James W. Owens was elected to the Board of Directors in 2005. He is Chairman of the Audit Committee.  

Mr. Owens served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Caterpillar Inc., from February 2004 through June 2010. He was Executive Chairman from June to October 2010, when he retired from the company. 

Mr. Owens served as Vice Chairman of Caterpillar from December 2003 to February 2004, and as Group President from 1995 to 2003, responsible at various times for 13 of the company’s 25 divisions. Mr. Owens joined Caterpillar in 1972 as a corporate economist and was named chief economist of Caterpillar Overseas S.A. in Geneva, Switzerland in 1975. From 1980 until 1987 he held managerial positions in the Accounting and Product Source Planning Departments. In 1987, he became managing director of P.T. Natra Raya, Caterpillar’s joint venture in Indonesia. He held that position until 1990, when he was elected a Corporate Vice President and named President of Solar Turbines Incorporated, a Caterpillar subsidiary in San Diego, California. In 1993, he was elected Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

Mr. Owens is a director of the International Business Machines Corporation and Morgan Stanley.  In addition, he currently serves as a senior advisor to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., a global asset manager working in private equity and fixed income.

Mr. Owens is an audit committee financial expert serving as Chairman of the Audit Committee for the company. His background as former Chief Financial Officer of Caterpillar provides a strong financial foundation for Audit Committee deliberations. Mr. Owens has proven business acumen, serving as the chief executive officer of a significant, complex global industrial company. His other major affiliations include the Peterson Institute for International Economics; the Council on Foreign Relations; Chairman of the Business Council.

Alcoa Board Committees: Audit Committee (chair).