The aerospace industry is a technically complex, demanding, and competitive field. Many aspiring professionals wonder how they can gain solid footing in progressively responsible roles in this growing industry. Billy Baugham started out as a quality inspector at Honeywell Aerospace in Phoenix, Arizona.
But with effective problem-solving skills and a strong approach to decision-making, Billy Baugham worked his way up through the roles of aerospace HQ quality manager and supplier and quality systems leader to senior program manager. Here, he spoke with us about the significance of decisiveness as a manager in the aerospace industry.
“Aerospace is a deeply complex industry that relies on a wealth of technical knowledge and a detail-oriented approach. Each aspect of the industry relies on strict regulations and standardization measures in order to ensure accuracy, safety, and productivity,” shares Billy Baugham.
As someone with over two decades of experience in the industry, Billy Baugham explains that decisiveness, productivity, and technical knowledge are a must. “One of the ways in which I was able to progressively increase my responsibilities and cultivate trust as a manager in the aerospace industry was through decisive problem-solving,” he says. Billy Baugham also notes that when difficult technical challenges arise in the aerospace field, “it’s important for a leader to streamline the process and plunge in with clarity and confidence.”
Billy Baugham also offers an example of the positive changes that confidence and decisiveness can bring about in the aerospace industry. “As senior program manager at Honeywell Aerospace, for example, I helped site teams achieve an 8% increase in productivity year over year. To do this, I implemented sweeping process changes that included, 1) cost cuts through the implementation of third-party service providers, and 2) incentives directly tied to achieving improved service levels.”
Billy Baugham, of Gilbert, Arizona, is a sales professional and business strategist with over 25 years of diverse work experience in cultivating trust and guiding businesses for ideal, extensive growth. He is especially dedicated to implementing lean methodologies in order to achieve optimal regulatory compliance and maximize operational impact at the same time.
Over the course of his lengthy career, he has developed a number of training programs that helped clients improve their project development strategy, and boost third-party and customer engagement. Billy Baugham also serves as a consultant in the areas of consensus building, cross-team communication, networking effectively, forging strategic business relationships, and making and delivering winning presentations.
