King Owyang
ALPHA & OMEGA SEMICONDUCTORAbout King Owyang
King Owyang, Ph.D. (age 79) has served as an independent director of Alpha & Omega Semiconductor Limited (AOS) since April 2013. He holds a B.S. in Physics and a Ph.D. in Materials Science from MIT, and is a recognized leader in the power semiconductor industry with over 25 patents and 20+ technical publications . He is currently Chair of the Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee and a member of the Compensation Committee; he attended at least 94% of Board and committee meetings in FY2025, reflecting strong engagement .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Computime Group Limited (HK-listed) | Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director | Apr 30, 2010 – Oct 1, 2020 | Led global electronic control technologies provider |
| Siliconix Inc. (subsidiary of Vishay) | President & CEO; earlier senior roles | ~21 years | Built industry-leading power switching/management products; sales reached a record level in 2008 |
| General Electric Company | Technical/managerial positions | Pre‑Siliconix (dates not specified beyond pre-1987 in other bios) | Developed enabling semiconductor technologies |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Computime Group Limited | Executive Director (public company) | Past (ended 2020) |
| Siliconix Inc. | President & CEO (public company subsidiary) | Past |
| General Electric Company | Technical/managerial roles | Past |
No current public company directorships are disclosed for Dr. Owyang in AOS’s 2025 proxy .
Board Governance
- Independence: AOS determined seven of nine directors, including Dr. Owyang, are independent under NASDAQ rules; only the CEO (Stephen C. Chang) and Executive Vice President of Strategic Initiatives (Mike F. Chang) are non‑independent .
- Committee assignments: Compensation Committee (member); Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee (Chair) .
- Attendance: Each director attended ≥94% of aggregate Board and committee meetings in FY2025; the Board held 6 meetings .
- Committee activity: Compensation Committee held 3 meetings; Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee held 2 meetings and executed one unanimous written consent in FY2025 .
- Shareholder support: At the Nov 11, 2025 AGM, Dr. Owyang received 23,647,166 FOR votes, 403,637 WITHHELD; broker non‑votes 3,914,676 .
- Lead Independent Director: Michael J. Salameh presides over executive sessions and coordinates independent director activities and shareholder communications .
- Related-party oversight: Audit Committee reviews/approves related party transactions per formal policy; directors do not participate in approvals where they are related parties .
Fixed Compensation (Non-Employee Director)
| Metric | FY2025 |
|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer | $45,000 (policy) |
| Committee member retainer – Compensation | $7,500 (policy) |
| Committee chair retainer – Nominating & Gov | $15,000 (policy) |
| Total fees earned (Dr. Owyang) | $67,500 |
Policy notes: Special meeting fees, if approved by Board, are $2,000 in-person/$1,000 teleconference; otherwise no meeting fees for regular meetings .
Performance Compensation (Director Equity)
| Component | FY2025 |
|---|---|
| Annual RSU grant policy | $160,000 divided by 90‑day average price, cap 10,000 shares; vests quarterly over ~1 year |
| RSU grant fair value (Dr. Owyang) | $121,381 |
| RSUs outstanding at 6/30/2025 (Dr. Owyang) | 2,228 |
| Vesting mechanics | Four equal quarterly installments; acceleration upon change-in-control if awards not assumed; dividend equivalents paid only on vesting |
Plan safeguards: No evergreen; no liberal share recycling; no repricing of options/SARs; minimum one‑year vesting (limited exceptions); limit on director total pay in a year ($750k; $1,000k initial year) .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
- Compensation Committee interlocks: None of AOS’s Compensation Committee members (including Dr. Owyang) were officers/employees of AOS, and no AOS executive serves on another company’s board/compensation committee creating an interlock .
- Current public boards (Dr. Owyang): None disclosed .
Expertise & Qualifications
- Technical and leadership: Recognized industry leader in power semiconductors; >25 patents and 20+ technical papers; led Siliconix to profitability and market leadership in power management .
- Education: B.S. Physics and Ph.D. Materials Science, MIT .
- Governance: Chair of Nominating & Corporate Governance; experience across Asia/U.S. markets and manufacturing operations .
Equity Ownership
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Beneficial ownership (shares) | 69,575 shares |
| Shares outstanding (record date) | 30,043,040 shares (Sept 12, 2025) |
| Ownership % of outstanding | ≈0.23% (69,575 / 30,043,040) |
| RSUs outstanding (director service) | 2,228 |
| Director ownership guideline | 3× annual retainer ($202,500 for Dr. Owyang) |
| Actual ownership value at 6/30/2025 | $1,728,124 (exceeds guideline) |
| Hedging/Pledging | Prohibited without pre‑clearance; no pledges disclosed in proxy |
Governance Assessment
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Strengths
- Independent director; Chair of Nominating & Corporate Governance; strong attendance and engagement .
- High shareholder support in 2025 election; robust say‑on‑pay support historically (97.8% FOR in 2024) and 2025 advisory vote FOR 23,704,661 (AGAINST 330,810) .
- Strong ownership alignment: actual ownership value ($1.73M) far exceeds director guideline ($202.5k); anti‑hedging/pledging policy in place .
- Compensation structure balances cash retainer and time-based RSUs with quarterly vesting; director pay capped by plan; no repricing provisions .
- Related-party transaction controls via Audit Committee policy; director recusal mandated .
-
Watch items / potential risks
- Age (79) suggests ongoing succession planning considerations for committee leadership continuity .
- Prior executive ties to industry firms (Siliconix, Computime) could introduce perceived network influences; no specific related-party transactions disclosed at AOS beyond indemnification .
-
Signals for investors
- Committee leadership (Nominating & Governance) places Dr. Owyang at the center of board composition and succession oversight; effective governance depends on disciplined application of independence and stakeholder communications policies .
- 2025 AGM voting shows broad shareholder support for directors and pay programs, which supports investor confidence in board effectiveness .
Additional Reference Points
- Board structure: Nine directors; majority independent; executive sessions led by the Lead Independent Director .
- Committee scope: Compensation Committee (pay design, consultants; retained Compensia, determined independent) .
- ESG/Shareholder communications: Dedicated subcommittee for investor relations and ESG; coordinated twice yearly reporting to the Board .
- Director compensation mix: Cash retainer + committee retainers + annual RSU grant; no options granted to non‑employee directors in FY2025 .