For more than 25 years, Katherine L. Brown, also known as “Kit,” of Washougal, Washington, has forged a formidable and multifaceted career in program management, aerospace, and industrial fabrication. Today, she is strategic program director II at Vigor, LLC, where she is responsible for project portfolios, all aspects of project execution, ensuring customer engagement throughout the project lifecycle, and monitoring profit and loss across the nuclear, commercial and aerospace divisions at Vigor, LLC.
A veteran of the U.S. Navy, Ms. Brown served as an avionics technician in Fort Worth, Texas. During her military career, she was introduced to aircraft maintenance and general-purpose test equipment repair and calibration, which sparked her interest in learning more. Later, as a civilian, she briefly joined GTE-Electronic Repair Services as a calibration technician before she was hired by Rockwell Collins as the maintenance, repair, and overhaul, or MRO, site operations.
From there, Ms. Brown moved to Everett, Washington, where she was hired by Boeing as an Industrial engineer. While at Boeing, she assumed other key roles, including operations manager, production engineering manager, and engineering operations manager in Charleston, South Carolina. Her progressive prowess at Boeing allowed her to become instrumental in launching the company’s 787 Program in South Carolina and other major startups, including overseeing the building and delivery of Boeing airplanes outside Puget Sound.
Moreover, Ms. Brown impressively coordinated and managed the first engineering safety reviews and certification of the first airplane produced in South Carolina in 2012 through the Federal Aviation Administration. Moving on in her stellar career, she also worked with the Lam Research Corporation in Tualatin, Oregon, as director of manufacturing engineering before her promotion to senior director of global production engineering. While at the company, Ms. Brown proudly introduced 3D-based engineering at Lam Research Corporation, bolstering its technological advancements among other vital and pioneering achievements.
Propelled by early, solid academic preparation, Ms. Brown earned a Master of Science in organizational development and leadership from Capella University, an Executive Master of Business Administration in engineering and technology from the University of Dallas, and a Bachelor of Business Administration and Management from Columbia College. Further, she holds a master’s certificate in project management from The George Washington University and a project management professional certification from the Orange County Chapter of the Project Management Institute Inc., an organization with which she is active.
Outside of work, Ms. Brown has volunteered as a guest speaker for the Association of Women in the Metal Industries and devotes time to STEM programs, veterans’ organizations and inclusion programs. She also is committed to working with youth as a level 2 certified Olympic weightlifting coach. An award-winning weightlifter herself, Ms. Brown secured multiple world, Pan-American and national championship titles as a competitive Masters weightlifter, garnering top awards in her sport and setting world records for her age and weight class in 2021 that held until 2024.