The Boeing logo appears at the company’s technology and engineering center in São José dos Campos, São Paulo state, Brazil on October 10, 2023. REUTERS/Gabriel Araujo/File Photo Obtaining licensing rights
Dec 11 (Reuters) – Boeing named 30-year company veteran Stephanie Pope chief operating officer on Monday, potentially making her one of the top contenders to take over as CEO David Calhoun when he decides to step down. Top job.
Bob currently heads the company’s aftermarket division, Boeing Global Services (BGS), the only segment to turn a profit during the first nine months of this year, as supply chain issues and cost overruns dragged down the other two units – civil aircraft manufacturing and defence.
Calhoun, who led Boeing through one of its most turbulent phases in decades after overlapping safety-related and pandemic-triggered crises, is expected to remain in the top job for at least another year, The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.
The planemaker in April 2021 extended the required retirement age to 70 from Calhoun’s 65, giving him enough time to guide the planemaker through the recovery process after a series of missteps.
“Stephanie brings tremendous operational, financial and customer experience to this (chief operating officer) role,” Calhoun said Monday.
Bob, who joined Boeing in 1994, has been involved in all three of the company’s major businesses during these years.
She was CFO of Boeing’s commercial aircraft business and vice president of finance and controller for Boeing’s Defense, Space and Security segment in her previous roles.
She took over as president of BGS in April 2022. The company provides services such as engineering, maintenance, modifications, upgrades and conversions as well as spare parts to Boeing’s commercial and defense customers.
Pope will be the first woman to hold the position of CEO in Boeing’s history if she is appointed to this senior position.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Boeing’s board of directors met in recent days to discuss the top executives who might eventually succeed Calhoun. The report added that the candidates also include CFO Brian West and Commercial Aircraft Company President Stan Deal.
(Reporting by Anirudh Saligrama and Abhijith Ganapavaram in Bengaluru; Preparing by Mohammed for the Arabic Bulletin) Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee and Rashmi Aish
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