Collins Aerospace and Pratt & Whitney partner to launch the next line of women leaders

• Gathering of 60 female executives for First Annual Women In Line Leadership event
• Aims to increase the percentage of female executives in Aerospace & Defense
• Supports UTC-wide initiative to achieve gender parity in leadership roles

HARTFORD (Jan. 16, 2019) – Today marks the Inaugural Women In Line Leadership (WILL Rise) Conference, hosted by Collins Aerospace and Pratt & Whitney, to accelerate the growth and advancement of women-in-line aerospace leadership positions. The conference, which kicks off the WILL Rise initiative, takes place over two days with approximately 60 women from both companies gathering to learn, discuss and share ideas to address the leadership gender gap within the aerospace and defense industry.

“Today, women make up 24 percent of the Aerospace & Defense workforce, and 21 percent of the executive payroll.* Yet, globally women represent about 50 percent of the population and 40 percent of the workforce. That means as an industry, we have a long way to go,” said UTC Chairman and CEO Greg Hayes. “UTC is committed to the advancement of women in leadership positions, and the WILL Rise initiative is a great example of how our companies are working together to make that happen.”

Co-sponsored by Pratt & Whitney and Collins executives Jennifer Caruso and Jennifer Reed, respectively, conference attendees will hear from speakers and panelists over two days including, Leanne Caret, president and chief executive officer, Boeing Defense, Space & Security, and Maureen Waterston, vice president & chief human resources officer, Pratt & Whitney. Attendees will be using #WillRise and #ItStartsNow2019 across social media channels throughout the conference.

The WILL Rise program participants will meet on a quarterly basis throughout the year in smaller groups to discuss key topics from strategy and organizational alignment to career advancement and business acumen. Each small group includes an executive mentor as well as an ICF-certified leadership coach.

WILL Rise aligns with UTC’s commitment to the Paradigm for Parity^SM (P4P) coalition to achieving full gender parity across all levels of corporate leadership by 2030, with a near-term goal of women holding at least 30 percent of senior roles. In addition to increasing the number of women in leadership roles, the goals of P4P are aligned with UTC’s pledge to provide mentorship and sponsorship to women of potential and to the company’s overall commitment to diversity and inclusion, focused on helping all employees in achieving long-term career success.