Jalaj Sinha is a seasoned expert with over 20 years of professional experience, including 14 years in the field of equity compensation in India. Throughout his career, he has gained extensive experience in ESOP plan design, administration, strategy, and business development, assisting organizations in creating and implementing effective equity compensation solutions. Jalaj's knowledge and insights have made him a popular speaker at national conferences, where he has spoken on a variety of equity compensation-related topics, sharing his expertise and contributing to the evolution of industry best practices.

He has a degree in commerce from the University of Allahabad and is a chartered accountant from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.

As Head of Global Advanced Solutions, Darren leads a comprehensive offering that delivers solutions to complex problems employers encounter when offering workplace benefits domestically and globally. Prior to joining Morgan Stanley, Darren was a leader in several international companies and was a Professor of Finance. 

Darren holds a Juris Doctor (J.D.) from both the University of Colorado Boulder and the University of Alberta, as well as a master’s degree in finance and strategic management.

Jeremy Edwards is a partner and the head of the Employee Benefits Group in Baker McKenzie’s London office. He advises on all aspects of employee share plans and employee taxation. Jeremy has over 20 years’ experience as a share plan lawyer and two years’ experience as a corporate lawyer. He is currently serving on the advisory panel of ProShare and is a regular speaker at share plan conferences held in the United Kingdom.

Jeremy has substantial UK experience, including implementing plans for UK-listed companies and dealing with issues arising for UK-listed companies, including advising on executive remuneration developments, UK tax issues and the position on cessation of employment and dealing with share plans in the context of corporate transactions.

Jeremy has extensive experience in connection with the implementation of share plans globally and working with multinational clients.

Sophie Boucher has been overseeing all labor & employment matters in EMEA for Palo Alto Networks, the next-generation security company, leading a new era in cybersecurity by safely enabling applications and preventing cyber breaches for tens of thousands of organizations worldwide, since January 2017 with a special focus on driving inclusion & diversity. Sophie has specialized in legal support of HR functions since 2013. She is also the deputy employer representative on the Netherlands works council and employer representative (chairman) on the France Comité Social et Economique and previously led global legal strategy for two fiscal years.

Eaton is a seasoned professional serving as the Director of Executive Compensation & Equity at Seagate. With more than ten years of dedicated experience in executive compensation and equity administration, Eaton has honed her expertise in this specialized field. She is recognized for her proficiency in data analytics, a skill she leverages to propel HR practices into the realm of data-driven decision-making.

Eaton holds a Master’s degree in Data Analytics, augmenting her educational background with an MBA and a CPA license. Her academic achievements reflect her commitment to staying abreast of industry trends and equipping herself with the necessary tools to excel in her role.

Katja Haeferer is a partner with more than 15 years of experience in labor and employment law. She co-heads the German Employment & Compensation practice and is an active member of the Firm's European Labor Law and Global Labor Law practice groups. Recognized as a Stand-out Legal Talent by Acritas in 2021 and listed among Wirtschaftswoche’s most renowned employment law practitioners from 2021 to 2024, Katja’s experience is well-regarded in the legal community. Her international perspective is enriched by her tenure in the Firm’s San Francisco and Palo Alto offices.

Katja provides strategic and comprehensive employment advice on domestic and multi-jurisdictional projects, including pre- and post-merger corporate restructurings, collective dismissals, negotiations with works councils and unions, cross-border secondments, global equity plans, and gender pay audits. She supports several multinational clients in the management of their global workforce regarding, addressing global working conditions, cross-border personnel deployment, and global HR compliance matters. Katja often leads multi-jurisdictional employment projects.

Katja has extensive experience advising companies on employee representation in Societas Europaea (SE) supervisory boards and works councils, as well as European Works Councils (EWCs). She also provides strategic guidance on navigating the complex process of transforming into a Societas Europaea (SE). Katja authored a legal commentary on German SE-legislation “SEBG,” published in â€œAR - Kommentar, Kommentar zum gesamten Arbeitsrecht” (2021). She is also an experienced litigator in complex employment and SE law matters, including cases before the Federal Labor Court (BAG) and the European Court of Justice (ECJ). Katja's client base ranges from Germany- and EMEA-headquartered clients with global operations to local subsidiaries of multinationals.

Sinead Kelly is a partner in Baker McKenzie’s Compensation practice. Sinead focuses her practice on executive compensation and global equity, advising on the design, administration, governance and implementation of executive and director compensation arrangements, including equity and incentive plans, deferred compensation plans, severance and employment agreements, change in control plans, bonus plans, and director compensation programs. Sinead also frequently speaks and publishes on compensation-related topics and is a contributing author to Lexis Practice Advisor and Wolters Kluwer's "Practical Guide to SEC Proxy and Compensation Rules," and a founder of the Firm's Compensation Connection blog. She is a member of the Advisory Board of the Certified Equity Professionals Institute (CEPI) of Santa Clara University and serves on the Firm's International Benefits Committee. Sinead has been recognized by Chambers USA for Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation, where clients have described her as "extremely intelligent, responsive and solution-oriented." She is a Thomson Reuters Stand-out Lawyer for 2024 and is ranked by Legal 500 as a "Leading Lawyer" for Employee Benefits, Executive Compensation and Retirement Plan Design.

Gemma is a Director specializing in the area of cross-border incentive compensation. Her particular focus area is equity compensation, working with multinational corporations helping them manage their global compliance for employer reporting and withholding on incentive compensation in relation to internationally mobile employees.

Gemma has worked extensively with clients on their end-to-end processes for compensation with large multinational companies, covering a number of core elements such as tax and legal due diligence, data specifications, technology integration and implementation, employee communications, global mobility equity policy consulting, process/design documentation, global corporate recharge policies, payroll compliance and consulting, assignee consulting, internal controls documentation, obtaining tax rulings, annual filings and project management.

Along with experience of working on the end-to-end compliance process, Gemma has spent a great deal of time assisting clients with rectifying payroll compliance failures, from tax authority investigates to voluntary disclosures.

Gemma joined the firm in 2008 in our London office and has spent nearly 10 years in our New York and California markets before moving back to our London office at the end of 2021. She graduated from the University of Exeter with a degree in Accounting and Finance and received her Chartered Tax Advisor (CTA) and Associate Tax Technician (ATT) qualifications from the UK. In addition she is certified as a Global Professional in Human Resources (GPHR).

She is a member of the Chartered Institute of Taxation (UK), National Association of Stock Plan Professionals and the Global Equity Organization.

Christopher Potash is an executive compensation lawyer with broad-based experience in tax, corporate, securities, and other laws and regulations affecting executive compensation, and is the head of the Firm’s executive compensation practice. He represents both public and private companies, both US and international, from closely held businesses, to private equity funds to Fortune 100 companies.

Megan Hunt is the Director of Equity Administration at Samsara, where she oversees the company’s expanding equity programs. With over 15 years of experience in the industry, Megan brings a broad range of expertise to her role. Before joining Samsara, she worked for both vendors, such as Charles Schwab, and issuers like Nordstrom, Inc., gaining valuable perspectives. Her background includes advising on equity administration best practices, developing processing solutions, and designing programs that adapt to the evolving demands of the equity landscape.