Here are some facts about Pope and her nearly three-decade career with the American planemaker.
EDUCATION & CAREER
Pope joined Boeing in 1994 and quickly rose through the ranks to hold senior positions in all three of the company’s key businesses.
She was the finance chief of the commercial airplanes business from December 2020 to March 2022 before becoming the CEO of Boeing Global Services (BGS) in April 2022. She was previously the CFO of BGS from January 2017 to December 2020.
She graduated from Southwest Missouri State University with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and a master’s degree in business administration from Lindenwood University.
BGS’ PERFORMANCE UNDER POPE
BGS is Boeing’s only profitable division in the first nine months of 2023, as the company’s commercial planemaking division struggled with supply chain issues and its defense division faced cost overruns.
Under Pope, BGS revenue increased 9% to $4.81 billion in the fiscal quarter ended September 30, while operating margins fell to 16.3% from 16.5%. The unit’s revenue was $4.31 billion in the quarter before she took over in April 2022, with an operating margin of 14.6%.
Engineering, maintenance and modifications, upgrades and conversions, and spare parts are among the services offered to Boeing’s commercial and defense customers.
REACTIONS
“The move could be setting her up as a possible successor to Dave Calhoun as CEO,” Jefferies analysts wrote in a note.
“Having generated all the company’s profits in recent years as head of the Services division, she is now in pole position to succeed Dave Calhoun as CEO,” Vertical Research Partners analyst Robert Stallard wrote in a note.
“Stephanie brings tremendous operational, financial, and customer experience to this (COO) role,” said Boeing CEO Calhoun.
Pope’s appointment as Boeing’s COO was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.