People Moves

Big-name contractors have dominated people moves this week, with a key figure at Laing O’Rourke leading the way. Not to be left out, O’Brien and Kier also revealed changes, with strategic plans a major reason for the appointments. Plastic fantastic As Construction News readers will know, alongside eagerly anticipated financial results at Laing…

Laing O’Rourke’s chief financial officer (CFO) is set to leave the firm to join a FTSE 100 plastic products manufacturer. Rowan Baker, who joined Laing O’Rourke as its finance lead in 2020, will join Essentra Plc as CFO on 5 November. Her departure from the UK’s biggest privately-owned construction firm…

Tilbury Douglas set the agenda this week with big news of a change at the top, leading announcements by top construction firms. Bam UK & Ireland, Balfour Beatty and Morgan Sindall also announced people moves, with contacts books and experience being key factors. Gandy goes   Tilbury Douglas announced that…

Tilbury Douglas chief executive Paul Gandy – a key figure in the firm’s turnaround – will step down in November. Gandy oversaw Tilbury Douglas’ transition from subsidiary of the ailing Interserve to become a standalone tier one contractor. He joined the firm as construction managing director in 2019, just after…

An infrastructure investment expert has joined one of the largest land and property owners in the UK. Leading this week’s industry appointments is Peter Hofbauer, as board counsellor at the Crown Estate, effective from 1 September. With a background in infrastructure investment and management, Hofbauer was latterly head of infrastructure…

An amicable split at Keltbray is among the changes of the guard across the UK. The decision by the firm to sell its infrastructure business to private equity firm EMK Capital has led to board-level changes. Darren James (pictured), Keltbray’s chief executive, is moving with Keltbray Infrastructure Services to become…

A former apprentice bricklayer is among those told ‘you're hired’ in the latest round of career changes. In a busy week for Bellway, the homebuilder announced James Griffin as its new group construction director. He will take control of quality and construction practice, having spent 17 years at the National…

Senior industry figures and sector influencers were among the career changes announced this week. Significant regional moves have been confirmed by homebuilders. Among them was Keepmoat, where Ben Leather has been appointed as regional managing director. He will head up the West Midlands and South West regions to focus on…

McLaren Construction has announced a major expansion plan and a key appointment to deliver it. The CN top 100 firm is launching a new division, Construction Management and Specialist Projects, which will focus on large-scale real estate and public sector projects. McLaren has appointed Vince Lydon from Sir Robert McAlpine…

UK construction firms have made fresh appointments to their top teams. Steve Chesney has been confirmed to start in September as the new managing director of H+H UK. He takes over from Calum Forsyth, who is set to become a non-executive chairman. Chesney joins the firm from Woods Air Movement,…