Boeing names Colbert as Defense Chief in leadership shuffle

Boeing Co. named Ted Colbert as president and chief executive officer of its $26 billion defense, space and security division as part of a broader leadership shuffle at two of the company’s main businesses.

Colbert, 49, takes over at Boeing’s second-largest division from Leanne Caret, 55, who had been the company’s senior-most woman executive since 2016 and is retiring after almost 35 years. Colbert has been running the planemaker’s global services business.

“He is a rising star within the organization,” analyst Sheila Kahyaoglu of Jefferies said of Colbert in a note to clients late Monday.

Stephanie Pope steps into Colbert’s old job, leading the $16 billion operation that provides services ranging from analytical tools for airlines to remodeling older passenger jets into air-cargo-haulers, Boeing said Monday. She most recently was chief financial officer for Boeing Commercial Airplanes, the company’s third major pillar. Colbert and Pope start their new roles April 1.

The latest moves broaden an overhaul of the Chicago-based planemaker’s senior management at a time when CEO Dave Calhoun is trying to repair Boeing’s reputation and end years of heavy losses since two fatal 737 Max crashes sent the company into crisis in 2019. 

Calhoun’s changes have included bringing in new chiefs to oversee the company’s finance, human resources, communications and Washington lobbying operation. Boeing has also recruited six new board members since 2019, while eight directors left. 

The latest shake-up places Colbert, one of the company’s senior Black leaders, in a higher-profile role at a time when defense spending and global unrest are both on the rise. Prior to joining Boeing as an information technology executive in 2009, Colbert had worked at Citigroup and Ford Motor Co. He was named Black Engineer of the Year for 2022.

Boeing shares were little changed after the close of regular trading.