Nicole Piasecki ’80

Her position today, as vice president and general manager of the Propulsion Systems Division of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, seems like one she was born to hold. After earning a mechanical engineering degree from Yale, Nicole went on to technical positions at Piasecki Helicopter and United Technologies before earning a Wharton MBA. From there she headed to Towers Perrin, Weyerhaeuser Japan Ltd., and finally to Boeing, where she worked (in engineering, sales, business strategy, and marketing) on aircraft including the 737 Dreamliner and the new 737 MAX.

Before 9/11, Boeing’s commercial strategy included the Sonic Cruiser, which was fast, sleek, and sexy but consumed a lot of fuel. To Nicole and her marketing team, it became apparent that customers’ emerging priorities were fuel efficiency, passenger health and comfort, and lower environmental impact.

Nicole’s team helped define the market requirements for the world’s next airplane, one focused on customer comfort and energy efficiency—the 787 Dreamliner. In 2007, midway through development of the Dreamliner, Nicole was named president of Boeing Japan; she had spent time in Japan during business school and on assignment for Weyerhaeuser in the early’90s, so she had deep knowledge of the country’s business culture, which emphasizes collaborative innovation over that of the individual.

In 2010, Nicole returned to Seattle, where she oversaw business development and strategic integration for Boeing Commercial Airplanes. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood recognized Nicole’s leadership and expertise and, in 2011, appointed her to the Future of Aviation Advisory Committee.

Nicole credits early lessons at Groton as very much a part of her success. At Groton she distinguished herself in field hockey, basketball, and lacrosse. She also co-founded the spring musical productions. Nicole valued the team experience more than individual glory, and the collaborative approach she first learned at Groton continues to pay dividends.

“In a world, where more people travel every day—80,000 flights per day and doubling by 2030—we’re all going to need to work together to solve the complex problems of the future,” she says. “Groton gave me a great head start on learning how to work together and work hard in order to take on big challenges.”

Photo by Gail Hanusa—Boeing vice president Nicole Piasecki ’80, in a classic flight deck display at the Future of Flight in Everett, Washington