James Taiclet is chairman, president and chief executive officer of Lockheed Martin Corporation. He became chairman in March 2021, after joining the company as president and CEO in June 2020. He has been a director on the Lockheed Martin board of directors since January 2018.
Prior to joining Lockheed Martin, Taiclet was chairman, president and chief executive officer of American Tower Corporation, the fourth largest listed telecommunications company in the U.S. Under his leadership as CEO, the company’s market capitalization grew from approximately $2 billion to over $100 billion. He guided the company’s transformation from a primarily U.S. business to the only truly global player in its industry, with significant assets and operations in 19 countries around the world.
Prior to joining American Tower, Taiclet served as president of Allied Signal, subsequently Honeywell Aerospace Services, conducting worldwide aircraft engine and component overhaul and repair, parts sales and distribution, space operations, and technical services. Prior to that he served as vice president, Engine Services at Pratt & Whitney, responsible for both military and commercial jet engine overhaul and repair.
Taiclet began his career as a U.S. Air Force officer and pilot, where he logged over 5,000 flying hours as an aircraft commander, instructor pilot, and unit chief of Standardization and Evaluation. His rotational assignments included the Joint Staff and Air Staff at the Pentagon, and he served in the Gulf War and among other missions, was a pilot in one of the first transport aircraft deploying U.S. forces into Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Shield, a Lockheed C-141B Starlifter.
He holds a master’s degree from Princeton University, where he was awarded a fellowship at the Woodrow Wilson School, and he is a distinguished graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy with degrees in engineering and international relations.
Taiclet is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Business Roundtable, and the Business Council. He also serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of Brigham and Women’s Health Care, Inc., and the Board of Directors of Catalyst. In August 2015, he was appointed to the U.S.-India CEO Forum, and, in October 2018, he was appointed co-chair of the U.S.-India CEO Forum by the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) is an American global aerospace, defense, security and advanced technology company with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Mariettain March 1995. It is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, in the Washington DC area. Lockheed Martin employs 116,000 people worldwide. Marillyn Hewson is the current President and Chief Executive Officer.
Lockheed Martin is one of the world's largest defense contractors; in 2009, 74% of Lockheed Martin's revenues came from military sales.[4] It received 7.1% of the funds paid out by the Pentagon.[5]
