Atkins, a member of the SNC-Lavalin Group, is pleased to announce new appointments to its senior leadership team in the Middle East and Africa and support its business expansion plans across the region. The new appointments were made across Atkins’ design and engineering, Faithful+Gould and Atkins Acuity business lines.
Johan Hesselsøe is appointed Managing Director, Middle East and Africa, to lead the integrated project and program management services business under the Faithful + Gould brand, with a mandate to grow the business with existing and new clients. Prior to his new role, Johan was Managing Director of Atkins Acuity for over three years where he successfully grew the business while working collaboratively with other Atkins business lines to maximize client opportunities. Johan has more than 12 years’ experience in the Middle East and worked with McKinsey for 10 years before joining the company.
Kathleen McGrail is appointed Managing Director, Middle East and Africa at Atkins Acuity after 8 years in key roles growing and developing the Acuity business. Kathleen will oversee Atkins uniquely positioned advisory business which includes strategic, financing and technical consulting capabilities to help clients solve complex front-end problems in the built environment. She has over 20 years experience in transformation, program and change management which she has applied on a number of high-profile infrastructure projects across the GCC. Prior to joining Atkins, she worked for 5 years within Deloitte’s Program Leadership consulting practice.
Shadi Jebreel is appointed Country Director, UAE, at Atkins’ design and engineering business. Bringing a wealth of experience and market knowledge, Shadi will further cement and grow the business’s footprint in the UAE by capitalizing on technical expertise and driving opportunities with both existing and new clients. Shadi has been with the company for 11 years; initially in the UK and then in the UAE for the past 8 years. He previously held the role of Civil, Infrastructure and Transportation Market Director, bringing in successful projects and business opportunities with clients such as Dubai Airports and The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA).
Atkins is one of the world’s most respected design, engineering and project management consultancies that helps clients plan, design and enable major capital projects, and provides expert consultancy that covers the full project lifecycle. Atkins has a track record of delivering flagship projects in the UAE such as Dubai Opera, Burj Al Arab and Dubai International Airport. Over the past 10 years, Atkins has built a successful relationship with RTA supporting the Dubai Metro. Atkins provided full multidisciplinary design and management of the civil works on Dubai Metro. This September, RTA celebrates the 10th anniversary of the Dubai Metro that opened its first line to the public on September 9, 2009. It is the longest automated, driverless system in the world and it has eased traffic congestion by improving mobility throughout Dubai.