On March 25th US time, Boeing announced several changes in executive positions. Boeing's current CEO Dave Calhoun will step down at the end of the year, Boeing Civil Aircraft Group CEO Stan Deere will retire, and Boeing Chairman Larry Kerner will also resign. His position as Chairman will be replaced by Steve Mollenkopf. Mollenkopf has been a director of Boeing since 2020 and former CEO of Qualcomm. Boeing stated that Mollenkopf will lead the board in selecting a new CEO.
At the same time, after the retirement of Boeing Civil Aircraft Group CEO Stan Deere, Boeing Chief Operating Officer Stephanie Pope will take over his position and temporarily serve as the CEO of Boeing Civil Aircraft Group, making her the first female CEO in Boeing's century long history. There are rumors that Stephanie Pope may even succeed Dave Calhoun as the CEO of the entire Boeing company.
Pop, currently 52 years old, began her career at McDonnell Douglas in 1994. Three years later, due to the merger of the two companies, she joined Boeing. She has an accounting background. I have held multiple positions at Boeing, including Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer at Boeing Commercial Aircraft Company, as well as positions in Boeing's defense, space, and security departments, responsible for overseeing compliance and ensuring the accuracy, transparency, and timeliness of financial disclosures, as well as other senior leadership positions.
Dave Calhoun, Larry Kerner, and Stan Deere, who left with a sense of melancholy in this personnel change, were all affected by the quality issues of Boeing aircraft in the past two years. Especially in recent times, frequent Boeing aircraft accidents have sparked widespread criticism from regulatory authorities and the public.