SEATTLE, June 4, 2010 – The Boeing Commercial Airplanes Communications & Marketing team received a 2010 Silver Anvil award from the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Thursday for its work in planning and executing communications events surrounding the 787 Dreamliner first flight on Dec. 15, 2009.

PRSA – the largest professional association serving the public relations industry – awards Silver Anvils each year to organizations that successfully address a contemporary issue with exemplary professional skill, creativity and resourcefulness. According to the PRSA website, this national award represents the “best of the best” in public relations practices.

The Boeing Communications & Marketing team began planning a year in advance of the event, which drew more than 12,000 employees and guests. The team also facilitated the company’s first live webcast, allowing more than 1 million people around the globe to share in the historic first flight and landing of the Dreamliner.
“This was a team of literally hundreds of volunteers who created a memorable event worthy of the 787 Dreamliner,” said Yvonne Leach, 787 Communications director, at the acceptance ceremony. “It was an honor to have led the team that planned and delivered this event.”

The Silver Anvil award recognized the team for deploying new technologies to open the first-flight experience to employees, media, customers, government officials and other stakeholders. These innovations included hosting micro events around the world; providing audio feed between air traffic control and 787 first-flight pilots Mike Carriker and Randy Neville during the flight; and allowing Web visitors to track the flight live on Boeing.com.

“Those who attended first flight in person or watched it on the Web will never forget the rush of emotion when that airplane left the ground and became airborne,” said Leach. “It was a great moment for Boeing, for our customer, our partners and employees – for our entire industry.”

ST. LOUIS, Jan. 19, 2011 — The Boeing Company today announced that it has named Robert E. Verbeck, 51, chief financial officer of its $34 billion (2009 revenues) Boeing Defense, Space & Security (BDS) business. He succeeds Randy Simons, who is retiring.

“In our business, we have to keep building momentum around our strong performance culture to best serve our customers and earn the opportunity to grow,” said Dennis Muilenburg, president and CEO of BDS. “Bob’s practical know-how in all disciplines of business finance will help us compete and innovate more effectively. His experience will have a direct impact on our ability to drive performance in all dimensions for our stakeholders, including customers, shareholders, employees and local communities.”

Verbeck most recently served as CFO for the Boeing Military Aircraft business unit of BDS. He previously held posts as BDS controller, program manager for the United Kingdom tanker program, and general manager of BDS Finance.
Verbeck reports to Muilenburg and James Bell, Boeing executive vice president and chief financial officer. As BDS CFO, he is responsible for reporting on the financial performance of BDS and its three business segments — Boeing Military Aircraft, Network & Space Systems, and Global Services & Support. Verbeck leads more than 6,000 global finance employees making up teams in financial planning and analysis, accounting, estimating, contracts and pricing, procurement financial analysis, integrated scheduling, rate forecasting, earned value management compliance, and productivity improvement.

Verbeck joined McDonnell Douglas, a Boeing heritage company, in 1986 in the Finance organization after working as a steelworker. He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Southern Illinois University and a master’s degree in international business from Saint Louis University (SLU). He has served as the Boeing executive focal for SLU and is currently a member of the advisory council for the university’s Boeing Institute of International Business.