Dave & Buster's Appoints New COO and Chief Accounting Officer

What Happened Dave & Buster’s Entertainment, Inc. filed an 8-K reporting senior leadership changes: the Board appointed Amanda Busby as Chief Operations Officer and Derek Sample as Chief Accounting Officer (Sample was later designated principal accounting officer). The appointments were effective August 11, 2026 (Sample designated principal accounting officer on August 25, 2026); equity grants were made on August 31, 2026. The company also announced additional executive appointments and promotions in a press release dated August 24, 2026.

Key Details

• Amanda Busby (age 53) — base salary $450,000; target annual cash bonus 70% of salary; granted 72,464 RSUs (vest over 3 years), a stock option for 74,294 shares with $8.97 exercise price (performance-based earn‑out by Aug 31, 2029, then 3‑year vesting), and up to 55,741 PSUs tied to same‑store sales goals.
• Derek Sample (age 40) — base salary $315,000; target annual cash bonus 50% of salary (prorated for 2026); granted 39,019 RSUs (3‑year vesting), a stock option for 52,006 shares at $8.97 exercise price (performance earn‑out to Aug 31, 2029, then 3‑year vesting), and up to 39,019 PSUs tied to same‑store sales.
• Both executives have severance protections on termination without cause (12 months continued base pay, unpaid/completed-year bonus, pro‑rata bonus for year of termination, and 12 months continued medical premiums) subject to release and covenant compliance; non‑compete up to 1 year and non‑solicit up to 2 years.
• No family relationships or related‑party transactions requiring disclosure were reported. A press release (Exhibit 99.1) lists other leadership moves, including Jeremy Tucker (Chief Marketing Officer), Kevin Fish (Chief Technology & Digital Officer), Rachel Morgan (Chief Legal & Administrative Officer & Corporate Secretary) and Aldo Rosales (Chief Strategy & Revenue Management Officer).

Why It Matters These appointments strengthen Dave & Buster’s operational and accounting leadership with experienced hires whose pay packages combine cash compensation and equity tied to stock performance and same‑store sales targets. For investors, the equity and PSU structure aligns management incentives with stock price improvement and sales performance; the severance and restrictive covenants are standard protections that limit near‑term upside risk from abrupt departures.