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Daniel M. Wetzel

Managing Director
Los Angeles

Daniel Wetzel Headshot

Expertise

  • Executive Compensation
  • Compensation Governance
  • Mergers and Acquisitions
  • High Growth Businesses
  • Banking

Education

  • BA, University of California, Los Angeles
  • MBA, University of Southern California

Certification

  • Certified Executive Compensation Professional
  • Professional Director Certification, The American College of Corporate Directors

Get in touch with Daniel

(213) 438-6515 Download Bio (310) 800-0181 LinkedIn Email

Commitment To Clients

While board members and executives are interested in aligning the compensation with the strategic objectives of the company, there are a variety of ways to accomplish those goals. My approach is to first understand the key drivers of each business and to balance those with a deep understanding of the desires of outside influencers, such as shareholders, their advisors, and regulators. This approach facilitates the development of programs best suited for the company and its participants.

Biography

Dan Wetzel is a managing director with Pearl Meyer's Los Angeles office. With 30 years of experience in the field of compensation and benefits, Mr. Wetzel assists clients in the areas of executive and non-employee director compensation and employee pay, focusing on the development of annual and long-term incentive compensation programs to meet clients’ strategic objectives. He also provides consultation in the areas of employment contracts and change of control provisions, mergers and acquisitions, expert testimony, reasonableness of compensation, salary administration, performance management, and employee and executive benefits. His client engagements cover a variety of industries and company organizational and developmental stages, including startup/pre-IPO, privately-held, public, subsidiary, foreign-owned, and non-profit organizations.

Prior to his current role, Mr. Wetzel was Watson Wyatt Worldwide’s Southern California practice leader for executive and incentive pay and before joining Watson Wyatt, he was a consultant at KPMG, specializing in compensation and benefits issues.

He is a frequently published author of articles on compensation topics and a sought-after speaker for numerous industry meetings including American College of Corporate Directors, Financial Executives International (FEI), Forum for Corporate Directors, National Association of Corporate Directors, UC Berkeley’s Center for Executive Development, and USC’s Corporate Governance Summit.

Mr. Wetzel received his BA from the University of California, Los Angeles and his MBA from the University of Southern California. He holds the Certified Executive Compensation Professional (CECP) designation through the WorldatWork Society of Certified Professionals and has earned his Professional Director Certification from The American College of Corporate Directors.

Publications and Presentations

Article
Margaret Black
Ed McGaughey
Daniel Wetzel
June 2020

Is Distressed M&A Deal Activity on the Horizon?

Advisors are predicting a surge in opportunistic or distressed company M&A activity; here’s how to prepare for a change-in-control.

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Presentation
Daniel Wetzel
January 2020

Structuring Change-in-Control and Transaction Bonuses for Maximum Effectiveness

Compensation actions that a company can undertake at each point during an M&A in order to retain and motivate the executive team

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Advisor Blog
Daniel Wetzel
December 2018

Assessing the Need for Retention during M&A

The compensation committee will have to address a number of pay-related issues during a merger or acquisition.

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Research Report
Daniel Wetzel
February 2018

Sharing Tax Bill Benefits with Employees

Many companies have announced employee bonuses, raises, or other benefits as a result of the tax reform bill. Our Quick Poll results offer detailed data on the trend.

Read More

Related Knowledge Share Items

Article
Workspan
Margaret Black
Daniel Wetzel
November 2014

When Performance-Based Payouts Meet Change in Control

Do you know enough about how your long-term incentive program will work during a change-in-control?

Read More
Research Report
Kathy Baron
Karen Butcher
January 2021

2020 Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Survey

Survey results from more than 200 organizations indicating interesting trends in how companies view and address DE&I issues.

Read More
Article
Chief Executive
January 2021

Compensation Strategies in the Era of COVID-19

Private company CEOs talk with Pearl Meyer’s Ryan Hourihan about their varied strategies and experiences in amending executive pay programs during the pandemic.

Read More
Advisor Blog
Jane Park
January 2021

A Flexible Organizational Structure and Positive Corporate Culture are Strategic Imperatives

Embracing flatter hierarchies, encouraging collaborative decision-making, and exhibiting a positive culture provides a strong competitive advantage.

Read More
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