Speaker
Susan Brechting Kiehl
Susan Brechting Kiehl, a native of Spring Lake, Michigan, has worked at Lockheed Martin Corp. for nearly twenty-two years, having joined the firm (then General Dynamics) in 1984.
Lockheed Martin is an advanced technology company headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, and employs 135,000 people worldwide. Kiehl works for the firm's Aeronautics Co. in Fort Worth, Texas.
Kiehl joined Lockheed Martin as a metallurgical engineer. She became engineering chief, then an engineering manager, and moved into business development and served as both a manager and director.
In 2001, she was selected for Lockheed Martin's Senior Leadership Development Program and, in 2002, its Executive Leadership Development Program.
She now leads the company's Greece F-16 Programs, an initiative that supplies thirty F-16 fighter jets to that government. Kiehl is responsible for the design, construction, and delivery of the aircraft, called Fighting Falcons, as part of a U.S. government program. The project extends through 2009. Kiehl leads a twelve-person team.
In 1983, she earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Metallurgical Engineering from Michigan Tech. She also has an MBA in Engineering Management from the University of Dallas.
Kiehl remains an active Michigan Tech alumna. She serves on the Industrial Advisory Board of the College of Engineering and is a member of the Presidential Council of Alumnae.
Kiehl's family has many ties to Michigan Tech. Her grandfather, Gilly Boyd, taught at Tech; her father, Frank Brechting, earned two bachelor's degrees and a master's degree from Tech; and her brother, Frank, also graduated from Tech.
Kiehl is involved in church activities and Alzheimer's work. She runs marathons and relishes what she calls “the joys of children.” She and her husband, Brad, have three, Sam, Lilli, and Isabelle. The family resides in Fort Worth.