what’s working
Leadership and Excellence
With more speakers than ever, the sold-out 26th annual
AWB Policy Summit was the biggest yet.
Brian Mittge
Former Ford and Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Alan Mulally headlined three days of
discussion and leadership insights. Legislative leaders and speakers, including Gov. Jay Inslee,
pollster John Zogby, TV personality Tony Ventrella, biotechnology entrepreneur Leen Kawas,
and many others touched on themes ranging from education funding to cybersecurity.
An offhand, just-between-friends comment from Alan Mulally highlighted the sense of community and purpose that
makes the AWB Policy Summit such a compelling event for the business and political leaders who return each year.
“It’s really nice to be back with you guys,” Mulally, the former Ford Motor Co. and Boeing Commericial Airplanes
CEO, said with a grin during a pause in his keynote address to a full house at 2015 Policy Summit Sept. 15-17.
Mulally, who rose to international fame by leading the Ford Motor Co. through the Great Recession without taking
a federal government bailout,
spent most of his working life
in Washington at The Boeing
Co. An aerospace engineer,
Mulally worked on every major
Boeing commercial airline
model from the 727 through
the 787, rising to lead Boeing
Commercial Airplanes before
leaving to become CEO for the
beleaguered Ford in 2006. He
retired in 2014.
“At the end of the day, the
reason I left my beloved Boeing
and went to Ford is because I
really felt that I was being asked
to serve a second American
global icon,” Mulally said.
In a folksy but powerful
t a l k , Mu l a l l y d i s c u s s e d h i s
collaborative leadership style
powered by his