After graduating, Hayes joined
Sundstrand Corporation, which was acquired by
United Technologies (UTC) in 1999. He rose through management, becoming CEO of UTC in November 2014, succeeding
Louis R. Chênevert. Hayes was elected chairman in September 2016. In April 2020,
Raytheon Company completed their merger with UTC to form
Raytheon Technologies. Hayes was named CEO of the combined company, and Raytheon chairman and CEO
Thomas A. Kennedy was named executive chairman. In September 2022,
Foreign Ministry of China spokesperson
Mao Ning announced at a press briefing that
China has imposed sanctions on Hayes and
Boeing Defense, Space & Security CEO
Theodore Colbert III, in response to the
U.S. arms sale to
Taiwan. It is not immediately known what the Chinese sanctions against Hayes and Colbert would entail, and it is often mainly symbolic in nature. ==Boards and affiliations==