Airbus' Nicole Dreyer-Langlet details her journey in leadershipRunway Girl

Earlier this year, longtime Airbus executive Nicole Dreyer-Langlet started a new chapter in her career when she stepped into the fast-evolving world of digital transformation and assumed the title of Airbus head of digital workplace, vice president digital Germany and member of the Airbus board in Germany.

Having spent 24 years at Airbus, including most recently as VP research and technology, Germany, Dreyer-Langlet already knew a thing or two about influencing aviation’s future, including to ensure a more sustainable industry. She has embraced her new role with fervor.

Her passion and grit are contagious, so Runway Girl Network sat down with this powerhouse executive to learn about her meteoric rise.

Dreyer-Langlet’s inspiring journey began with her curiosity and a will to prove herself as the only girl child in a less privileged family. “At a younger age I was more focused on social careers, and developed a lot of interest in math and economics. Then, I finally decided to study industrial engineering, combining both fields perfectly,” she said.

But when it came time to attend university, Dreyer-Langlet faced financial challenges, and her family was not able to support her. She didn’t let this hurdle deter her. Indeed, it lit a fire inside her to find a way forward. “I managed to get into the Airbus dual studies programme that covered my studies,” she explained to RGN.

“Airbus enabled me to become an engineer as I could not have afforded it financially. I was very determined and apparently convincing during the interviews, knowing that this was my only chance.”

Throughout her career, Dreyer-Langlet experienced many career-shaping moments. One which greatly influenced her leadership was when she took a management break some 15 years ago to develop her skills in lean manufacturing.

Airbus employees from all levels have access to a broad portfolio of development programmes to enhance their leadership and team development skills and general business acumen. Spending two years in different production environments, Dreyer-Langlet became “sort of a lean hands-on consultant,” she said.

“I had to learn to gain the trust of the people. It was a lot about listening and understanding the people I was working with, from very operational people in the production to the general manager.”

To date, her most prized achievement is her work with other players in industry — including universities and political stakeholders — to implement the national aviation strategy in Germany.

Notably, in the last five years, the group has sought to align around sustainable aviation initiatives, including the need to bolster adoption of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and ultimately adopt hydrogen fuel. For her part, Dreyer-Langlet sees a strong need for energy providers to accelerate their industrialization and deployment.

Still, rising to these heights as a woman in aviation comes with its challenges, particularly self-doubt and bias. But Dreyer-Langlet deals with this through self-reflection. “In these situations, I try to reflect and look at it from another perspective either by myself or obtaining another view from my mentor, a friend or a peer”.

Some of the most influential mentors of her recent past have been Barbara Bergmeier, strategic advisor at Jaguar Land Rover Automotive, and Grazia Vittadini, CTO and executive board member at Lufthansa Group. These two women have been “truly amazing and inspiring female leaders,” Dreyer-Langlet enthused.

“Beyond many other things, they have taught me how to lead with integrity, to see the best in myself and the passion to develop people.”

Apart from being an aviation leader, Dreyer-Langlet is happily married and a proud mother of two young girls. No matter how busy she gets, she always makes time to be home for dinner to spend time with her family. There, she is simply Mum, helping to find their soccer shoes and assist with laundry duties.

She hopes young girls and women find motivation from her journey to dream big in aviation.

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