As important as the technology is, we
know that transformation is about more than technology.
As Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has put it, “We
[must] also transform the way we think, train, exercise
and fight.” Last year, we melded our military aircraft
and missile systems and space and communications businesses
into a single organization — Boeing Integrated
Defense Systems. In doing so, we put together the platform
capability resident in the one with the systems capability
of the other to build the defense organization of the
future.
The Future for Boeing Our
financial results in 2002 were good — but with
dramatic market reductions in commercial airplanes, not
on a par with our results in 2001. I expect our financial
results for 2003 to be solid — but they will reflect
further reductions in commercial airplane deliveries.
Our defense business will continue to grow and prosper.
Deliveries of new commercial airplanes should reach bottom.
So, as an investor, a fair question to ask is, “Why
am I confident in the future of The Boeing Company?”
I will answer that both as the company’s CEO and as someone
who has worked for Boeing for 37 years in some 20 different assignments. From
my perspective, there are five powerful reasons. Three of them go back to what
I said at the outset.
First, we have great people who are committed to excellence.
Second, we have the right strategy. This is a well-balanced enterprise
with the widest and greatest set of capabilities of any aerospace company in
the world. We combine strong existing programs such as the Boeing 777, Delta
II and F/A-18 and great future programs such as the new, highly efficient commercial
airplane, missile defense and Future Combat Systems. There is plenty of runway
for future growth and improvement. |
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Third, this is a company that executes
well. Within our core businesses, we will not fail
to meet strict financial objectives — in bad
times as well as good. So when the prolonged slump
in the commercial airplane market comes to an end,
Boeing will be ready with significant improvements
in costs and profitability.
Fourth, Boeing is shaping the markets of tomorrow. We are doing
the kinds of things that will help our customers — and our customers’ customers — accomplish
their goals.
Finally, there is one more thing to consider, and that is the character
and integrity of this company. There’s a good reason why Boeing is the
best-known name in the field of aerospace and one of the strongest brands in
the world. Through more than four generations, our people have lived up to the
trust that others have placed in them. Good corporate governance — in the
truest sense of the term — means a fierce and abiding commitment to doing
the right thing and not just doing things right in terms of achieving a short-term
objective. That way of thinking is a vital part of the culture of this company.
At Boeing, we believe in the future of aerospace. And we’re
focused on defining that future.
Forever New Frontiers,
Philip M. Condit
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
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