Ryan Slabaugh (AeroEngr BS'15, MS'15)
Ryan Slabaugh spent his formative years growing up in Littleton, Colorado, where he graduated from Chatfield Senior High. He enlisted in the United States Marine Corps directly out of high school, serving as a Naval Aircrew member during Operation Iraqi Freedom, accumulating over 400 direct combat support hours.
Post-military, Slabaugh pursued higher education, earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees in aerospace engineering sciences from the University of Colorado Boulder. He held multiple internships with Lockheed Martin Space before being hired as a software engineer post- graduation. He swiftly advanced to lead a diverse spacecraft flight software team, where he delivered dozens of qualified mission-critical software releases and supported the launch of multiple commercial and national security space vehicles.
Slabaugh's strategic acumen and leadership were instrumental in consolidating multiple flight software baselines into a unified solution. In parallel to working full-time, Slabaugh earned an MBA from Florida State University. He then transitioned to Program Management and led a $150 million software product development team for three years, where he was recognized multiple times as a thought leader with his ability to blend agile execution and program performance management.
After more than ten years with Lockheed Martin Space, in 2024 Slabaugh accepted a position as Executive Director of Software Engineering at The Boeing Company. There, he spearheads the development of next-generation modeling and simulation software products for commercial and defense sectors, overseeing 200 software engineers.
Outside of work, Slabaugh finds balance in his family life, being married to his wife Jenna, and raising two children, Everly and Liam. He attributes his success to a unique blend of military discipline, software engineering leadership, program management, and business acumen, which have empowered him to challenge norms and drive impactful change throughout his career.
