“Embracing Risk: A Vision for Aerospace in the 21st Century”

Frank Whittle Lecture
Bill Boeing Lecture Theater
Royal Aeronautical Society
London, United Kingdom

James F. Albaugh
President and Chief Executive
Boeing Integrated Defense Systems

The Boeing Company
January 19, 2005
Link to Speech Full Text

Change: Industry-Industry Teaming
Just as 21st century aerospace will demand new partnerships between industry and government, it will require new partnerships within industry.

In this global economy, no company is an island unto itself. Companies that think they are… that is, that are vertically integrated… cannot be the best in the world at everything they do. Therefore, by definition that company cannot offer their customer the best solution possible. They will deliver a sub-optimal product.

Also, no single company will ever have a monopoly on the knowledge, talents or skills required to develop the complex systems demanded by our customers today.

We are global companies with global supply chains building complex large-scale systems for an increasingly global customer. Companies will be only as good as their ability to globally source and compete. Companies that seek only to offer their best…will fail.

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Change: High-Skilled 21st Century Workforce
None of the changes I have discussed so far…

* the innovation of a risk culture…
* partnerships between industry and government…
* …and teaming within industry…
…will be possible without addressing a final issue: the need for a talented, highly-skilled aerospace workforce.

Looking ahead, we face a triple threat. The first and most imminent threat is the aging of our industry workforce. The average age of an aerospace engineer today is 54 years old.

And that leads directly into the second threat: We are simply not producing enough of the scientists and engineers of the future.

Twenty years ago, the U.S. was producing some 75,000 science and engineering graduates every year. This year, we will graduate about 50,000. Meanwhile, India will graduate about 300,000! China? About 700,000 – every year! [Ed. Note: emphasis mine]

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There was a time when aerospace was the place to be. It was majestic. Today in the U.S., only two percent of engineering students enter aerospace.

In one survey, 80 percent of American aerospace workers said they would not recommend their profession to their own children – 80 percent!

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How can aerospace attract the best and brightest?

As an industry, we can start by becoming more attractive to younger workers. And at the same time, we need to keep the inspiration alive for the young men and women who enter aerospace.

We lose far too many good engineers to other industries after the first three or four years. Part of it is because it can take years for a young aerospace engineer to reach a level of real responsibility. To be promoted, one has to have gray hair.

As executives and managers, we have to ask:

* Are we developing the innovators and leaders of the future?
* Do we promote based on merit?
* Do we give responsibility based on competency?
* Do we reward based on performance?
Only by doing so can we keep the best and brightest.

But industry cannot solve this challenge alone. With airframes like the B-52 and the F-4 enjoying life-spans decades longer than originally intended, there are simply fewer new design programs with which to engage our workforce. A government commitment to prototyping could help us retain our aerospace workers by keeping them challenged with cutting-edge projects.

I have seen the engineering graduate numbers before, but it is still astounding that nobody has taken any action on this front. We need projects that excite people to be a part of, and to encourage high school students to pursue engineering. We are no closer to catching-up to China or India than we were 10 years ago. Plus, probably half (this is just a guess) our engineering graduates are foreigners!

If you don't think this kind of difference on the number of engineering graduates is going to make a difference, you just wait. The majority of engineering jobs will move offshore, and China will be colonizing space all in short order. China and India will be the new technology dominate contries of the 21st Century.

We have been talking about these issues for the last 8-10 years, it is long past the time to actually do something.