Source: Boeing

  • Soussan brings strong engineering, manufacturing and sustainability leadership
  • Based in France, Soussan would become Boeing’s first board member outside the United States

The Boeing Company Board of Directors today announced that it has nominated Sabrina Soussan to be elected as a new director at the company’s upcoming annual meeting of shareholders.

Soussan, 53, currently serves as chair and CEO of SUEZ SA, a Paris-based global utility company specializing in water and waste management with a focus on sustainability. Over a more than a 20-year career at Siemens AG, she held multiple leadership positions as Division CEO, Business Unit CEO and as an engineer in transportation, automation and energy management sectors. Prior to joining SUEZ, she was CEO of Swiss dormakaba, a global leader in access and security solutions.

“Sabrina is a proven leader who brings a global mindset with extensive engineering and senior leadership experience in manufacturing, safety, sustainability, transportation and digitalisation,” said Boeing Chair Larry Kellner. “With a track record of success and a shared commitment to our values, Sabrina will add essential perspective to our Board.”

Soussan, who is German and French, earned a master’s degree in mechanical and aeronautical engineering from the École Nationale Supérieure de Mécanique et d’Aérotechnique and a master’s degree in business administration from I.A.E. Poitiers and University of Dublin, Ireland.

Subject to her election at the company’s annual meeting of shareholders on April 18, Soussan would become the eighth independent director to join the Board since April 2019. These eight directors collectively bring significant experience in aerospace, safety, engineering, manufacturing, cyber, software, risk oversight, audit, supply chain management, sustainability and finance. Based in France, Soussan would also become Boeing’s first board member based outside the United States and she would join the Board’s audit and finance committees.

“Sabrina is an ideal leader to join the Boeing board as we continue to restore our operational strength, guided by our focus on safety, quality and transparency,” said Dave Calhoun, Boeing President and CEO. “Her global expertise, strong engineering credentials and deep experience leading complex manufacturing operations with safety at the forefront will be vital to our business.”

Boeing’s Chief Engineer Hyslop to transition to emeritus role and serve as advisor to CEO

Boeing announced that Greg Hyslop, the company’s chief engineer and executive vice president of Engineering, Test & Technology, will retire this June after a 41-year career that spanned Boeing’s aerospace and defense portfolio.

Hyslop, who has been on Boeing’s Executive Council since 2016 and assumed the top engineering position in 2019, has worked to strengthen Boeing’s engineering function. He led the realignment of the company’s engineers under one organization, championed changes to empower engineers and instituted next-generation design practices.

“Greg has modeled Boeing’s commitment to engineering excellence throughout his four decades here,” said Dave Calhoun, Boeing president and CEO. “As we reshaped our company, Greg played an instrumental role in strengthening our engineering organization, positioning our engineers to innovate a future that is more digital, autonomous and sustainable, and always with a focus on safety, quality and integrity.”

Howard McKenzie, the top engineer at Boeing’s commercial airplanes unit, succeeds Hyslop as chief engineer and executive vice president, Engineering, Test & Technology. Effective today, McKenzie takes over leadership of the company’s 57,000 engineers worldwide, overseeing all aspects of safety and technical integrity of Boeing products and services. McKenzie also assumes oversight of Boeing’s technology vision, strategy and investment, while reporting to Calhoun and joining the company’s executive council.

Prior to his recent role at Boeing Commercial Airplanes (BCA), McKenzie was vice president and chief engineer of Boeing Global Services, the company’s services and support business. A 35-year veteran of the company, McKenzie has also served as vice president of Boeing Test & Evaluation, the group responsible for testing, evaluating and certifying new products.

David Loffing, chief program engineer of Boeing’s new 777X airplane, takes over as vice president and chief engineer of BCA. Loffing has held roles of increasing responsibility since joining Boeing nearly 20 years ago, with engineering leadership positions across the company’s single- and twin-aisle jet families and future airplane concepts.

“Howard and David are brilliant engineering minds who bring strong technical expertise and deep program experience to their new roles. They will join together with Chief Technology Officer Todd Citron and Chief Aerospace Safety Officer Michael Delaney to lead our function into the future and help us tackle the engineering challenges of today and tomorrow,” said Calhoun.

Greg Hyslop will support the leadership transition through June as he assumes the role of chief engineer emeritus, reporting to Calhoun. He will assist with program management, leadership development and university relations efforts.

“When I think about the impact Boeing has on the world, I feel incredibly lucky to have worked with the talented people who take on the aerospace industry’s most difficult problems,” said Hyslop. “That’s what engineers do. We solve problems. We happily accept challenges and find solutions that change the world.  I will always be proud to call myself a Boeing Engineer.”