OCCABA upcoming events

Member Appreciation & Summer Social (June 25, 2026)

Fri, 26 Jun 2026 00:30:00 GMT

Member Appreciation & Summer Social

Thursday, June 25, 2026

5:30 pm to 8:00 pm

Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club

1601 Bayside Drive

Corona Del Mar, California 92625

Event details to be published shortly.

Total Rewards in Real Life (July 15, 2026)

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 14:30:00 GMT

Total Rewards in Real Life

In-Person Breakfast Meeting

Wednesday, July 15, 2026, from 7:30 am to 9:00 am (Pacific Time)

Networking / Breakfast: 7:30 - 8:00 am

Meeting: 8:00 - 9:00 am

Location: Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club, 1601 Bayside Drive, Corona del Mar, California {Complimentary Parking is in the BCYC Lot}

Total Rewards in Real Life offers an honest, behind-the-scenes look at how compensation and benefits really operate inside an organization. Compensation professionals will share candid insights into what works, what doesn’t for their company culture. We’ll hear their practical perspectives and insights.

This session is one of our most well-attended so make sure to register early!

Speaker Information:

Gina Galasso - ocV!BE & H&S Ventures

2026 NHRA HR Executive of the Year

Gina leads and executes people strategies across a dynamic portfolio of businesses. With more than 25 years of experience, she is a versatile, forward-thinking leader known for delivering progressive solutions that elevate the employee experience, strengthen team performance, and drive meaningful business outcomes. Her passion for fostering a culture rooted in inclusion, innovation, and excellence is felt across every corner of the organization.

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Note:

(i) Once you have registered for this event, we will not be able to refund your payment should you be unable to attend.

(ii) Those who do not register and have pre-paid 24 hours in advance will be charged an additional $10 at the door.

(iii) Attendance counts toward WorldatWork recertification.

Executive Compensation LTI Training Series - Part 2 (August 20, 2026)

Thu, 20 Aug 2026 07:00:00 GMT

Executive Compensation LTI Training Series - Part 2

In-Person Meeting

Thursday, August 20, 2026, time TBD

WTW (Willis Towers Watson), 18300 Von Karman Avenue Irvine Towers, Suite #900, Irvine, CA 92612

This in-person meeting will be the second session of a two-part LTI training series focused on long-term incentives (LTI). This session will focus on the guiding principles and key elements of the LTI design process. The session will explore real-world design decisions, governance considerations, and emerging issues shaping today’s LTI programs.

Facilitated by Mark Chen, BJ Firmacion, and Kathryn McIntyre, this in-person session will address:

Objectives and guiding principles for LTI design

Key decision points (e.g., eligibility, mix of vehicles, vesting conditions, award amounts) for both public and private companies

Governance, shareholder, and regulatory considerations

Attendance at the June virtual session is recommended but not required.

This session is ideal for compensation or HR professionals involved in advising boards, compensation committees, or senior leadership on LTI program design.

Facilitated by Mark Chen, BJ Firmacion, and Kathryn McIntyre, this session will cover:

Core LTI vehicles and how they work
Why companies choose different vehicles
Key design considerations across public and private companies

This session is well suited for compensation professionals seeking a strong foundation—or a refresher—on LTI design fundamentals.

Mark Chen

Senior Director, Executive Compensation & Board Advisory

Relevant Experience/Specialization

Mark Chen has 21 years of experience consulting with corporate boards and executive teams to align executive pay design with strategic objectives and stakeholder interests. His expertise includes incentive plan design, performance metric selection, pay competitiveness and effective communication in public disclosures. He is also a frequent guest speaker for compensation associations on the topics of executive compensation and total rewards.

Mark assists public, private and not-for-profit organizations in a range of industries including airlines, banking, consumer products, food and beverage, life sciences, high technology, real estate, manufacturing and media.

Role at WTW

Mark was appointed to WTW’s Executive Compensation Guiding Principles initiative, which is focused on clarifying and affirming our Executive Compensation & Board Advisory practice’s perspectives, approaches, guidelines and key considerations in support of effective design, governance, management and administration of executive pay programs. Mark also participates in the development and delivery of multiple training programs for our national Executive Compensation analyst team.

Education and Credentials

Mark earned a B.S. degree in Economics from the University of California, Irvine

BJ Firmacion

Director, Executive Compensation & Board Advisory

Relevant Experience/Specialization

BJ Firmacion is a Director in WTW’s Executive Compensation and Board Advisory (ECBA) consulting practice based in Los Angeles.

With over 11 years of experience consulting with clients in both North America and Southeast Asia, BJ has focused his work on executive and non-employee director pay benchmarking, incentive design and pay-for-performance assessments. He works with both management and compensation committees of organizations from a wide range of industries including consumer products, restaurants, real estate, life sciences, industrial manufacturing, airlines and not-for-profit healthcare among others.

Prior to joining WTW in February 2015, BJ was a project manager at Equilar, an executive compensation research firm and data provider where he worked for three years.

Role at WTW

In addition to his consulting role, BJ is an active member of WTW’s North America technical training team where he organizes training modules for junior colleagues in various Executive Compensation topics

Education and Credentials

BJ earned a B.S. degree in Business Economics from the University of the Philippines

Kathryn McIntyre

Analyst, Work & Rewards

Relevant Experience/Specialization

Kathryn McIntyre is an Analyst in WTW’s Work & Rewards consulting practice based in Seattle.

Kathryn has focused her work on executive benchmarking, incentive design, pay equity, and broad-based salary structures. She has worked with organizations in industries such as higher education, technology, healthcare, financial services, retail, and life sciences. Prior to joining WTW full-time in September 2025, she was a summer intern in the New York City office in 2024, and has worked at companies such as Savers, Cornell University’s Registrar’s Office, and in food service.

Education and Credentials

Kathryn earned a bachelor’s degree in Industrialand Labor Relations, with three minors in American Studies, Law & Society, and Crime, Prisons, Education, and Justice from Cornell University.

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Note:

(i) Once you have registered for this event, we will not be able to refund your payment should you be unable to attend.

(ii) Those who do not register and have pre-paid 24 hours in advance will be charged an additional $10 at the door.

(iii) Attendance counts toward WorldatWork recertification.

Advanced PivotTable Features to Make Your Dashboards Pop (September 17, 2026)

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 19:00:00 GMT

Advanced PivotTable Features to Make Your Dashboards Pop

Live Webinar

FREE for OCCABA members.

Non-OCCABA member may register for $30.

Thursday, September 17, 2026, from 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm (Pacific Time)

Event details to be updated shortly.

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All registrations must be completed by 9:00 pm the night before the webinar to ensure the participant will receive the webinar link and/or dial-in information.

Attendance counts toward WorldatWork re-certification.

Accessibility in Total Rewards and Beyond (October 22, 2026)

Thu, 22 Oct 2026 19:00:00 GMT

Accessibility in Total Rewards and Beyond

Live Webinar

FREE for OCCABA members.

Non-OCCABA member may register for $30.

Thursday, October 22, 2026, from 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm (Pacific Time)

Accessibility shapes how people experience work long before they ever step into a role and long after they decide to stay. In this fireside chat, Lia Seth brings a thoughtful lens to what it truly takes to build and communicate Total Rewards programs that center the full range of human needs. The conversation goes beyond checklists and compliance, leaning into everyday practices that make workplaces more navigable, more equitable, and more human.

Together we will explore how accessibility influences benefits design, communication, technology, career progression, and the subtler moments that shape employee belonging. Attendees will gain fresh ways to evaluate their own programs and imagine what’s possible when accessibility becomes a foundational mindset rather than an add-on afterthought.

Speaker Information:

Lia Seth, PHR

Director of People at Cylinder

With a decade of experience in human resources and people operations, mostly within the healthtech space, Lia focuses her work on making the employee experience accessible and inclusive. She specializes in delightful internal communications, thoughtful change management, and intentional documentation along with building trusting and human-centered relationships at all levels. She is a Lifetime Girl Scout, former pub trivia host, and outspoken disability advocate and self-proclaimed "Accessibility Queen". Lia lives in Seattle and loves to look at mountains.

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All registrations must be completed by 9:00 pm the night before the webinar to ensure the participant will receive the webinar link and/or dial-in information.

Attendance counts toward WorldatWork re-certification.

Annual Wage & Hour Legislative Update (November 19, 2026)

Thu, 19 Nov 2026 15:30:00 GMT

Annual Wage & Hour Legislative Update

In-Person Breakfast Meeting

Thursday, November 19, 2026 from 7:30 am to 9:30 am (Pacific Time)

Networking / Breakfast: 7:30 - 7:45 am

Presentation: 7:45 - 9:00 am

Open Q&A Session: 9:00 - 9:30 am

Location: TBD - Orange County, California

Join us for a download of the latest updates and changes over the past year that business owners, managers and HR professionals need to be aware of and understand.

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Note:

(i) Once you have registered for this event, we will not be able to refund your payment should you be unable to attend.

(ii) Those who do not register and have pre-paid 24 hours in advance will be charged an additional $10 at the door.

(iii) Attendance counts toward WorldatWork recertification.

Meeting - Save the Date (January 28, 2027)

Thu, 28 Jan 2027 08:00:00 GMT

Save this date for our upcoming OCCABA meeting!

Meeting - Save the Date (February 25, 2027)

Thu, 25 Feb 2027 08:00:00 GMT

Save this date for our upcoming OCCABA meeting!

Meeting - Save the Date (March 25, 2027)

Thu, 25 Mar 2027 07:00:00 GMT

Save this date for our upcoming OCCABA meeting!