Rocked by recent scandal and controversy, Montreal-based engineering and construction company SNC-Lavalin has selected Robert G. Card as its new president and CEO.
The move comes following a scandal in which the company was investigated after some $56 million in improper payouts were made to unknown agents from SNC-Lavalin’s Tunisian office. The fallout prompted the resignation of former CEO Pierre Duhaime, who was found to have signed off on the payments, according to a probe. The company said Duhaime could not explain where the money went.
A number of other senior executives were also let go amidst the scandal.
Card was selected from a slate of candidates from around the world. He has copious experience that should serve him well in his new position, with nearly 40 years working in operations and management of infrastructure and energy projects and as an executive with CH2M Hill Companies Ltd, where he held several senior management positions.
Most recently, he oversaw the delivery of the London 2012 Olympics venues, serving as COO of the consortium responsible for the design, construction and planned demolition of Olympic venues, utilities and transportation. He delivered those projects on time and on budget.
He also has experience in government, serving as under secretary to the U.S. Department of Energy from 2001 to 2004.
Card, who was placed on SNC-Lavalin’s board of directors, will assume his new position on Oct. 1 and said he is looking forward to the challenge.
“SNC-Lavalin has long been known as an international player with significant credibility in the E&C sector globally and excellent people,” he said in a release. “I am excited about the enormous opportunity that this company represents. I’m looking forward to getting acquainted with the company’s leaders and to developing a better understanding of the next steps to be undertaken.”
SNC-Lavalin board of directors chair Gwyn Morgan called Card “an exceptionally intelligent, energetic and ethical leader, well-equipped to deal with both the specific issues that face SNC-Lavalin and the broader strategic challenges of global political and economic changes.”
Morgan said the company looked at candidates from Canada and around the world and pointed to Card’s global experience and leadership in the public sector as key reasons for his selection.
“Our key focus was to identify an experienced senior leader with both an extensive background in the international engineering and construction sector and a deep understanding of the complexities of operating internationally,” said the board chair.
Following a difficult year in which the company was embroiled in scandal and saw quarterly profits slashed due to cost overruns on projects, Card’s selection comes as a second piece of welcome news for the company in recent days. Earlier in August, SNC-Lavalin was selected to build a $92 million cooling system in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
