People Moves

Major tier one contractors have made the headlines this week with high-level internal promotions. Laing O’Rourke went back to the future on Wednesday (12 February) when it announced the appointment of its founder and former chief executive Ray O’Rourke as the new group chairman. O’Rourke moves up from his previous…

Ray O’Rourke, the founder and ex-chief executive of Laing O’Rourke, will take over as the group's new chairman in April. O’Rourke (pictured), who founded the firm in 1978, will take over from Sir John Parker, who is stepping down on 31 March. Parker is leaving the post after eight years…

Balfour Beatty has appointed three new sector leads to focus on the UK’s “critical” growth areas. The UK’s biggest contractor announced sector leads for the energy, defence and transportation sectors yesterday (10 February), weeks after its chief executive praised the UK government for its investment plans. Balfour Beatty chief executive…

High-level departures dominated this week’s comings and goings in the construction sector. FM Conway executive group chair Joanne Conway has left the firm her grandfather founded after a 22-year stint. Conway’s departure came with the completion of FM Conway’s sale to French multinational contractor Vinci, which was announced last October.…

FM Conway executive group chair Joanne Conway has left the company after its sale to Vinci completed. Her exit brings to an end a 22-year career at the Kent-headquartered highways specialist, and ushers in a new era for the business founded by her grandfather Frank in 1961. The latest announcement…

A well-trodden recruitment path and director-level promotions were the highlights from this week's people moves in construction. Tier one contractor McLaren Construction has once again hired a senior executive from Sir Robert McAlpine. The firm announced on Monday (2o January) the appointment of Glen Harding as its new commercial director.…

New executives at CN100 contractors and appointments at housebuilders dominated the people moves in the construction sector this week. Hertfordshire-based HG Construction started the year with a top-level hire. The firm completed its corporate restructure with the appointment of Greg Purkiss as its new managing director. He will work alongside…

Executives and managers at some of the biggest industry names are on the move this week, and seven former employees of the collapsed ISG have landed new roles at other firms. London-listed contractor Morgan Sindall announced that its chair, Michael Findlay, will step down after nine years in post. He…

The first full working week of 2025 has seen a flurry of job changes across the construction industry. Infrastructure specialist Costain announced the appointment of Eva Soto Pérez as its new engineering services general manager. Pérez moves from Morgan Sindall, where she was engineering director from June 2022. Her CV…

A ‘big beast’ of retail and politics has joined the board of an infrastructure group to support business change. It was one of three updates for a part of the construction sector that is gearing up for the government's drive to deliver more civils projects. Norman conquest M Group Services…