Leadership

Derek joined Gracon in 2014 as Senior Project Manager. In April 2015, he assumed the position of President, and in January of 2019, added the title of CEO. His experience in overseeing project management, budget controls, contractual review, scheduling, and cost analysis helps him direct the construction management team at Gracon. His engineering education and six years of management with a major civil construction firm provides the skills needed for the leadership and strategic vision of Gracon.  Derek graduated from Colorado School of mines with a degree in civil engineering.

Michael began his career forty years ago with a four-year apprenticeship boilermaker program before working his way up through the ranks. His experience serving in many different positions for several heavy industrial construction firms has given him unique insight invaluable to Gracon. With more than 20 years with Gracon, Michael is largely responsible for our exemplary reputation in the hydroelectric industry. His knowledge and experience is instrumental in recognizing and solving problems before they adversely impact a project.

Gerry has been responsible for hundreds of millions of dollars of work acquisition. For more than 30 years, Gerry has led Gracon’s estimating program. He and his team of estimators have prepared hundreds of bids, have consulted on numerous projects for constructability during design, and have been largely responsible for the success of Gracon. Gerry graduated from Iowa State University with a degree in construction engineering.

Matt joined Gracon in 2009 as a Project Manager and took over managing the Work Acquisition for Gracon in 2016. He currently wears many hats. In addition to Work Acquisition, he is responsible for Recruiting and Development, Marketing and Communications, Licensing and Compliance, and IT Systems and Equipment. He works across the organization helping to grow the various business units and is instrumental in shaping the culture at Gracon. Matt graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a degree in Construction Management.

Raised in Balsam Lake, WI, Jason graduated from the University of Wisconsin – Stout with a BS in Construction Management and a Minor in Business Administration. Jason has worked on projects ranging in total value from $2 million to $4 billion in various markets, including feed, food, grain, coal, cement, flour, oil and gas, and pet food. He creates exceptional teams through clear expectations, open communication, and confidence in their skills and expertise.

Cris is from Oklahoma where he began his career in construction nearly 28 years ago. Cris has worked extensively in the grain, food, and beverage industry, on projects ranging in total value from $2 million to over $200 million. Starting his career as a laborer, Cris’s dedication to his field moved him to Executive Sponsor and now Vice President for Gracon’s Food, Beverage & Manufacturing Division.

Richard is from Sioux City, IA, and graduated from Iowa State University with a bachelor’s degree in construction engineering. Richard’s career started on a fast path, and he went straight to a project manager role running a 26,000 SF freezer project in Iowa. From there, his career took off with an impressive and extensive resume of projects nationwide working with the top food processing companies in the country.

Tim is a native of Iowa and grew up on a farm. He has a BS in Construction Engineering from Iowa State University. His food manufacturing and processing experience began with a single serving coffee project in Pennsylvania. That was the first step in what would be several successful years in factory and processing facilities including being a project manager for a bakery, design lead converting a plant over to a different type of packaging, and an onsite project manager for a new product launch coordinating factory acceptance tests in Germany and the Netherlands.