Gilbane appoints McKelvy first non-family president, COO

MICHAEL MCKELVY will succeed William J. Gilbane Jr. as president and chief operating officer of Gilbane Building Co. on July 7, the first time in the company's 141-year history that the role will be filled by someone who is not a member of the Gilbane family. / COURTESY GILBANE BUILDING CO.
MICHAEL MCKELVY will succeed William J. Gilbane Jr. as president and chief operating officer of Gilbane Building Co. on July 7, the first time in the company's 141-year history that the role will be filled by someone who is not a member of the Gilbane family. / COURTESY GILBANE BUILDING CO.

(Updated, June 13, 9:15 a.m.)

PROVIDENCE – Gilbane Building Co. has named Michael McKelvy its new president and chief operating officer, the first non-family member to hold that position since the company’s founding in 1873.

McKelvy joins Gilbane as William J. Gilbane Jr., who has served as president and COO since 2004, prepares to transition into a new role as the company’s vice chairman and devote more of his time shaping long-term strategic growth of Gilbane’s business units and overseeing McKelvy’s transition.

McKelvy will succeed Gilbane effective July 7.

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Before his appointment at Gilbane, McKelvy spent 26 years at CH2M Hill, a global consulting, design, and program and construction management company with 26,000 employees worldwide. Most recently, he served as CH2M Hill’s chief delivery officer, executive vice president for U.S. federal delivery and board member.

William Gilbane cited McKelvy’s experience with profit and loss responsibility, operations and maintenance, and corporate leadership in explaining what made him an ideal fit for the construction firm.

“Mike not only brings expertise in a wide range of market segments that parallel Gilbane’s path towards growth, but he is also a terrific cultural fit for Gilbane,” he said. “He really gets why this is such a special place to work. Tom and I are both looking forward to sharing the reins of the company with someone as experienced and capable as Mike.”

While the president and COO position will be passed over to a non-family member for the first time, several Gilbane family members remain in senior leaderships positions at the company, including William Gilbane and Thomas F. Gilbane, chairman and CEO of Gilbane Inc. and Gilbane Building Co.; and Robert V. Gilbane, chairman and CEO of Gilbane Development Co. The 141-year-old company stated in a news release announcing McKelvy’s appointment that Gilbane is committed to remaining a private, family-owned business.

Gilbane Inc., parent company of Gilbane Building Co. and Gilbane Development Co., is currently in its fifth generation of family ownership, and more than 15 members of fourth and fifth generation Gilbanes are currently active within the company.

“As with my former company, Gilbane’s employees make the difference and set them apart from the crowd,” said McKelvy in a statement. “Gilbane is uniquely positioned for growth and continued international expansion. I am privileged to be able to work with Tom and Bill on Gilbane’s ‘Vision 2017’ and the next chapter of Gilbane’s history.”

A registered architect in 30 states, McKelvy holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental design from Oklahoma University and a bachelor of architecture degree from Louisiana Tech University, and he has completed executive programs in strategy and leadership at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Management.

His previous roles at CH2M Hill included president and group chief executive for CH2M Hill’s government, environment, nuclear and transportation division; president and group chief executive for the industrial client group; and president for the manufacturing and life sciences business group.

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