A Retirement Resource for McDonald’s Corporation Executives

Email Jesse

872-216-9957

Jesse Szlaga, CFP®

Designations and Licenses

Jesse is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional.

Experience and Education

Jesse provides financial planning solutions to his clients based on their specific goals and objectives. He has been in the financial services industry since 2008. Prior to joining Mariner, he served as a financial planner at a boutique financial planning firm located in the Chicago area. His responsibilities included financial plan design and development, investment management and research, tax planning and analysis, retirement feasibility planning, estate plan review, and meeting with clients to develop and implement effective planning strategies. Prior to that, Jesse was a financial planning analyst at Capstone Financial Advisors.

Jesse has a bachelor’s degree in accountancy from DePaul University where he was a Magna Cum Laude graduate. He is a member of the Financial Planning Association.

Personal Interests

Jesse is an avid fan of all the professional sports teams in Chicago.

Valbona Ceci, CFP®

Senior Wealth Advisor

Email Valbona

872-529-8911

Valbona Ceci, CFP®

Designations and Licenses

Valbona is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional.

Experience and Education

Valbona provides individuals and families with comprehensive wealth management, including integrated financial planning and investment strategies to help grow and protect their wealth. She works closely with clients to understand their lifestyle, career, philanthropic and wealth planning goals and then creates evolving financial plans and strategies to help meet their goals.  She has more than 16 years of experience in the financial services industry. Prior to joining Mariner, Valbona was a wealth analyst for BMO Private Bank. As an analyst, she worked with a team to provide and deliver planning-based solutions in private banking, credit, portfolio management and estate planning for business owners, executives and their families.

She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in finance from DePaul University in Chicago. Valbona also has an MBA with distinction in finance, strategy, execution and valuation from Kellstadt Graduate School of Business at DePaul Universityin Chicago.

Personal Interests

Valbona lives in Mount Prospect where she is an active member of the community. She also serves as the president of the SEVAA Board at DePaul University.

Jayne Witte, CFP®

Wealth Advisor

Email Jayne

872-529-8913

Jayne Witte, CFP®

Designations and Licenses

Jayne is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional.

Experience and Education

Jayne works with families to provide comprehensive financial planning solutions to help meet their short- and long-term goals. Prior to joining Mariner, Jayne spent the last 20 years in the financial services industry including BMO Private Bank, RMB Capital Management, William Blair and financial service clients of Accenture.

Jayne has a bachelor’s degree in business and information systems from DePaul University.

Personal Interests

In her free time, Jayne is a pet therapy volunteer at Ann and Robert Lurie Children’s Hospital. She also enjoys spending time hiking with family and with her daughter’s activities.

Pawel Gacek, JD, CFP®

Wealth Advisor

Email Pawel

872-710-5217

Pawel Gacek, J.D., CFP®

Designations and Licenses

Pawel is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional.

Experience and Education

Pawel advises clients in the areas of estate planning and administration, tax planning, financial planning and investment advisory. He designs and implements customized wealth plans that include tax and estate planning, insurance solutions and retirement planning with a focus on meeting clients’ objectives.

Prior to joining Mariner, he worked as a Financial Advisor to high-net-worth clients engaging in comprehensive wealth plans and estate planning solutions. In addition, he advised on tax planning matters for individuals and trusts, which translated to the preparation and finalization of federal and state individual and fiduciary income tax returns.

Pawel has a Juris Doctor (JD) degree from Western Michigan University Thomas M. Cooley Law School.

Personal Interests

Pawel enjoys playing soccer, roller hockey, scuba diving, mountain biking, cycling and hiking with his wife. On Sundays, you can find him rooting for the Green Bay Packers.

A Retirement Resource for McDonald’s Corporation Executives

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CREATE YOUR PERSONALIZED WEALTH PLAN

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Plan for your future, protect your life & Assets

Creating One Coordinated

Financial Strategy

As a corporate executive, you have a lot on your plate. At Mariner, we provide support for your personal finances so you are free to focus on your business, your employees and your family.

Integrating Your Corporate Benefits & Personal Assets

Combined the professional disciplines of a Certified Financial Planner™ professional and Chartered Financial Consultant® professional to form this specialized team
Experience working alongside McDonald’s® Empower retirement team and Merrill Lynch Corporate Services for Equity plan
Firsthand experience working with McDonald’s employees, retirees and alumni
Technical knowledge of the McDonald’s executive financial planning program

Adept in retirement plan benefits, deferred compensation distribution strategies, stock option awards, restricted stock grants and appropriate planning techniques to minimize taxes and reduce concentration risk
Collective experience of more than 30 years in building customized portfolios, including asset allocation and security selection
Comprehensive wealth planning knowledge, tools and resources

Access to a wealth of knowledge and solutions.

About Mariner

When you become a client of Mariner, we get to know you first so that we can create a personalized financial strategy that helps meet your goals. Because life is always changing, the financial strategy we create together will change along with it.

Our executive wealth management advisors offer deep experience working with high-net-worth executives, like yourself, on every aspect of financial planning. Our wealth advisors can also help you navigate a complex benefits package including stock options and bonuses, as well as create tax-efficient strategies for retirement and multigenerational charitable giving.

We specialize in partnering with executives on a plan that may include:

Wealth advisors, estate planning, tax, family office and insurance professionals¹ under one roof to create one, coordinated wealth management plan.

Advice on asset allocation, including stress testing portfolios and investment strategies that align with your risk tolerance, diversification needs and long-term goals

Tax team who works closely with advisor and estate planning professionals to provide proactive tax preparation, tax-advantaged charitable giving and year-round planning²

Retirement plan strategies that address potential savings gaps created by ERISA and IRS limitations in employer-sponsored retirement and health care plans and include a withdrawal strategy to help minimize downside risk.

Charitable giving and family governance and education assistance to help secure a multigenerational legacy

¹ Mariner does not provide all services listed in this piece. Some services are provided by affiliates and are subject to additional fees.

² Additional fees may apply for tax planning and preparation services.

Committed to Helping You Navigate Your Financial Future

Meet the McDonald’s Team

Cramer Soebbing, CFP®, ChFC®

Director & Senior Wealth Advisor

Jesse Szlaga, CFP®

Director & Senior Wealth Advisor

Valbona Ceci, CFP®

Senior Wealth Advisor

Jayne Witte, CFP®

Wealth Advisor

Pawel Gacek, JD, CFP®

Wealth Advisor

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