, the 401(k) Plan and the Company’s Employee Stock Ownership Plan (“ESOP”). The Company also maintains SERPs covering Messrs. Maher and Fitzpatrick. These SERPs are intended to promote continued service of covered executives by providing a supplement to the executive’s other qualified retirement plan benefits, which are limited by law. In the case of Mr. Fitzpatrick, the benefit is based on the average of the highest compensation during any four consecutive calendar years and length of service with the Company, and in the case of Mr. Maher, an agreed upon schedule of annual contributions. The Company did not make any significant changes to the benefits offered to its NEOs in 2019. See “Executive Compensation – Nonqualified Deferred Compensation – Supplemental Executive Retirement Plan.”

Perquisites

The Company provided perquisites to certain NEOs in the form of Company-paid automobile benefits and, for certain NEOs, country club dues and provision of a comprehensive executive physical. The NEOs are subject to the Company’s Travel and Entertainment Policy, which governs travel, dining and entertainment expenses for all employees. Perquisites are included in the footnotes and narratives to the Summary Compensation Table within Executive Compensation.

Deferred Compensation

The Bank provides certain NEOs with an opportunity to elect to defer current compensation under the Deferred Compensation Plan for Executives (the “Deferral Plan”). The Deferral Plan permits eligible executives selected by the Bank’s Board to elect to defer receipt of up to 100% of base salary and annual bonus pursuant to the terms of the Deferral Plan. The Company did not make any significant changes to the deferral program for its NEOs.

Employment Agreements

The continued success of the Company depends to a significant degree on the skills and competence of its NEOs. As part of its compensation program, the Company affords its NEOs eligibility for payments and benefits in the event of certain employment terminations and/or in the event of a change in control of the Company. The employment agreements are intended to ensure that the Company will be able to maintain a stable and competent management base. The employment agreements also include restrictive covenants (non-competition, non-solicitation, and confidentiality) to protect the Company’s business interest in the event that an executive leaves employment with the Company. The employment agreements are described later in the proxy under “Executive Compensation – Employment Agreements.”

Stock Ownership Guidelines

The Board, upon the recommendation of the Leadership Committee, has adopted stock ownership guidelines (the “Guidelines”) for non-employee directors and the NEOs. The Guidelines were adopted to better align the interests of the non-employee directors and the NEOs with those of the Company’s stockholders. The Guidelines provide that the CEO shall own Company stock with a market value of at least five times his annual base salary. To comply with the Guidelines, each other NEO shall own Company stock with a market value of at least three times his annual base salary. Each NEO shall meet the share ownership requirements within five years of the officer having become a NEO. Shares that count towards the Guidelines’ requirement include those shares listed under the officer’s share ownership, including shares held in the officer’s ESOP and 401(k) accounts, unvested time-based and performance-based restricted stock, and the value of vested and unvested stock options, where such value is calculated as the cumulative expense recognized by the Company on its financial statements. Until the Guidelines are met, a NEO shall retain all of the net vested restricted stock and net shares delivered after exercising stock options. Net shares refers to the shares that remain after shares are sold or netted to pay the exercise price of options and any withholding taxes.

All of the Company’s NEOs were in compliance with the Stock Ownership Guidelines for 2019.

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Hedging/Pledging Policy

The Company believes that the interests of its directors and senior executive officers should be aligned with stockholders. To assure this alignment, the Company has adopted an anti-hedging/pledging policy which states that its directors and senior executive officers, defined as any officer that is required to file reports under Section 16 of the Exchange Act, may not, without the approval of the Board: (1) directly or indirectly engage in hedging or monetization transactions, through transactions in the Company’s securities or through financial instruments designed for that purpose or achieving that effect, including equity swaps, puts, calls, collars, forwards, exchange funds and prepaid variable forwards, or (2) pledging or hypothecating the Company’s securities as collateral for a loan, including through the use of a traditional margin account with a securities broker. Any request to engage in a hedging or pledging transaction must be submitted to the General Counsel, with a description of the transaction(s) and the reasons for the transaction(s), at least two weeks prior to the anticipated transaction.

The General Counsel will review the circumstances and reasons for this request and determine whether there is a valid reason to approve the transaction. In late 2019, Mr. Maher requested the short-term pledging of stock in connection with a real estate transaction with Mr. Maher’s principal residence. The credit was well-collateralized by the pledge, with little risk of a sale. Accordingly, after consultation with the Company’s General Counsel, this request was approved by the Board. As of March 1, 2020, the loan was repaid, and the pledge was eliminated.

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EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

Summary Compensation Table

The following table sets forth certain summary information regarding the compensation paid or accrued by the Company during the fiscal years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017 to or for the account of the CEO, CFO, and the other three most highly compensated current executive officers, as well as our retired Chief Information Officer, of the Company (the “NEOs”):

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CEO Pay Ratio

Christopher D. Maher, Chairman, President and CEO, had fiscal 2019 total compensation of $2,903,694 as reflected in the 2019 Summary Compensation Table included in this proxy statement. We calculated that the median annual compensation for all OceanFirst Bank employees, excluding our CEO, was $58,010 for 2019. As a result, Mr. Maher’s 2019 annual compensation was approximately 50 times that of the median annual compensation for all employees.

In order to estimate our CEO pay ratio, we used our employee population as of December 31, 2019. We calculated median employee compensation aggregating the total of base salary, overtime, annual bonus and annualized benefit costs for all employees. For employees hired during the year, their compensation was annualized to reflect a full year of wages. Employees benefit costs were annualized based upon their enrollment status as of December 31, 2019. We did not include independent contractors in our determination. Once the median employee compensation value was identified, the total annual compensation for the CEO was calculated using the same methodology we use to calculate Total Annual Compensation for our named executive officers as set forth in the 2019 Summary Compensation Table contained in this proxy statement. The CEO pay ratio was then calculated by dividing the CEO total annual compensation by the median employee compensation.

The SEC’s rules requiring pay ratio disclosure allow companies to exercise a significant amount of flexibility in making a determination as to who is the median employee and does not mandate that each public company use the same method. In addition, our compensation philosophy supports fair pay based on a person’s role in the Company, a subjective determination of the market value of that person’s job and that person’s performance in that position. As a result, the annual total compensation of our median employee is unique to the CEO pay ratio calculation and is not an indicator of the annual total compensation of each of our employees nor is comparable to the annual total compensation of employees at other companies. Similarly, we would not expect that the ratio of the annual total compensation of our CEO to our median employee to be a number that can be compared to the ratio determined by other companies in any meaningful way.

Employment Agreements

The Company has entered into separate employment agreements with Messrs. Maher, Fitzpatrick, Lebel, and Tsimbinos and Ms. Vallacchi. (each such person, the “Executive”).

The employment agreements have terms expiring on July 31, 2023. Mr. Iantosca, the Bank’s former Chief Information Officer, had a similar agreement until his retirement in July 2019. Each employment agreement provides that the agreement shall be extended each August 1 for an additional year, unless prior written notice of non-renewal is given to the Executive after conducting the Executive’s performance evaluation. In addition to base salary, the agreements provide for, among other things, participation in cash incentive and stock benefit plans and other fringe benefits applicable to executive personnel. The employment agreements also provide that the compensation awarded under the agreements is subject to reduction or “clawback” under certain circumstances.

The agreements provide for termination, at any time by the Bank or the Company, for cause as defined in the agreements or without cause. In the event the Bank or the Company chooses to terminate the Executive’s employment for reasons other than for cause, or in the event of the Executive’s qualifying resignation from the Bank and if applicable the Company, the Executive would be entitled to receive an amount equal to the greater of (x) the remaining base salary payments the Executive would have earned until the expiration of the term of the employment agreement or (y) the Executive’s base salary for one year plus the greater of (i) the cash incentive payment paid to the Executive for the prior fiscal year or (ii) the target cash incentive compensation for the current fiscal year. In the event of such a qualifying termination, the Company would also continue to pay for the Executive’s life, health and disability coverage for the remaining term of the employment agreement or 18 months, whichever is less. Resignation would qualify for the above severance benefits upon: (1) a change in the Executive’s authority, duties or responsibilities which represents a material adverse change from those in effect immediately prior to such change; (2) a material decrease in the Executive’s annual salary, target cash compensation (unless target cash compensation was materially decreased for all NEOs as listed in the Company’s most recent proxy statement), or elimination or reduction of any material benefit that the Company otherwise provides to its executives of similar rank (except those changes to any benefit or benefit program implemented for all Company employees who participate in such benefits or programs or that may be required by law) without his prior written agreement, (3) relocation of Executive’s principal place of employment to a location that increases the Executive’s commute from his primary residence by more than 30 miles one way; or (4) a material breach of the agreement by the Company.

Under the agreements, if a qualifying resignation or involuntary termination (other than for cause) follows a change in control (as defined in the employment agreements) of the Company, the Executive would be entitled to a severance payment (the “Change in Control Payment”) equal to the sum of (x) Executive’s base salary and (y) the greater of (i) the cash incentive payment paid to the Executive for the prior fiscal year or (ii) the target cash incentive compensation for the current fiscal year. The Executive would also be entitled to continued health and welfare benefits as described above. If the Bank is adequately capitalized at the time of the change in control, each executive’s Change in Control Payment, with the exception of Ms. Vallacchi, will be multiplied by a factor of three, provided, however, that the total value of the Change in Control Payment (including any insurance benefits provided) shall not exceed three times the sum of (x) the Executive’s salary and (y) the greater of (i) the cash incentive payment paid to the Executive for the prior fiscal year or the (ii) Target Cash Compensation for the current fiscal year. In the case of Ms. Vallacchi, her Change in Control payment will be multiplied by a factor of two, provided, however, that the total value of the Change in Control Payment (including any insurance benefits provided) shall not exceed two times the sum of (x) the Executive’s salary and (y) the greater of (i) the cash incentive payment paid to the Executive for the prior fiscal year or the (ii) Target Cash Compensation for the current fiscal

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year. If the amount of such termination benefits are deemed to be parachute payments as defined in section 280G of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended , such termination benefits will be reduced to an amount $1.00 less than the amount that triggers such excise tax, but only if such reduced amount is greater than the aggregate amount of the termination benefits unreduced less the amount of the excise tax and any applicable state and federal taxes.

In event of the Executive’s subsequent death while he or she is receiving the above severance payments (whether or not it the event of a change in control), such payments will be made to his or her beneficiaries or estate. Each Executive is subject to certain confidentiality provisions, as well as certain non-competition and non-solicitation provisions during the term of the agreement and for one year post termination. The employment agreements provide for the arbitration of disputes between the parties and that the prevailing party shall be awarded attorneys’ fees. The employment agreements also provide that the Company shall indemnify the Executive to the fullest extent allowable under Delaware law and if applicable federal law.

Grants of Plan-Based Awards

The following tables set forth certain information regarding stock options, restricted stock awards and non-equity incentive plan awards to the NEOs during the Company’s fiscal year ended December 31, 2019.

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Outstanding Equity Awards at Fiscal Year-End

The following table sets forth certain information regarding stock options and stock awards held by the NEOs of the Company at December 31, 2019:

(Table continues and footnotes on following pages)

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Option Exercises and Stock Vested

The following table sets forth certain information regarding exercises of options or vesting of restricted shares during the Company’s fiscal year ended December 31, 2019:

Nonqualified Deferred Compensation

Supplemental Executive Retirement Plans

The Bank maintains non-qualified SERPs to provide Messrs. Maher and Fitzpatrick with additional retirement benefits. As part of Mr. Maher’s SERP arrangement, the Bank established in 2014 an account for the benefit of his retirement and commenced the funding of that SERP by an annual Company contribution. Such account will be paid in full upon the termination of his employment due to his retirement after age 65, resignation for Good Reason (as defined), termination without Cause (as defined) or his death. If Mr. Maher’s employment terminates for a reason other than those detailed in the preceding sentence, Mr. Maher shall be paid the balance of the account, less contributions for the preceding five years and less any earnings on those forfeited contributions. For Mr. Fitzpatrick, the benefits provided under his SERP make up the difference between an amount up to 70% of the average of the highest compensation during any four consecutive calendar years and the benefits provided from the Bank’s 401(k) Retirement Plan plus the benefits which would have been provided from the Bank’s Retirement Plan (Pension Plan) which was frozen in 1996 and terminated in 1998. In addition, the SERP provides a benefit equal to the benefits lost from the ESOP due to the application of

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limitations imposed by the Code, as amended, on compensation and maximum benefits under the ESOP. The Bank established an irrevocable trust in connection with the SERP for Mr. Fitzpatrick. The trust is funded with contributions from the Bank for the purpose of providing the benefits promised under the terms of the SERP. The assets of the trust are beneficially owned by the SERP participant, who recognizes as income contributions that are made to the trust. Earnings on the trust’s assets are taxable to the participant.

Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan for Executives

This Deferral Plan previously allowed eligible officers selected by the Bank’s Board to defer receipt of up to 100% of base salary and annual bonus pursuant to the terms of the Plan. The Plan currently maintains balances from prior deferrals but is currently not accepting new contributions. Participating executive’s prior deferrals were credited to a bookkeeping account and are increased on the last day of each month by interest earned at the rate equal to the Stable Fund Rate for the 401(k) Plan plus 250 basis points. The following table sets forth certain information regarding nonqualified deferred compensation benefits to NEOs of the Company during the Company’s fiscal year ended December 31, 2019: