Kelly Johnson
Kellie Johnson is president of Ace Clearwater Enterprises of Torrance, California. Her company makes high-tech metal components for advanced aircraft like the Joint Strike Fighter.
“What was really hard for me as a young person was that so much interested me. I always wanted to be involved in the foreign service and change the world. I’ve always been interested in the relationship between countries and people.
During the Cold War, the U.S. was always the dominant military power but threatened by Russia. I was interested in nuclear proliferation. I thought, ‘We share this one small planet.’ I always had these ideals that we could be one people. I was interested in politics and military strategy. And I loved to travel.
I was the captain of the swim team and basketball team, I was involved in Student Council, I was editor of the yearbook.
I went to Aviation High School in Manhattan Beach, California, near Los Angeles. We were surrounded by aerospace companies: TRW, Northrop, McDonnell Douglas, they were all in this area.
So many of my friends’ parents worked at those companies. Many of them had small machine shops. They made parts that the big companies would buy.
My grandfather came from the Midwest. He was a really good welder. He opened up a small shop in El Segundo, the next town. He was going to weld coffee pots or bicycles. But then a friend of his had a contract for engine igniters, and asked my grandfather to do the welding. My grandfather didn’t have a company. So he just said the first name that came to his mind – Ace – and a check was written for making hundreds of thousands of little igniters at 13 cents a piece. That’s how the company started.
My grandmother ran the front office. They retired at an early age and turned it over to my dad. My parents didn’t want me to go into it. They thought it was mans’ work. My mom thought I wouldn’t live up to my potential if I went into the business. But she really had no idea what was involved.
I was a liberal arts major. Then I went to graduate school to get a Master’s Degree in Social Work. At that time I was helping out at the company during the summers.
Then the business needed more and more help, and I got more and more responsibility. We got a big contract from Boeing, and I needed to be around to make sure we fulfilled it. It was tough. But I realized I loved the operations side of the business. Tracking overtime, management, tracking our trends and our costs, everything that affects our company.
I had an ability to communicate that was key – and it still is. People recognize that I’m passionate about our company. It’s not just a job. I’m able to fire people up, to keep them focused on our goals. I love strategizing on our next step to be successful and survive.
As a young person, it was hard for me to focus on one thing. I thought I was going to be insignificant. Then when I got to Ace I realized I could have a huge impact. It wasn’t until I got to Ace that I realized that even if we’re making a tiny widget, that plane can’t fly without it.
It took me a while to see that.”
