Governor Gregoire introduces keynote speaker Jim McNerney at the Seattle business forum

May 5, 2008

*As Written*

Good afternoon everyone. Thank you Joyce, for the kind introduction and a special thanks to each and every one of you who came here today for this annual forum. Your support for Western Washington University is deeply appreciated.

Many of you know that Western�s wonderful President, Dr. Karen Morse, will soon be retiring after 15 years of dedicated and outstanding leadership.

Karen, you have successfully launched this great institution into the 21st century. Your tireless advocacy for higher education was, simply put, superb. Will you all please join me in a warm round of applause for Dr. Morse.

It is now my distinct privilege and honor to introduce our keynote speaker � Jim McNerney -- the Chairman, President and CEO, of � quite simply -- the greatest aerospace company in the world.

Jim, I have to tell you that I am so very proud of the women and men of the Boeing Company. Wherever I go in this state, this country or this world people know about Boeing and its remarkable people, products and services.

As everyone here knows this great company has an amazing history of business success, but I have to admit that one metric in particular recently caught my eye. Did y�all know Boeing�s total backlog of commercial airplane orders is now at a record $346 billion dollars?

Boeing couldn�t do it without the skill and dedication Scott Carson and his team, and 74,000 men and women who design and manufacture that marvelous suite of commercial airplanes -- the 737, 747, 767, 777, and soon the magnificent, new, game changing, record breaking 787 -- all rolled out right here in Washington.

Boeing�s economic impact in Washington goes well beyond the family wage jobs it provides directly.

For example, more than 3,000 Washington companies are Boeing suppliers -- and Boeing paid those companies a total of $3.2 billion last year alone.

Boeing is also a wonderful corporate citizen. Last year, Boeing and its employees contributed nearly $54 million to charity here in Washington State!

Boeing also paid $31 million for post secondary tuition and books so that any Boeing employee could continue their education in any field they choose.

Jim, Boeing�s willingness to support its people via lifelong learning and support its communities with broad based charitable giving is noted and deeply appreciated by us all.

W. James (Jim) McNerney, Jr., has been a member of Boeing�s board since 2001, and became the chief executive in July of 2005.

Jim is responsible for overall leadership and strategic direction of this remarkable $61.5 billion aerospace company.

With more than 161,000 employees worldwide, Boeing is the world�s largest manufacturer of commercial jetliners and military aircraft, with capabilities in rotorcraft, electronic and defense systems, missiles, satellites and advanced information and communications systems.

Last week, the no-nonsense Wall Street Journal ran a story about Jim, and here�s what the newspaper had to say.
Among other things, the Journal reported that Jim �replaced the old compensation plan with one that rewards executives for being ethical leaders.�

�Mr. McNerney� � the newspaper continued � �insisted that each of Boeing's businesses could benefit from embarking on a set of four initiatives to wring money out of existing operations through more efficient manufacturing and procurement.�

As the newspaper tells it, Jim remembers people saying, "Can't he come up with anything more creative than that?"

But � the Journal reported -- �Within a year, the proof started showing up in the financial results. In 2007, Boeing reported an 84 percent increase in income, to $4.07 billion, or $5.28 a share, on an 8 percent increase in revenue to $66.4 billion.�

As Jim told the newspaper -- "We're all acknowledging it's boring, but we're also acknowledging it's making us a stronger company."

Jim, I want you to know right now, we here in Washington State don�t think it�s boring�. I congratulate you on your skill -- honed as it was with many successful years at General Electric and 3-M before you joined Boeing.

Jim is a native of Providence, Rhode Island. He earned his B.A. degree from Yale University in 1971 and an M.B.A. from Harvard University in 1975.

Jim is married and is the proud dad to five children. He volunteers in a number of roles.

Among them, he serves as a trustee of Northwestern University and he is the chair of the US-China Business Council. When he has some spare time, he enjoys skiing, golf and sailing.

Without further ado, let me present today�s keynote speaker � Jim McNerney.