Did Boeing bring in a woman to clean up its mess in a ‘glass cliff’ scenario?

A few days before Boeing tapped the first-ever woman to lead its Commercial Airplanes division, Christy Glass predicted it would happen.

Glass was presenting her research on the “glass cliff,” a phenomenon in corporate America in which male dominated companies finally turn the reins over to a woman or person of color when there's a big mess to clean up.

“Set your watches,” Glass said. “Because we're about to see a massive shake up and I guarantee a woman's going to be appointed to lead this company through this crisis.”

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Boeing has been in a public relations freefall since the infamous door plug blowout earlier this year. The incident exposed safety and quality control issues at the airplane manufacturer.

The company has endured near-daily negative headlines for weeks, which finally led to a major leadership shakeup. Last week, Boeing announced the departure of CEO David Calhoun, Commercial Airplanes CEO Stan Deal, and Board Chair Larry Kellner.

Calhoun will stay on through the end of the year as the board searches for his replacement, but Deal’s retirement was effective immediately. Into his shoes steps Stephanie Pope.

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Pope is a second-generation Boeing veteran who's been with the company in various finance roles since the 1990s. She most recently served as Boeing’s chief operating officer.

“She has held a number of leadership positions that have positioned her exceptionally well to lead this company through the crisis,” Glass said. “That being said, it's extremely important to note that her appointment is during one of the company's worst crises in modern history. She will be under intense scrutiny by regulators, by clients and customers, and by the media to see whether in fact she's able to turn this company around.”

Pope joins the ranks of dozens of women to break through the glass ceiling when a company is in crisis.

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For some, like General Motors CEO Mary Barra, calamity presents an opportunity to prove their leadership chops. She became the first chief executive of a major automaker 10 years ago, when the company was navigating bankruptcy, a massive product recall, and a reputational crisis. She managed to turn things around, securing record profits for General Motors and guiding its shift into electric vehicles.

“Mary Barra, like Stephanie Pope had given her whole career to General Motors, so she was exceptionally well prepared to be appointed CEO,” Glass said. “It's just regrettable, and not coincidental, that her appointment came during the midst of a crisis, but she weathered that storm flawlessly … so I don't mean to suggest that this is not possible.”

But for others, glass cliff appointments represent a huge career liability.

Last fall, reports emerged that brand chiefs and marketing executives were urging their peer Linda Yaccarino to resign from Twitter before her reputation was damaged by the embattled company. Yaccarino was tapped as CEO of Twitter last year to rescue a company hemorrhaging advertisers because of its controversial owner, Elon Musk.

Glass — the scholar who shares her name with the subject of her research — has three theories for why the glass cliff exists. The first is rooted in gender stereotypes.

“It's believed that women may be able to deliver bad news in a way that is more palatable,” she said. “They may be able to serve as the kind and warm face of a struggling company.”

The second boils down to the old adage that beggars can’t be choosers. Women are so rarely given the opportunity to lead companies that they have to seize opportunity when it strikes, even if it comes with a lot of baggage.

“Men may have the confidence — particularly white men — that they'll be tapped for another senior leadership position down the road so that they can kind of bide their time and wait for a really juicy appointment opportunity to arrive,” Glass said. “Whereas women may not have that confidence that other opportunities will come their way.”

The third theory is related. Glass said women often prove themselves on the male-dominated leadership track by seeking out high-risk positions.

“From very early on in their career, they recognize that in order to be seen as competent and capable as senior leaders, as opposed to the only woman on the team, or ... the only Black man on the team, they knew they had to be twice as good and work twice as hard.”

That reputation means women and people of color are often already seen as effective crisis leaders when a company is in trouble. But establishing that reputation doesn’t necessarily mean glass cliff CEOs will have the full faith and confidence of the board that appointed them. Glass’s research shows women hired during a crisis tend to have shorter tenures than male CEOs and are less likely to also be appointed chair of the board.

“What this means is that not only are women brought in to lead through incredibly precarious waters, but they're expected to do so with one hand tied behind their back,” Glass said. And when they aren’t able to right the ship, it can reinforce negative stereotypes that women are less competent leaders, according to Glass.

It’s a phenomenon that underscores the importance of diversifying corporate boards. Glass said that when boards are more gender diverse, they’re more likely to hire women as CEOs and give them more time to execute their strategy.

In Pope’s case, steering the Commercial Airplanes division through crisis could be the thing that makes or breaks her chances of securing the top CEO job at Boeing.

When she was tapped as Boeing's chief operating officer in December, speculation swirled that she was next in line to take over Calhoun’s job as chief executive of the entire company when he retired. Boeing had announced her new role less than a month before Alaska Airlines flight 1282 lost a door plug in-flight — an incident that could prove to be the defining moment of Pope's career.