He served as the Chairman of American Express (NYSE: AXP).
[1][2] Additionally, Owen served on the board of directors of the Nashville Gas Company, the R. C. Owen Company and Tennessee Natural Gas Lines Inc.[1] Owen sat on the Board of Trustees of his alma mater, Vanderbilt University, and later as the President of its Board of Trust.
[1][3] The Owen Graduate School of Management was renamed in his honor in 1977.
[4] Additionally, the Ralph Owen Chair is also named in his honor; it is currently by Professor Eric Johnson, Dean of the Owen Graduate School of Management.
[1] They had a son, Ralph Owen Jr., and a daughter, Melinda Bass.