Stock Option Tax Planning

Angelica has worked in public accounting for a decade. She primarily focuses on tax preparation for individuals, corporations, partnerships and nonprofits, as well as in tax project management. Prior to SD Mayer, she worked with one of our partners, Noel McNabola, at PMB Helin Donovan for roughly 3 years before it was acquired by SD Mayer in 2016.

Angelica attended school at San Francisco State University and has a Bachelor of Science in Accounting.

Greg has been with SD Mayer since 2013, a few months after the firm was founded, and overall 20 years of accounting experience. His focus is on tax return preparation and reviews for corporations, partnerships, trusts and individuals. Greg earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from San Jose State University, and also has his CPA.

Seth joined the firm in 2022, with his prior 20-years of accounting experience. His industry experience includes real estate, wineries and breweries, law firms, medical groups, restaurants and retail.  His clients also include individuals and closely-held businesses.

Originally from the Central Valley, Seth moved to Wisconsin after college, received his CPA in that state, followed by his CPA license in California.  He eventually came to the Bay Area and worked for BPM, and Elsberg & Garrett, both in Walnut Creek, before settling with us at SD Mayer.  Along with a Bachelor’s of Science in Business Administration, he is working finishing up his Master’s of Science in Taxation in August.

Outside of work, and studying for his Masters, Seth enjoys spending time outdoors, golfing, cooking, wine tasting and sampling his favorite micro-brews.

Sara recently graduated from the University of California, Davis with a degree in Economics.  She interned with us for the 2021 tax season and, as of 2022, is now employed with our firm as a tax associate in the Menlo Park office.

Lizeth recently graduated from the University of California, Davis with a degree in Economics.  She interned with us for the 2021 tax season and is now employed, as of 2022, with our firm as a tax associate in our Menlo Park office.

Aaron has been with SD Mayer since 2022, due to an acquisition with his former firm, Vocker Kristofferson and Co. CPAs.  He has been working in the accounting industry since 2013, working on both tax and audit teams.  His tax focus has been on individual, partnerships, trusts, corporations and nonprofits; his audit experience focused on nonprofits and employee benefit plans.

Aaron received his Bachelors in Business Management in Economics from University of California, Santa Cruz.  He is a licensed CPA.

Dina joined the firm in 2021 and has been working in the tax and accounting industry since 2015. She started at Thomson Reuters on the corporate tax and accounting support end. During tax seasons, she provided support to accounting firms in resolving e-filing issues, and data entry inquires related to the income tax products. Her Bay Area experience includes working at Robert Half, Hing Accountancy Corp, and Marcum. She served as a tax associate at Marcum for over a year, working with high net-worth individuals, partnerships, corporations, gift, and trust tax returns, in addition to year-end tax planning.

Dina has a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and a Master’s Degree in Taxation.

Claire has worked in public and private accounting for nearly a decade, working for firms like Brown Adams Agbayani LLP and Frank Kang Accountany, CPA. She joined SD Mayer in 2019 with our tax practice and works on a variety of projects.

Claire comes to us from San Francisco State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting, and a Master’s Degree from Golden Gate University.

Joe joined the firm in 2022, joining us with experience from Young, Craig and Co LLP, Andersen and Seiler LLP.  He has experience working in private client services, and works on individual, estate and trust returns, along with tax planning for high net-worth clients in the Bay Area.

Joe graduated from the University of San Francisco with a degree in Finance and is currently studying for his CPA license. He’s excited to learn and grow his career at SD Mayer.

Outside of work, Joe spends time with his long-time girlfriend, Madie, and his senior Chihuahua, Slim.  He enjoys golf and tennis, and trying out all of the great restaurants within the City.

Helen has over 30 years of tax experience starting at PWC, and including Franklin Templeton Investments, Sensiba San Filippo and Brown Adams. She is the leader of the firm’s tax practice, meaning she’s responsible for hiring, strategic planning, production and billing, training and she serves on the leadership team, transition team and runs weekly department meetings.

Helen graduated with a bachelors degree in International Relations from Stanford University.

Frisye has been working in accounting since 2008, after graduating from college.  She’s spent time at Burr Pilger Mayer (BPM), TNT, Inc. Certified Public Accountants, and Armanino, working in various roles from Tax Associate and moving up to Tax Manager.  She works with us part-time, remotely as she also spends time raising her child.

Frisye graduated from De Anza College with an AA in Liberal Arts, and then graduated from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business, with a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Finance.

Michael has worked in accounting and finance for over 15 years, including Novogradac & Company, Wells Fargo and Vocker Kristofferson and Co, which was acquired by SD Mayer in 2022.  He works with individuals, partnerships, corporations, high wealth individuals and families, and nonprofits.  He works with real estate, stock options, estate tax, small businesses and trusts.

Michael received a Bachelors degree in Economics with an Accounting emphasis from University of California, Santa Barbara, and earned a Masters degree in Taxation from Golden Gate University.

Marianne co-founded her own firm in 1990, with eight years of experience at a large, local CPA firm.  In 2022, her firm, Vocker Kristofferson and Co. was acquired by SD Mayer.

Her experience has covered both the audit and tax areas for all of her client responsibility. Marianne holds a BS degree in business-economics from the University of California, Santa Barbara and a Masters in taxation from Golden Gate University, San Francisco. Her community involvement in various organizations includes serving as a board member of the San Mateo-Foster City Community Education Foundation, the Highlands Recreation District, and Music at Kohl Mansion. Marianne previously served as treasurer of the Rotary Club of Burlingame and of the Congregational Church of San Mateo. Marianne currently serves on the State Committee of the Accounting Practices and Accounting Standards and previously served on the State Peer Review Committee for two terms.

WanJun has been with SD Mayer since 2022, due to an acquisition with her former firm, Vocker Kristofferson and Co. CPAs.  She has been working in the accounting industry since 2019, working on both tax and audit teams.  Her tax focus has been on individual, corporations and nonprofits; her audit experience includes auditing analytical procedures, engagement planning and testing, preparing financial statements, adjusting trial balances and creating Independent Auditor Reports.

WanJun earned her Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from San Francisco State University in 2019.

Alona joined the firm in late-2022, serving as the Office Manager for our San Mateo location.  Her prior experience includes working as the administrative assistant for a property management company in San Francisco for three years.  She also worked as a bookkeeper for Teaspoon Franchising Company for a year, responsible for AR/AP, payroll, bank reconciliation and generating financial reports.  Alona has four years of experience as an office manager as another accounting firm.

Alona’s education includes courses in computer education in the Philippines.

Steve Mayer is the Founder and Managing Partner of SD Mayer & Associates, an accounting, consulting, and wealth management firm located in San Francisco.

Prior to SD Mayer, he was the CEO of a large regional accounting firm, Burr Pilger Mayer (BPM). Steve has also been involved in several other businesses including a number of restaurants, co-founder of Presidio Bank, and an owner of Books Inc., a bookstore chain.

On a professional basis, Steve’s accounting, consulting, and wealth management career gives him the ability to work with his clients on accounting, tax, M&A, business advisory and strategic planning.

Steve has been very active in the community and over the last 40 years has served on more than 15 non-profit boards including the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, Bay Area Council, and Riordan High School, to name a few.

He has recently published three books, and lives in San Mateo with his wife of 27 years and their three children.

When he turned 60, he did an Ironman just to make sure he was still in shape.

Noel has worked in the accounting field for over 40 years, beginning with Coopers & Lybrand (now PwC) in San Francisco. After leaving Coopers & Lybrand, Noel went on to start his own firm, joining Tony Pohl and Mike Berg to form Pohl, McNabola Berg & Co. In 2006, he merged his firm with Helin, Donovan, Trubee & Wilkinson of Austin, TX to form PMB Helin Donovan (PMBHD), which grew to 150 employees and 22 partners. In 2016, Noel left PMBHD to join SD Mayer, joining Steve Mayer whom he’d worked with at Coopers & Lybrand, completing the full circle.

At SD Mayer, Noel serves as the partner-in-charge of the tax department, working mainly with high net-worth individuals and their pass-through entities, S-Corps, LLCs and trusts. He has significant experience with ex-pat taxpayers and non-resident aliens helping then navigate the difficult tax rules relating to their affairs.

He is a member of the San Francisco Estate Planning Committee and the AICPA.

In the past, he has served as chair of the San Francisco Nonprofit Committee, San Francisco chapter for CalCPA.

Julie has been with the firm since 2013 and has been in public accounting for 26 years, licensed for 23 years. She specializes in nonprofits, and is multi-talented, working in our outsourced accounting, tax and audit departments. She is one of a handful of people that works out of our Menlo Park office full-time.

Prior to SD Mayer, she worked with Steve at his prior firm, BPM, and then also worked with our partner, Joanne, at their prior firm, Brown Adams. She has a Bachelors degree from San Jose State University.

Madelyn spent 7 years at Hood & Strong, before joining our tax team in 2023. Her expertise includes all facets of nonprofit taxation.

Madelyn has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting from Chapman University.  She is also a member of CalCPA and AICPA, as well as the Junior League of Oakland/East Bay.

Outside of work, you’ll find Madelyn trying recipes from the Food Network app, Tasty or other social media channels.  She is a HUGE sports fan and is proud to root for the 49ers, Golden State Warriors, and San Francisco Giants.  Madelyn also loves to travel and is working on expanding her list of places to visit … recommendations welcome.

Cyndel has worked with the firm since 2023, in our tax department.  She specializes in high-net-worth individuals, stock options, tax planning, passthrough entities and small businesses.  Prior experience includes ten year as the Senior Tax Manager at a San Mateo-based accounting firm.

Cyndel graduated from the University of the Phillipines with a Bachelors in Business Economics, and is an enrolled agent.

Ruiqi has over a decade of tax experience and has been with SD Mayer since 2019. She works with our San Leandro tax department focused on tax returns, S-corps, individuals, partnerships, non-profits, and trusts.  Ruiqi has worked with various other accounting firms like Squar Milner and Greenstein, Rogoff, Olsen & Co LLP.

Ruiqi earned both her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Accounting from Brigham Young University.

As a partner at SDMayer, Joanne provides tax and accounting services to individuals and small businesses. Joanne focuses on tailoring services to be responsive to her client’s needs. “Our firm does more than prepare tax returns, we solve problems for our clients.”

Joanne has extensive individual tax knowledge. Specializations include general tax planning, strategic stock option planning, and community property allocations due to marital dissolutions.

Her tax and accounting experience with small businesses, includes corporation, partnerships, LLCs and sole proprietors. In addition to providing tax services to businesses, Joanne provides specialized consultation relating to stock option analysis, evaluation, and strategy, Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) planning, selecting the right Business entity, and sale of assets vs. stock analysis for business acquisitions and sales. Types of small businesses that we work with span a variety of industries; including manufacturing, construction, software, consulting, and medical services.

Joanne earned a Bachelor of Science in Business with an Accounting concentration, with honors, from San Jose State University. Current memberships include; Sunnyvale Presbyterian Church, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Palo Alto Bar Association, and the California Society of Certified Public Accountants.

Joanne enjoys spending time with her family, which includes 5 cats and 2 dog. She is a very passionate animal lover and keeps her license as a Veterinary Technician active. When she is not working, Joanne is often found helping out her 89 year old parents in Nevada, hanging out with her daughters, being a Grandma, volunteering at animal rescue sites, visiting family in Florida and an occasional visit to Disneyland.

Bhonie has been with the firm since 2015, and is currently working in both the tax and audit departments. He helps the teams with engagement letters, mailing tax planners, pre-populating tax returns and with all other administrative tasks.