Burns & Mac Names John Olander First COO in Company History

Burns & McDonnell officially unveiled a new position, just today. As the second-highest ranking officer, John Olander will now serve as the first chief operating officer in the firm’s history.

Olander, who first came to Burns & McDonnell in 1991, will continue to lead the Transmission & Distribution Group, Technology Solutions and Strategic Initiatives groups as COO. Additionally as COO, Olander will add management support overall as the company continues to grow at exponential rates.

“In typical Burns & Mac fashion, John has already been executing many of the functions of a COO through his leadership of our Technology and Strategic Initiatives groups on top of his day-to-day role with T&D,” Ray Kowalik, chairman and CEO of Burns & McDonnell, said in a statement. “I believe having a close tie to our business needs is what makes John so strong at leading technology solutions, and he has done a great job in this role.”

As the T&D point person, Olander leads 1,500 people – from engineers and technical professionals to employees in other sections that also support T&D endeavors. According to the statement from Burns & Mac, the T&D group’s work is a main factor contributing to the company’s growth and its need to hire 1,000 more employees each year for the foreseeable future.

“Our entire company is benefiting from many of the same trends that are fueling growth of our T&D Group,” Olander said in the statement. “Basically, there is a growing need for more resiliency in our essential infrastructure and that includes everything from power systems to manufacturing, data centers, military and defense, airports, water treatment, roads and bridges and much more. We may be the most broadly diversified company in our industry, so it is an exciting time to be at Burns & Mac.”