Robert J. Coughlin

Robert J. Coughlin
Born	(1961-12-20) December 20, 1961 (age 63) Worcester, Massachusetts
Nationality	American
Alma mater	Miami University
Occupation	Entrepreneur
Known for	Founder of Paycor
Spouse	Jeanne

Robert "Bob" Coughlin (born December 20, 1961) is an American entrepreneur, best known for being the founder and prior Chairman/CEO of Paycor, a Human Capital Management (HCM) software and services company.

Early life

Coughlin was born in Worcester, Massachusetts. He relocated to Ohio with his family at the age of 10. Coughlin graduated from Anderson High School in Cincinnati. Coughlin has two sisters who were disabled, one from birth and one from an infection as a child. Following graduation from Miami University in 1983, ^[1] he worked at ADP and Computer Identics, in operations and sales roles.

Paycor

In May 1990, at age 28, Coughlin founded Paycor, Inc. to provide payroll services to the Cincinnati market. ^[2] Upon Coughlin's retirement in 2019, Paycor served 30,000 clients and had 1,700 employees. ^[3] Coughlin remained as chairman until fully retiring in 2020. On January 7, 2025, Paychex, Inc. announced a deal to acquire Paycor for $4.1 billion. ^[4]

Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon

Coughlin first competed in the New York City Marathon in 1994. ^[5] Coughlin founded a marathon in Cincinnati to raise money for charity and function as a non-profit. Cincinnati Marathon, Inc. was formed, ^[6] and the first Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon was held in May 1999. 2023 marked its 25th running, ^[7] Coughlin and his family also established The Flying Pig Scholars program with Skyline Chili and other contributors, which provides scholarships each year to ten high school cross-country or track and field athletes. ^{[8] [9]}

Recognition

• Paycor named an Inc. Magazine Inc. 500 company in 1996 ^[10]
• Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce Community Service Award in 1998
• Association for Corporate Growth "Deal Maker of the Year" 2005
• Association for Corporate Growth "Lifetime Achievement Award" 2023 ^[11]
• Junior Achievement of OKI "Greater Cincinnati Business Hall of Fame" 2023 ^[12]
• Greater Cincinnati Foundation Jacob E. Davis Volunteer Leadership Award 2023 ^[13]

References

1. "'Gravity' allows Paycor founder to do great things". Miami University Farmer School of Business. June 17, 2021.
2. "Career Clip: Bob Coughlin: Founder & Chairman, Paycor". Natfluence. June 2, 2017.
3. "Top 25 HR Software of 2019". thesoftwarereport.com. April 15, 2019.
4. Coolidge, Alexander. "Deal: Paychex to buy Paycor for $4.1B". The Enquirer. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
5. "NYRR Official Race Results for Bob Coughlin". New York Road Runners.
6. Rippin, Kelly (March 1, 2023). "From napkin to execution: Flying Pig founder recounts race's beginnings as a celebration of Greater Cincinnati". NBC Channel 5 (WLWT) Cincinnati.
7. "Flying Pig Marathon Celebrates 25th Anniversary". NBC Channel 5 (WLWT) Cincinnati. May 7, 2023.
8. "Flying Pig Marathon Community Scholars Program". FlyingPigMarathon.com.
9. Etling, Leah (April 20, 2023). "Surprise! $200,000 Awarded to Local High School Runners at the Flying Pig Community Scholars Breakfast". Running USA.
10. "The Inc. 500: Inc.'s 15th Annual List". Inc.com. October 15, 1996.
11. "Paycor founder Bob Coughlin wins ACG Lifetime Achievement Award". Cincinnati Business Courier. May 11, 2023.
12. "Greater Cincinnati Business Hall of Fame Announces 2023 Laureates". Movers & Makers Cincinnati. June 7, 2023.
13. "Greater Cincinnati Foundation Community Awards". Greater Cincinnati Foundation.