The Board of Directors
John O. Mouton, Chairman
Daniel J. Piette, Chief Executive Officer
James A. Thomson
Jim Thomson has been President and CEO of The RAND Corporation since August 1989. He has served the institution in a variety of roles, including that of director of RAND’s research programs in national security, foreign policy, defense policy, and arms control; vice president in charge of RAND Project AIR FORCE; and executive vice president. From 1977 to January 1981, Jim was a member of the National Security Council staff at the White House, where he was primarily responsible for defense and arms control matters related to Europe. He was on the staff of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, 1974–1977.
Jim is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, New York; the International Institute for Strategic Studies, London; and the board of the Los Angeles World Affairs Council. He is a director of AK Steel Corporation and Object Reservoir. He holds a Ph.D. in physics from Purdue and has an honorary doctorate from Purdue University, Pepperdine University, and the University of New Hampshire.
James N. White
Jim White is a Managing Director of Sutter Hill Ventures. In his eight years at SGI, he helped to start and build their 3D graphics workstation business. Jim began his career with HP’s PC division and was part of the core team that created the Vectra Product line, spending time in engineering, sales and product marketing. He is former VP of Marketing for Silicon Graphics, and former VP of Marketing for Macromedia, Inc. and GM of the Interactive Learning Division of Macromedia which was sold to IBM Software Group.
Jim’s eclectic investment focus includes consumer facing, enterprise application, and infrastructure solutions. He currently serves on the board of Bix, Digital Chocolate, Forterra Systems, Inquira, Networks in Motion (NIM), Radiance Technologies, Right Hemisphere, Satmetrix and Shutterfly (Nasdaq:SFLY) and as a board observer at Data Domain and Infinera.
John D. White
John is a Partner with Murphree Venture Partners. During his 30 years of legal experience, John was involved in a variety of industry sectors, with a focus on Energy. After 25 years as a private practitioner in Houston, he co-founded and currently serves as the Chairman of the Board and CEO of Standard Renewable Energy Group, LLC (SREG). SREG is a private equity firm based in Houston, Texas, engaged in the clean technology and renewable energy industries. John also serves as the Managing Director of The Wind Alliance, a public/private partnership formed to advance renewable wind energy industry in the U.S.
John is a past member and chairman of the Texas A&M University System Board of Regents, board member of the Houston Technology Center, The Greater Houston Partnership, the Association for Community Broadcasting and Chairman of the Board of the Ed Rachal Foundation.
Damir S. Skerl, Board Advisor
Damir’s career has spanned 46 years in the O&G industry, starting in international oilfield services. He is a former Executive Vice President of Western Atlas International, President of Western Atlas Logging Services, and Senior Vice President of Baker Hughes, Inc. Damir retired from Baker Hughes in December 1999. Today, he is owner and President of Skerl & Associates, L.L.C., CEO of Smart Drilling and Completion, Inc., and Director of Global Geophysical Services.
Damir is a past member of Stanford University’s School of Earth Sciences Advisory Board and Colorado School of Mines Executive Visiting Committee. He also served as a Trustee of the SEG Foundation and an Associate Trustee of the AGI Foundation. He holds an MS degree in Applied Geophysics and Geology of Mineral Resources from the University of Zagreb, Croatia.