Leadership

Our leaders provide guidance and inspiration for every teammate and every project we are privileged to build.

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Brian Cahill

President, California

Relentless Ally since 1993

A 40-year construction industry veteran, Brian Cahill joined Balfour Beatty in 1993 when it was known as Barnhart, Inc. in San Diego, California. In 2015, Brian was promoted to his current position as president of California, overseeing operations and business acquisitions throughout California and Arizona.

Throughout his career, Brian’s leadership skills and industry expertise have been acknowledged through several avenues including recently being named one of San Diego’s 500 Most Influential Leaders by the San Diego Business Journal for his leadership, dedication to our Zero Harm safety culture and continuous commitment to the communities where we build. He has also co-authored a book, Humanizing the Education Machine, which explores the many challenges facing public education today.

Brian is a Certified Construction Manager and a LEED® Accredited Professional: he holds a degree in aviation science from San Diego Mesa College and attended San Diego State University. He is also a certified flight instructor and served for five years in the U.S. Navy as a deep-sea diver, having graduated from the U.S. Navy Deep Sea Diver School in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

In his free time, Brian is active on several Boards including Junior Achievement of San Diego and Imperial Counties, and Ronald McDonald House Charities of San Diego. He enjoys anything aviation related including flying the backcountry airstrips in Idaho and Montana and training his two Labrador retrievers.

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Eric Stenman

President and Chief Executive Officer, US

Relentless Ally since 2001

Eric Stenman began his career in construction with boots on the ground — as a plumbing contractor. He owned his own business and later became a general contractor while also putting himself through college and law school.

His tenure with the company began in 2001, when he served as vice president and general counsel for Douglas E. Barnhart. Eric’s strong leadership and construction business acumen led to his promotion to president of that business in 2007. Barnhart was acquired by Balfour Beatty in 2008 and since then, Eric has served in several national leadership roles including his current role as Balfour Beatty US president and chief executive officer. Under his leadership, the company has achieved the leverage and scale of national capabilities, operational excellence standards, team growth and development, and industry innovation.

Some of the prestigious and award-winning projects that comprise Eric’s impressive career with Balfour Beatty include the $221 million San Diego County Women's Detention Facility, a design-build, 1,216-bed facility that, through its innovative and campus-like design, creates a rehabilitative environment that prepares inmates for re-entry into civilian life. The project has been honored with 11 industry and sustainability awards. The $103 million J. Paul Leonard Library and Sutro Library project, which earned four awards at regional and national levels including “Project of the Year” from the Design-Build Institute of America Western Region, is a beacon of information and collaborative learning for students who call San Francisco State University home. Through the addition of an automated library retrieval system (LRS), students can quickly access key research materials from the facility’s 2,000,000-item collection. Eric has also executed a vast array of mission-critical work for confidential clients in Oregon and across the United States.

Eric is a leader focused on talent, who is constantly mentoring, recognizing and appreciating those who have contributed. In fact, it’s this kind of leadership that inspired his co-workers and peers to nominate him as one of the San Diego Business Journal’s "Most Admired CEOs" in 2014 and the publication's "Most Influential People in San Diego" in 2022.

Eric holds a law degree from California Western School of Law, earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from California State University, Northridge and is a licensed contractor in the State of California and Arizona. He is active at the local and national levels of the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), having chaired the National Contract Documents Forum and Chair of the Building Division. Eric is currently President of AGC of America, San Diego Chapter and serves on the board of directors for the AGC of San Diego. Eric also serves as an Executive Committee member of the Downtown San Diego Partnership.


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Mark Konchar

President, Civils

Relentless Ally since 1999

Mark is a driving force for progress, leading US Civils operations with an unwavering commitment to excellence. As president, he manages projects that are essential for modern life: highways and bridges in aiding transportation; water infrastructure in guaranteeing access to clean resources; vital electrification systems in powering opportunities; and advanced rail networks in connecting people across America.

Since 1999, Mark has been instrumental in the success of Balfour Beatty. In his roles as Managing Director of US Rail Operations and prior positions across procurement and project delivery, he’s nurtured strong relationships with clients, partners and team members on renowned projects such as Los Angeles International Airport's Automated People Mover, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's Green Line Extension, Caltrain’s Electrification program and numerous Federal & Healthcare developments, including the Pentagon Memorial.

Mark is a true team player who demonstrates Balfour Beatty's people-first culture daily. He always applies an innovative approach to complex issues and excels at motivating others in his workplace and beyond. In addition, Mark contributes to advancing our professional development programs by leveraging his experience and passion for learning and serves as a Pillar Member of Bridges to Prosperity - one of the most renowned industry partners and a nonprofit international mission dedicated to building footbridges across the world.

With a bachelor's and doctorate degree in architectural engineering from Penn State University, Mark brings decades of experience to the table. He has been integral in research projects that have pushed industry standards forward and authoring several articles and reports like his co-authorship on "Selecting Project Delivery Systems" and “Change Your Space, Change Your Culture.”

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Pat Dean

Senior Vice President, National Operations

Relentless Ally since 2006

Pat Dean never imagined spending his summers framing houses as a Kansas State University student would jumpstart a career in building for Fortune 100 companies and leading teams in the delivery of industry-leading projects across the U.S.

Fast forward to today, Pat serves as senior vice president of national operations where he oversees all operations for Balfour Beatty’s Buildings business and works with teams and industry partners in providing exceptional service and operational excellence on projects such as Los Angeles International Airport’s Automated People Mover.

Since joining the company in 2006, Pat has held roles of vice president and business unit leader of the Southeast and, subsequently, president of the Southeast providing strong operational and strategic leadership. He was integral in the Southeast business’ significant growth in both the private and public sectors and becoming the largest general contractor in North Carolina and the third largest in South Carolina.

With an entrepreneurial spirit, Pat is a leader guided towards achieving sustainable business growth while fostering the talent of next-generation leaders. It is this focus on investing in others that led Pat—the son of two lifelong educators—to serve on the Charlotte board of Teach for America, an organization Balfour Beatty supports through hands-on training and mentorship opportunities.

Pat has also dedicated his time and talents as a board member for the American Heart Association, Discovery Place and the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center.

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Richard Ryan

Senior Vice President, National Safety

Relentless Ally since 2001

Richard is a 40-year construction industry veteran who began his career as a chartered quantity surveyor for several construction companies in England and Ireland before relocating to the U.S.

In his critical role as senior vice president of national safety for Balfour Beatty’s US Buildings and Civils operations, Richard’s mission is to ensure Balfour Beatty continuously improves safety and sustainability practices across the company by creating safe and environmentally responsible workplaces for our teammates, industry partners and the public. He is responsible for leading efforts that reduce workplace injuries with the goal of achieving Zero Harm and enhance our impact on the environment by working with supply chain partners, clients and communities.

Throughout his career and tenure at Balfour Beatty, Richard has attained an unsurpassed understanding of how to successfully manage and deliver large-scale, complex and progressive delivery-model projects while being an outstanding champion for safety. He is known for his executive leadership and oversight of some of the company’s largest federal and healthcare sector projects to date, including Penn Medicine’s new Pavilion in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center expansion and renovation as well as the National Institutes of Health – Mark O. Hatfield Clinical Research Center in Bethesda, Maryland.