Heidi Capozzi who has been part of Boeing since 2009 has decided to move on from the company. She would be stepping down from the role of Senior Vice President Human Resources, effective from April. It was from 2016 that she had been leading the company’s leadership and learning, talent planning, employee and labor relations, total rewards, and diversity and inclusion initiatives.

Prior to joining Boeing in 2009, Capozzi led human resources, internal services and quality for Insitu—a start-up pioneer in the design, development, production and operation of unmanned aircraft systems. In addition to Insitu, which is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Boeing, Capozzi held leadership roles in human resources and communications at Northrop Grumman and TRW’s automotive and defense business.

At Boeing, Capozzi has held multiple roles. She is also a member of the company’s executive council.

Capozzi has served as vice president of Talent & Leadership, where she was responsible for identifying and developing emerging leadership talent as well as running the company's leadership center in St. Louis. She held prior positions as director of Human Resources for the Airplane Programs division of Boeing Commercial Airplanes and director of Human Resources for the Surveillance and Engagement division of Boeing Military Aircraft.

Boeing President and CEO David Calhoun shared, "For over 10 years, Capozzi “demonstrated a deep commitment to engaging and inspiring our people, strengthening our culture and supporting our business."

In these 4 years as the head of people function Capozzi has help build a world-class Human Resources team and helped elevate Boeing as an employer of choice, globally.

“We owe Heidi sincere gratitude for all she has accomplished, and we wish her well as she pursues a new opportunity," added Calhoun.

Now as Capozzi moves on from the role, Boeing looks for a permanent successor. Meanwhile, in the interim, the current Vice President of Corporate Human Resources, Wendy Livingston will take up the role to head the people function.

“Wendy is a proven Human Resources leader who brings strong business and customer knowledge, extensive experience, and passion for employee and leadership development to this interim role,” shared Calhoun. “I’m thankful to Wendy for her service and support during this transition.”

At a time when the aviation sector is trying to cope up with the COVID-19 crisis and its impact, spearheading the talent function becomes all the more challenging. Boeing has already taken some tough decisions including the decision of CEO Dave Calhoun and Board Chairman Larry Kellner to forgo all pay until the end of the year. In a media note, Boeing shared that it is drawing on all of its resources to sustain operations, support its workforce and customers, and maintain supply chain continuity through the COVID-19 crisis and for the long term.

As of end of day Saturday, there were 29 confirmed cases among Boeing employees company-wide, 24 of those in the Puget Sound area and 5 out of state. The local tally is 17 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Everett, 5 in Renton, 1 in Auburn and 1 at the local headquarters in Longacres. It is very difficult situation for Boeing at this time to manage. The key for the HR head and the business leaders at this moment would be communication. They have to ensure the safety of their employees and at the same time control false rumours from spreading. While the situation seems to be more severe for Boeing, many other companies across sectors are also dealing with their own business and people challenges.

Here's a guide to help you plan, prepare and respond to people & work implications due to COVID-19: COVID-19: Responding to people & work implications - A step by step guide by People Matters

Credit image: Viewpoint-Hays