Movers & Shakers: Aeronautics and Defense

by Sima Matthes (New York City)

Of the six companies among the Fortune 100 ranking for this industry—Boeing (#27), United Technologies (#39), Lockheed Martin (#57), Honeywell (#73) , Northrop Grumman (#76) and General Dynamics (#87)—all have women in the C-suite.

The senior vice president of the Office of Internal Governance for The Boeing Company, Wanda Denson-Low was named to her current position in May 2007. According to Boeing, “[s]he is responsible for the advancement and effective implementation of the company’s internal governance strategies. She also maintains management oversight for Internal Audit, Ethics and Business Conduct, Global Trade Controls, which includes import-export policies and compliance, and other related regulatory and compliance matters.” An eight-year veteran of Boeing since its acquisition of Hughes Aircraft, Ms. Denson-Low has more than 20 years of experience in corporate law, government contracts and intellectual property law. She began her career in 1981 as a patent attorney with Union Carbide Corporation, and moved from there to Hughes Aircraft Company, where she became the first minority woman named chief patent counsel of a Fortune 500 company. Ms. Denson-Low holds a law degree from Brooklyn Law School and a bachelor of science in chemistry from Renssalaer Polytechnic Institute in New York.

Also at Boeing, Carolyn Corvi is the Vice President/General Manager for Airplane Programs and Commercial Airplanes. She leads Boeing Commercial Airplanes’ fully-integrated production system and managing 30,000 employees and facilities throughout North America and Australia. In her 34 years with the company, she has spearheaded numerous large-scale projects, including the streamlining of the manufacturing process for 737 aircraft and the relocation of the 737 design, manufacture and support team to one facility in Washington State. Ms. Corvi holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Washington and a master’s degree in management from MIT.

Mary Armstrong has been Boeing’s vice president of Environment, Health and Safety since 2007. She is responsible “for developing and implementing enterprise strategies, objectives, systems and standards to address current and potential future environmental, health and safety issues at Boeing.” Ms. Armstrong has been with the company since 1984, when she was a process engineer. She has since held progressively responsible management-level positions managing staff, operations and facilities throughout the world. Ms. Armstrong has a Bachelor of Science from the University of Washington as well as a Master’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Rochester, New York.

Nancy T. Lintner is the vice president of Communications for United Technologies Corporation following a stint in the same role for UTC’s Carrier division. She started at Carrier in 2003 as the director of advertising, public relations, employee and executive communications. This followed a 13-year long tenure at Fortune Brands,where Ms. Lintner was the vice president, marketing and communications, for its distilled spirits and wine business. Ms. Lintner holds a degree in English literature from Columbia University.

Linda Gooden is Executive Vice President of Lockheed Martin Information Systems & Global Services (IS&GS) business area, which deals with the company’s federal customers. She is the recipient of numerous awards and accolades including this year’s Top 50 Women in Technology list by Corporate Board Member magazine. She was named 2006 Black Engineer of the Year by U.S Black Engineer and IT Magazine. She holds a bachelor’s in computer technology from Youngstown State University and a BS in Business Administration from the University of Maryland. She completed graduate studies at San Diego State University.

Joanne Maguire is Executive Vice President of Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company (SSC). SSC deals with satellites, remote sensing and navigation equipment, strategic and missile defense systems and spacecraft. This year, Ms. McGuire joined her colleague Linda Gooden on Corporate Board Member magazine’s Top 50 Women in Technology. She was also listed on Fortune’s 50 Most Powerful Women list in 2006 and 2007. Ms. Maguire holds a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Michigan State University and a master’s degree in Engineering from UCLA. She is also a graduate of the executive program in management at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management and completed the Harvard Program for Senior Executives in National and International Security.

Rhonda Germany is Honeywell’s Vice President, Strategy and Business Development, a position she’s held since joining the company in 2002. In this role, she helps develop growth strategies to meet the company’s goals. She also manages global growth strategies and the company’s strategic marketing program. Ms. Germany has honed her background in strategic planning since graduating with her bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Michigan. She also has an MBA in finance from the University of Connecticut.

Northrop Grumman’s Information Technology division is led by corporate vice president and president Linda A. Mills. Ms. Mills formerly served as vice president in Northrop’s Mission Systems sector, supervising the “Mission Assurance/Six Sigma”. She has been with the company since 1979, and is also a member of the company’s Corporate Policy Council. Ms. Mills holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from the Santa Clara University and a master’s degree in computer science from the University of Illinois.

Phebe N. Novakovic is the Divisional Senior VP at General Dynamics Corporation. She joined the company in 2001 as Director of Strategic Planning and was promoted to VP of Strategic Planning in 2002. She remained in this position until her 2005 promotion to Senior VP of Planning and Development. Prior to joining General Dynamics, Ms. Novakovic was a special assistant to the Secretary and Deputy Secretary of Defense as well as a deputy associate director of the Office of Management and Budget from 1992-1997. She graduated from Smith College and holds an MBA from the Wharton School with a concentration in strategic planning and finance.

In the current economic climate, with U.S. military activity on at least two fronts, the demand on the aeronautic and defense industries is at a high point. Of the top 10 companies in aero and defense, all posted higher earnings than the prior year. As we’ve observed numerous times on this site, companies with women in the executive wing tend to do better, even in troubled economic times. Perhaps this list is a jumping off point for defense and aeronautic companies seeking to improve their bottom line in the year ahead.