Two bosses exit Laing O’Rourke amid management shake-up

Two bosses at contractor Laing O’Rourke have left the firm and it has hired a former managing director of a luxury yacht firm as its group finance director.

A spokesperson for the contractor confirmed this week that Paul Grammer, European commercial director, and Andrew Jackson, managing director of Canada, have both left the business.

Grammer’s role of commercial director for the European hub will be filled “in due course”, the spokesman said.

Grammer was removed as a listed director of five Laing O’Rourke subsidiary companies including its construction, infrastructure, utilities, integrated solutions and construction south businesses at the end of October.

Laing O’Rourke has hired Stewart McIntyre, the former managing director of luxury yacht firm Sunseeker International, as its new finance director.

McIntyre left Sunseeker, which is owned by Chinese property developer Wanda Group, in July this year.

The changes are the latest in a number of management shifts at the firm.

Former Kier chief executive Paul Sheffield took up the role of managing director of Laing O’Rourke’s European hub in October this year.

The firm also appointed former chief executive of M&E specialist NG Bailey Mark Andrews as the managing director of its Middle East business in the same month.

In its last set of accounts, published in August, Laing O’Rourke’s European business posted total revenue of £1.96bn - broadly flat on the £1.95bn it posted last year - with pre-tax profit of £42m, down 16% on £50.3m the previous year.