Dan James

Dan James was appointed as BPA’s chief workforce and strategy officer in July 2021. In this role, he is responsible for bringing greater senior executive oversight to the agency’s people and culture efforts and the reinvigorated corporate strategy function. He leads BPA’s organizational culture, work environment and strategic execution to improve the agency’s ability to effectively deliver on its mission and provide excellent service to its customers.

James first joined BPA’s leadership team in June 2016 as deputy administrator. Spending five years in this role, he provided policy and strategic guidance to the administrator. He oversaw the following organizations: Compliance, Audit, and Risk Management; Civil Rights and Equal Employment Opportunity; Communications; Intergovernmental Affairs and Technology Innovation.

James came to BPA from PNGC Power, where he served as vice president of public affairs and marketing since 2007. PNGC Power is one of BPA’s largest customers with member utilities spread across BPA’s service territory. During this time, he was a member of the National Preference Customer Committee of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.

Prior to working at PNGC Power, James worked as a senior government relations specialist at Ball Janik LLP in Portland, Oregon, and Washington, D.C. He also spent time as the federal affairs representative at Pacific Northwest Waterways Association in Vancouver, Washington. He began his career in Washington, D.C., on the staff of Les AuCoin, former U.S. House representative from Oregon.

James spent most of his childhood in Kalispell, Montana. In 1987, he earned a bachelor’s degree in political science at Pacific University in Forest Grove, Oregon. He also earned a utility management certificate from Willamette University’s Portland campus in 2015. He currently or has previously served on the boards of the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance, the United Way of the Columbia-Willamette, Pacific University, the Oregon Wave Energy Trust and the Pacific Youth Choir. He is also a senior fellow of the Oregon chapter of the American Leadership Forum.