Boeing senior executives have decided not to move closer to headquarters, despite the company’s insistence that lower-level employees return after the pandemic ends.
The executives, including David Calhoun, who became CEO of Boeing in January 2020, instead commute to the company’s headquarters in Virginia by private jet.
During the pandemic, Calhoun regularly worked from his two mansion-like homes, consisting of a waterfront property on Lake Sunapee in New Hampshire and a gated resort in Buffalo, South Carolina.
Flight records viewed by The Wall Street Journal show Calhoun took more than 400 flights on Boeing’s private jets.
Some of the flights were to Boeing’s newly relocated headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, after previously flying in Chicago.
Boeing is trying to lure employees back to the office with happy hours and even visits from alpacas, but lower-level employees think executives should follow suit
CEO David Calhoun has taken over 400 private jet trips from home and is rarely found at headquarters in Virginia because he prefers to work remotely
However, the records also show that Calhoun used the jet for stops in California, Texas and various locations along the Florida coast.
For safety reasons, Calhoun is required to use a Boeing-provided private jet for all of his business and personal travel, as determined by Boeing’s board of directors.
It is not clear from the logs which trips were business and which were personal.
Boeing Chief Financial Officer Brian West is another executive who has decided not to leave his home in New Canaan, Connecticut.
Although Boeing has an office that opened this spring in New Canaan, just five minutes from West’s home, it was designed to house not West but the company’s new treasurer, David Whitehouse.
Boeing recently moved its headquarters to Arlington, Virginia, after previously being based in Chicago
Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun stays at his lakefront home in New Hampshire, while CFO Brian West doesn’t venture to the nearest Boeing office in Connecticut, even though he lives just five minutes away
Whitehouse started working at Boeing in February and lives a half-hour from the Connecticut office.
Calhoun and West have rarely been seen at Boeing’s Arlington offices since it opened two years ago, despite the company’s push for lower-ranking employees to return in person.
Managers pushing for a return have tried a variety of tactics to lure employees back to their desks, including after-work happy hours, inviting guest speakers, and even bringing alpacas in the hopes that some employees will come back would be tempted to return.
The results were of limited success.
It’s a familiar story for workers across the country who are being asked to return to the office and are particularly frustrated when asked to sit at their desk to complete tasks that can easily be done remotely.
Discontent only grows as executives like Calhoun continue to work from home and occasionally commute on private jets.
Managers pushing for a return have tried a range of tactics to lure workers back to their desks, even bringing in alpacas in the hope that some employees would be enticed to return
At the headquarters in Arlington, some workers have souvenir mugs that say “Love Lake Life” — a clear nod to Calhoun’s laid-back lakefront life
At Arlington headquarters, some signs have popped up that say “Lake Sunapee,” while others have souvenir cups that say “Love Lake Life” — a clear nod to Calhoun’s laid-back lakefront life.
A Boeing spokesman highlighted the company’s efforts to change its leadership culture by allowing senior executives to spend more time outside the office.
“We have changed our leadership culture to encourage our management team to engage more frequently with employees, customers and other stakeholders.” That’s why three years ago, we brought senior leaders from our Chicago office close to their teams “We continue to allow them to spend less time at headquarters and more time with employees and stakeholders,” it said in a statement.
A company spokesperson also highlighted the benefits of increased flexibility, which they said supports the company’s global business and helps attract top talent.
But only about 30 percent of Boeing’s current job postings are for hybrid or fully remote positions.
The 129 open positions in Arlington, Virginia require an in-person appearance at the office.