Lee McIntire’s first construction job was digging ditches on his father’s Nebraska farm.
The 60-year-old CH2M Hill chief executive says he’s “been digging ever since.”
In 2006, Ralph Peterson, then CH2M Hill’s chief executive, lured McIntire to Colorado to be president and chief operating officer. In January, McIntire took over the helm.
McIntire had spent 15 years at Becthel Corp., the country’s largest engineering firm, where he headed the systems and infrastructure unit that works with federal agencies on environmental, defense and aerospace projects.
At the time, engineering-industry consultant Paul Zofnass called it an aggressive move.
It set the stage for CH2M Hill’s entry to bigger international projects, starting in 2006 with the contract to oversee construction for the London Olympics.
“The Olympics was big,” McIntire said. “It is an iconic project and it was won in international competition.”
But in engineering, McIntire said, “your last project defines your reputation. . . . So you really have to keep moving.”
One other distinction McIntire is proud of is a Colorado journeyman plumber’s license he held.
“I’m probably the only CEO who has been a licensed plumber,” he said.
