Boeing selected a seasoned industry leader, Robert K. "Kelly" Ortberg, to become the company’s president and CEO, effective August 8. Ortberg, who will also join Boeing's board of directors, is set to succeed Dave Calhoun, who declared his intention to step down from the role earlier this year amid a broader management shakeup that also saw the retirement of Stan Deal as head of Boeing Commercial Airplanes and the naming of Steve Mollenkopf as the new chairman of the board.
The selection of Ortberg followed an extensive search process led by Boeing's board of directors. Mollenkopf emphasized Ortberg's qualifications, stating, "Kelly has the right skills and experience to lead Boeing in its next chapter. Kelly is an experienced leader who is deeply respected in the aerospace industry, with a well-earned reputation for building strong teams and running complex engineering and manufacturing companies."
Ortberg brings more than 35 years of aerospace leadership to Boeing. He began his career as an engineer at Texas Instruments in 1983, before joining Rockwell Collins in 1987. At Rockwell Collins, he ascended to the position of president and CEO in 2013. Ortberg played a crucial role in Rockwell Collins' integration with United Technologies and RTX before retiring from the company in 2021. He also has significant experience serving on the boards of RTX and Aptiv PLC and is the former chair of the Aerospace Industries Association’s (AIA) board of governors. Ortberg holds a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Iowa.
Ortberg expressed his commitment to the new role, saying, "Boeing has a tremendous and rich history as a leader and pioneer in our industry, and I'm committed to working together with the more than 170,000 dedicated employees of the company to continue that tradition, with safety and quality at the forefront. There is much work to be done, and I'm looking forward to getting started."
Mollenkopf acknowledged the contributions of outgoing CEO Dave Calhoun, stating, "The board would also like to thank Dave Calhoun for his strong leadership at Boeing, first as chair and then as CEO, when he stepped in to steer the company through the challenges of recent years."