When a leadership opportunity opened up on the Boeing Test & Evaluation (BT&E) Structures Test team, Renee Corrick did not need much convincing to come back to the company she had left five years earlier.
After working at a Seattle tech company, Corrick returned to Boeing in 2024 because the work, the team and the mission still felt like home. For her, it was less about a title than about the right fit.
“There’s something special in the test community here at Boeing, and I never found it anywhere else,” she said. “After I left Boeing, I spent years wondering what was missing.”
Her Boeing journey began in Boeing Defence Australia in 2000. Years later, she moved to the U.S. for broader experience with the company, including roles in BT&E and the 777X program.
After a while, Corrick was ready for a change and left the company for a tech job where she learned about scale and operations. She found that her Boeing skills translated well to tech and that the basics of process and program management carried over as well.
But Corrick said she also experienced the tech world’s turnover rate, long hours and no overtime pay. What eventually brought her back to Boeing was the same thing that first drew her in: the people, the culture and the mission.
“This is a happiness play,” she said. “The work just feels right for me. My husband tells me I’m a different person when I work at Boeing.”
When she came back, the Structures Test team was much smaller than when she left Boeing, which made the opportunity feel even more meaningful. She wanted to help with the turnaround and be part of rebuilding something important.
Her experience at a tech company also helped her better understand burnout, boundaries and what sustainable work really looks like. Now later in her career, she has taken advantage of Boeing’s benefits, including leadership training, education assistance through the Learning Together Program, and a 401(k) match that beats the standard offerings of other tech companies.
“Coming back felt right, and it still does,” she said. “This is the kind of place where we appreciate each other, and I can do work that matters with people I trust. I see myself here for a long time.”
By Laura Fenton