MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Business Council of Alabama (BCA), our members, and staff are saddened by the recent passing of Bill O’Connor, who served as the second President and CEO of BCA.

Mr. O’Connor served as President and CEO of BCA from 1996 until 2003. He stepped into the top position during a challenging period for the then relatively new statewide business association. He quickly provided strong, stable leadership, and BCA never missed a step in fulfilling and extending its mission as the voice of Alabama business.

Mr. O’Connor’s statehouse experience, personal relationships, and effective communication skills enabled him to quickly implement innovative and new approaches to advocacy from BCA. He immediately turned the organization squarely into the wind to face numerous difficult legislative issues impacting the state’s overall business community, including tort and legal reform, healthcare mandates on employers, and tax issues. He worked effectively and in a bipartisan manner, always focusing on what’s best for employers.

Bill knew the value of building longstanding relationships and worked tirelessly to keep the business community and employers, both large and small, in the best position possible to create jobs and economic opportunities for Alabama. He played hard for business but played fair.

“We are saddened to lose one of our visionary leaders. His tenure as President provided new innovations and built a solid bridge into the future that has served the business community well,” said Helena Duncan, current President of BCA. “The entire BCA family extends our sympathies and prayers to Bill’s family and his many friends and colleagues.”