Christian A. Garcia
DANAAbout Christian A. Garcia
Christian A. Garcia, 61, joined Dana’s Board in 2025 and is an independent director with deep CFO experience across industrials, energy, and automotive. He served as EVP/CFO at BrandSafway (2020–2023), Weatherford International (Jan–Aug 2020), and Visteon (2016–2019), and held senior finance roles at Halliburton including Acting CFO, Chief Accounting Officer, Treasurer, and SVP Investor Relations. He holds a BS from the University of the Philippines and an MBA from Purdue University . Dana’s Board has determined he is independent, with eight of nine directors independent overall .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| BrandSafway | Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer | Oct 2020 – May 2023 | Led finance for a provider of industrial services solutions |
| Weatherford International | Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer | Jan 2020 – Aug 2020 | Publicly traded oil services company; short CFO tenure amid transition |
| Visteon Corporation | Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer | Oct 2016 – Oct 2019 | Automotive cockpit electronics; public company CFO |
| Halliburton Company | Acting CFO; Chief Accounting Officer; Treasurer; SVP Investor Relations | Various prior roles | Senior finance and capital markets leadership at a large energy company |
External Roles
| Company | Role | Start | Notes/Interlocks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bausch Health Companies Inc. | Director | May 2024 | Interlock: Brett M. Icahn (Dana director) also serves on Bausch Health’s board |
| TETRA Technologies, Inc. | Director | May 2023 | Energy services and solutions company |
| Mueller Water Products, Inc. | Director | Aug 2024 | Water infrastructure manufacturer |
| Keane Group, Inc. | Former Director | May 2017 – Oct 2019 | Prior public company board role |
Board Governance
- Committee assignments: Compensation Committee member and Technology & Sustainability Committee member; not a chair .
- Independence: Board affirmed Garcia is independent; eight of nine directors are independent .
- Attendance and engagement: In 2024, the Board met 18 times and committees met 23 times; all directors met at least 75% attendance thresholds. Technology & Sustainability met 4 times, Audit met 9, Compensation met 5, and Nominating & Corporate Governance met 5 .
- Lead Independent Director and executive sessions: Non-management directors meet in executive session at each regular Board meeting, chaired by Lead Independent Director Keith E. Wandell .
- Risk oversight: Board and committees oversee strategic, financial, and cybersecurity risks; Compensation Committee reviews compensation-related risk and clawback provisions .
Fixed Compensation (Dana Non-Employee Director Structure – 2024)
| Element | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Board Cash Retainer | $130,000 | Increased from $120,000 to align with peers |
| Committee Member Fee (per committee) | $10,000 | Applies to Compensation and Technology & Sustainability memberships |
| Committee Chair Fee | $20,000 | Not applicable to Garcia (not a chair) |
| Lead Independent Director Premium | $50,000 | Applies to Wandell (not Garcia) |
| Annual RSU Grant | $165,000 | Equity portion of director pay |
| Director Stock Ownership Guideline | $650,000 | 5x cash retainer; 5-year compliance window; RSUs count |
| Deferred Compensation Election | Available | Directors may defer cash retainer into RSUs; none deferred in 2024 |
Performance Compensation
- Directors do not receive performance-based pay or PSUs; annual equity awards are RSUs that are generally time-vested (minimum 12 months vesting with limited exceptions) and subject to customary plan terms including change-in-control treatment and potential recoupment under award agreements .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Shared board with another Dana director | Garcia and Brett M. Icahn both serve on Bausch Health’s board |
| Significant shareholder influence | Icahn Capital LP holds ~9.85% of Dana; Brett M. Icahn is a Dana director, which increases activism influence potential |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Finance leadership credibility: Multiple public company CFO roles (Visteon, Weatherford, BrandSafway) and senior finance roles at Halliburton, supporting Compensation Committee oversight and capital allocation scrutiny .
- Education: BS (University of the Philippines), MBA (Purdue) .
- Board qualifications: Board considers financial literacy and expertise in nominating process; Garcia’s background aligns with these criteria though Audit “financial expert” designation is held by Michael J. Mack .
Equity Ownership
| Holder | Shares Owned | RSUs Credited | Percent of Class | Pledged/Encumbrances |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christian A. Garcia | 0 | 0 | <1% | None pledged; no RSU deferrals shown |
- Director ownership guideline: 5x cash retainer ($650,000) with 5 years to comply; RSUs count toward compliance .
Governance Assessment
- Strengths: Independent status; deep CFO background across relevant industries; sits on Compensation Committee where pay risk and alignment are key focus areas; Board’s use of independent consultant (Mercer) and active clawback policies support disciplined pay governance .
- Alignment signals: Director ownership guideline and RSU grants promote alignment; company prohibits hedging/pledging for directors and officers .
- Attendance/engagement: Board and committees met frequently in 2024; governance processes include regular executive sessions and annual evaluations .
- Potential conflicts/RED FLAGS:
- Interlocks: Shared board with Brett M. Icahn at Bausch Health, combined with Icahn Capital’s ~9.85% stake in Dana, increases activism influence and information flow considerations; robust related-party transaction policy and independence standards provide mitigating governance oversight .
- Overboarding risk: Garcia currently serves on three other public company boards (Bausch Health, TETRA Technologies, Mueller Water) in addition to Dana, which raises capacity considerations for committee workloads; monitoring attendance and committee effectiveness is prudent .
- Ownership alignment: As of Feb 25, 2025, Garcia reported no beneficial share ownership; guideline allows 5 years to meet the $650k threshold, with RSUs counted .
Contextual signal: Dana’s 2024 Say-on-Pay passed with 90% approval, indicating shareholder support for compensation governance under the Compensation Committee’s oversight (Garcia joined the committee in Feb 2025) .