of Directors usually determines the membership of these committees at its organizational meeting held immediately after the annual meeting of stockholders. The following table identifies the current members of the committees: Masahiro Yamamura . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . independent directors. further detail in the written charter of the Executive Committee, between meetings of our Board of Directors, the Executive Committee may exercise all of the powers of our Board of Directors (except those powers expressly reserved to the Board of Directors or to another committee by applicable law or the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission or the NASDAQ Stock Market) in the management and direction of the business and conduct of the affairs of the company, subject to any specific directions given by the Board of Directors. Market and applicable rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission and all members are "audit committee financial experts" as defined by rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Although Mr. Shakeel served as our Chief Executive Officer more than six years ago and may not be considered independent by certain shareholder advisory firms, our Board of Directors believes that it is nonetheless appropriate and in the best interests of the company and its stockholders for Mr. Shakeel to serve on the Audit Committee. Mr. Shakeel, who is considered an independent director under the listing standards of the NASDAQ Stock Market, has over 25 years of experience in our industry, including executive-level experience overseeing operations and finance functions. Our Board of Directors believes that his extensive experience in the industry and understanding of the finance function can provide significant value to the Audit Committee. The Audit Committee operates pursuant to a written charter that is available on our website under the Investor Relations section at investor.wdc.com. As described in further detail in the written charter of the Audit Committee, the key responsibilities of the Audit Committee include: (1) sole responsibility for the appointment, compensation, retention and oversight of our independent registered public accounting firm and, where appropriate, the termination or replacement of the |