Overview

Gender

male

John A. Luke, Jr., 66, is chairman of WestRock Company, a provider of packaging and paper solutions in global consumer and corrugated markets. He is the former chairman and chief executive officer of MeadWestvaco Corporation, which merged with RockTenn to form WestRock in 2015. Luke joined the executive ranks of Westvaco in 1990 after holding leadership positions across the organization, including serving in treasury, marketing and international sales. As a senior Westvaco executive, Luke led the merger with the Mead Corporation in 2002.

Luke brings deep executive leadership experience to our board, including expertise in leading large corporate transformations and evaluating and executing inorganic growth opportunities through acquisitions. As chief executive officer of a company that was founded by his ancestors in 1888, Luke possesses a unique perspective regarding the challenges and opportunities of transforming a family business into a global corporation.

His experience on other corporate boards is valuable. He served as chairman and a member of the Executive Committee of MeadWestvaco Corporation. At Bank of New York, he chaired the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee and served on the Risk and Executive committees. Luke has been a Timken director since 1999 and serves on the board’s Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and chairs the Compensation Committee.