Ed Dandridge, who joined Boeing [BA] nearly two years ago as its chief communications officer, has left the company for personal reasons.
Dandridge resigned from the company on June 2, telling his communications team in an internal memo that he is leaving “to attend to family matters that now require my full attention.” Dandridge reported to Dave Calhoun, Boeing’s president and CEO, and in addition to his role leading communications efforts also was on the company’s executive council.
Until a successor to Dandridge is named, Ann Schmidt will lead Boeing communications, reporting to Brett Gerry. Schmidt has been vice president of corporate communications at Boeing since Jan. 2021 and before that held various communications roles at the company’s Commercial Airplanes segment.
Gerry is Boeing’s chief legal officer and has been with the company since 2008, serving in senior positions in the company’s law department.
Boeing President and CEO Dave Calhoun in a follow-up memo to his company’s vice presidents and communications staff that he respects Dandridge and his decision.
Dandridge started with Boeing in September 2020 after serving as the global chief marketing and communications officer at the multinational finance and insurance firm AIG. He succeeded Greg Smith, who at the time was the company’s chief financial officer and executive vice president of enterprise operations.
Smith had been serving as interim head of communications following the resignation of Niel Goligthly in July 2020 after decades old revelations surfaced that he had questioned whether women should serve in combat. He was preceded by long-time company official, Anne Toulouse, who retired in November 2019. Phil Musser, an outside pick like Golightly and Dandridge, replaced longtime communications chief Tom Downey in 2017. Musser only lasted about one year before leaving to be replaced Toulouse, who served first as interim communications chief in September 2018, an appointment later made permanent in February 2019 before she ultimately retired.