Washington Area Total Rewards Association (WATRA) upcoming events

Panel Discussion on AI in Compensation (May 13, 2026)

Wed, 13 May 2026 12:30:00 GMT

Panel discussion on AI in Compensation

Brought to us by Salary.com and WorldatWork

Agenda:

Breakfast & Networking: 8:30 am - 9 am

Presentation: 9 am - 10 am

Questions & Networking: 10 am - 10:30 am

Join us for an interactive panel discussion discussing the transformative impact of AI on the compensation and HR industries, emphasizing its potential to revolutionize everything from salary benchmarking and pay equity analysis to personalized benefits and predictive retention strategies.

Key topics include AI's ability to identify and mitigate biases in pay structures, forecast future compensation needs, and streamline administrative processes, ultimately freeing HR teams to focus on higher-value, human-centric initiatives and fostering a more equitable and efficient workplace. However, the discussion will also touch on the critical need for robust data governance, ethical AI implementation to prevent the perpetuation of existing biases, and the importance of upskilling HR professionals to leverage these new tools effectively.

Location:

HUB International, 8300 Greensboro Drive, Tysons, VA 22102

Panel:

Sean Lutijens, VP of Product Strategy at Salary.com

Sean has an extensive background working in strategic roles across organizations, holding positions in Product Development, System Architecture, Global Sales, Corporate Strategy, Marketing, Benchmarking, and M&A.

Prior to Salary.com, Sean held leadership positions at Visier, Korn Ferry, AIRNC, and Mercer, where he managed the global benefits benchmarking business. His background also includes Monster, as the Director of Product Strategy, and a Product Development for the interactive businesses of Fidelity Capital. Additionally, Sean also serves on the board of directors for two additional non-profit organizations.

Sean has worked with clients and partners as well as spoken on a wide range of topics, including total rewards, pay equity, globabl mobility, recruitment, compensation, and benefits methodology and trends, as well as merger and acquisition strategies. When not working, Sean can likely be found in the great outdoors, hitting the trails, climbing, or partaking in a triatholon; in general, attempting to not grow up.

Designing Executive Compensation with Governance in Mind (June 02, 2026)

Tue, 02 Jun 2026 14:30:00 GMT

About the Event:

Designing Executive Compensation with Governance in Mind: From Concept to Approval offers a practical, end-to-end look at how executive pay programs are developed, evaluated, and approved within a strong governance framework. Moving beyond theory, this session walks compensation professionals through the real-world process of translating business strategy into pay design, incorporating key governance considerations across annual and long-term incentives, employment arrangements, and change-in-control provisions.

Attendees will gain insight into aligning pay with performance while managing risk, leveraging peer groups and benchmarking effectively, and anticipating the questions and expectations of Compensation Committees. Through an interactive case study, sample committee dialogue, and live polling on common judgment calls, participants will leave better equipped to design, defend, and implement executive compensation programs with confidence.

Location:

USI Offices, 3110 Fairview Park Drive, Suite 1000, Falls Church, VA 22042

Agenda:

10:30 am - 11:15 am - Presentation on Executive Comp framework and Governance

11:20 am - 11:45 am - Breakout and Exercise or Client Business Case discussion

11:50 am - 12:15 pm - Readout

12:15 pm - 12:45 pm - Q & A

*Snacks will be provided

Speakers:

Alexander Yaffe, Managing Director, Pearl Meyer

Alexander is a managing director at Pearl Meyer. He is the former president and CEO of Yaffe & Company and a second-generation executive compensation expert with two decades of experience in the field. As the leader of Yaffe & Company, he oversaw its geographic expansion from 10 to 37 states, development of complementary service lines, and worked with clients whose net revenues ranged from $10M to greater than $1B, allowing for a varied perspective on similarities and differences based on geography, size, and organizational design.

Alexander has assisted hundreds of tax-exempt boards and their leadership teams in assessing executive compensation programs, executive performance evaluation methods, retirement plan designs, leadership transitions, succession planning, and retention planning. Additionally, he works with hospitals and integrated health systems to develop comprehensive physician compensation governance practices, assess current-state compensation and productivity relative to the market, and develop next-generation plan designs. A common theme across his consulting engagements is aligning data, relationships, and circumstances to drive mutually beneficial outcomes for organizations, individuals, and affected stakeholder constituencies.

Alexander has participated in expert panels on these topics, given presentations, and led board education programs nationally. He published his second monograph with the AHA Center for Healthcare Governance titled The Health System-Physician Relationship Continuum: What Boards Need to Know (Oct 2015).

Alexander graduated from Full Sail University in 1999 with a degree in film/television production. In 2012, he continued his studies at Columbia University, pursuing a degree in economics and philosophy.

Steven Hall, Principal, Pearl Meyer

Steven Hall is a principal at Pearl Meyer. He has over 20 years of experience advising domestic and international clients on executive and board compensation. Steven partners with his clients to develop executive pay programs that motivate, attract, and retain top-quality talent with the goal of driving long-term growth for shareholders. Steven advises clients of varying sizes, organizational structures, and industries, including Fortune 500 organizations, privately held companies, and pre-IPO ventures.

Prior to joining Pearl Meyer, Steven was a principal at a global HR consultancy for four years, and prior to that, he worked at a boutique executive compensation firm based in New York for 16 years.

Steven is a Certified Executive Compensation Professional and holds a BS in business administration from the Questrom School of Business at Boston University.

WATRA/RCA Total Rewards Summit '26 (October 22, 2026)

Thu, 22 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMT

WATRA & RCA (Richmond Compensation Association) Present:

Total Rewards Summit '26

*If you are an RCA member, please ensure you get the member code from RCA: info@richcomp.org

MORE INFORMATION COMING SOON!

Tentative Program Schedule:

8:30a - 9:15a Registration

9:15a - 10:15a Breakfast & Keynote Speaker: Scott Cawood, CEO WorldatWork

10:30a - 11:30a Concurrent Sessions 1A and 1B

11:45a - 12:45p Concurrent Sessions 2A and 2B

1p - 2p Lunch & Speaker/Panel

2:15p - 3:15p Concurrent Sessions 3A and 3B

3:30p - 4:30p Concurrent Sessions 4A and 4B

4:45p - 6:45p Happy Hour & Networking

Location:

SevaSpaces, 1604 Spring Hill Rd, Vienna, Virginia 22182

FREE parking

Right by Spring Hill Metro Stop