Goizueta alumna Shan Cooper, General Manager of the Lockheed Martin facility in Marietta, spoke with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution recently about her first six months on the job and her role in the company. According to the AJC, Cooper manages design and production at the facility — a post she took in January.
“We are supporting our military and our allies. People’s lives depend on our work,” she told the AJC. “And to me, there is no greater calling.”
Cooper is the first woman to serve as General Manager in Marietta. There, the iconic aircraft company makes several military models.
Cooper holds and MBA and undergraduate degree from Emory.
“I am accountable for ensuring a successful operation,” Cooper told the AJC. “I have four constituents — the customer, the community, the employees and the political delegation. If you want to call me ‘the integrator’ that might be the best way to put it into one word.”
Cooper said she focuses on the company more than the political ties that come with working for such a larger military contractor. She said three of her uncles served in Vietnam and retired from the Army.
When asked about being a woman in the workforce, the long-time Fortune 500 employee said she focuses on doing the best job possible.
“I haven’t felt that I’ve been treated differently because I am a woman,” Cooper said. “I make certain that I do my homework and that I really understand the business. Most people can’t argue with that, right”
