Maria Laine is president of Boeing in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Nordic region. In this role, Laine leads and oversees all of Boeing’s business activities in these countries, working from the Boeing UK office in Central London. In collaboration with Boeing’s growing number of colleagues, customers and partners in the UK, Ireland and the Nordic region, Laine’s focus is to grow the company’s local presence and business in the region.
Laine has three decades of global experience at Boeing, including working in many of Boeing’s key European markets, along with Asia, Australia and the United States.
Most recently, Laine was vice president, International Business Development, for Boeing’s Defense, Space & Security and Global Services business units. In this role, Laine led global business development and industrial partnerships for Boeing’s defense, space and government services portfolios as well as acting as the Defense, Space & Security (BDS) liaison with Boeing Global.
Previously, Laine was vice president of International Strategic Partnerships where her team developed and implemented BDS industrial participation programs in support of international campaigns, built alliances and partnerships to enable future growth in existing and new markets, and partnered with business units to develop organic growth in international markets.
Prior to that, Laine served as vice president of Boeing Northern Europe, where she expanded business growth and the company’s presence in the region, strengthened industrial and technology partnerships and implemented corporate citizenship projects of strategic importance. She also served as the managing director of Boeing Netherlands, B.V. in addition to being on the board of directors of Boeing’s key entities in the region.
Laine has also been responsible for strategic alliances and expansion of Boeing’s defense business in Asia with an emphasis on the formation of strategic partnerships with local industry as an avenue for growth. Laine served in the same capacity in Europe to include working market strategy for the region.
In addition, Laine has served in leadership roles in Europe and Australia where she grew Boeing’s services and sustainment business. Prior to that, she served as the industrial participation country manager for the Nordic region and Switzerland and also worked in Helsinki on the Finnish F/A-18 program. In these roles, she led the development and successful execution of Boeing’s industrial participation programs valued at more than $5 billion.
Prior to joining Boeing in 1993, Laine worked at Pacific Intertrade Corporation in California, focused on launching small-and-medium-sized U.S. companies into the Asian market. She also worked in Washington, D.C. at the U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration as the assistant desk officer for the Nordic region, and at the U.S. Embassy in Helsinki on the commercial desk.
Laine has an MBA from the Thunderbird School of Global Management and a bachelor’s degree in political science and international relations from the University of California Santa Barbara. Laine was born in Finland, spent her childhood in Sweden and moved to the United States in 1975. Her native languages include Finnish, Swedish and English, and she is also proficient in French and Spanish.