The Choice of New CEO Ottburg, an Engineer by Background
Boeing, the American aircraft manufacturer currently facing a crisis due to a series of plane crashes, has hired the former Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of its rival, Lockheed Martin.
On June 30 (local time), Boeing announced in a press release that Brian West, the company's CFO, will step down and that Jesus J. Malave, former CFO of Lockheed Martin, has been appointed as his successor. Malave will begin his tenure on August 15.
Malave previously served as Executive Vice President and CFO at L3Harris Technologies and worked as CFO at Lockheed Martin, a Boeing competitor, for about three years until April. Before that, he spent more than 20 years at United Technologies.
This change in the CFO position is being regarded as the most notable executive reshuffle since CEO Dave Calhoun took office in August last year. Calhoun, who has an engineering background, has already begun reorganizing the company in an effort to restore Boeing's former reputation.
CEO Calhoun stated, "Jay is taking on the CFO role at a critical time as we implement fundamental changes rooted in safety and quality and continue to make progress in our recovery, shaping the next chapter for Boeing." Earlier, in an interview with the UK’s Financial Times (FT) in early June, CEO Calhoun remarked that restoring Boeing’s status as a symbol of American manufacturing would be a "multi-year" process.
Boeing has struggled in recent years as a series of accidents, including the 2018 Ryanair 737 Max crash, have raised concerns about safety. Major accidents have occurred in multiple regions, including South Korea, the United States, and India, and public opinion has worsened as it became known that all involved Boeing aircraft.
The aircraft involved in last December's Jeju Air crash at Muan International Airport in Jeollanam-do, which resulted in 179 deaths and became the worst disaster of its kind, was also a Boeing 737-800. In January last year, an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9, which had taken off from Portland International Airport in Oregon, experienced a mid-flight incident at about 5,000 meters altitude, where a window and part of the fuselage were torn off. Most recently, last month in India, an Air India 787 Dreamliner crashed.
Last year, a strike halted Boeing’s factories for about two months, and the company’s financial situation deteriorated to the point where it faced the risk of being downgraded to speculative grade. International credit rating agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) currently assigns Boeing a credit rating of 'BBB-', the lowest level of investment grade; if it is downgraded by one notch, Boeing would fall into 'junk' (speculative) grade. However, in April, S&P removed Boeing from its 'negative watch list,' citing signs of recovery.
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