As Megatrends Reshape Infrastructure Markets, Black & Veatch Announces New Client-Focused Structure
Global consulting, engineering and construction leader transforms to address rapidly evolving client needs for more agile, innovative solutions
With sustainability-driven global megatrends such as electrification, decarbonization, digitization and resilience aggressively reshaping the critical human infrastructure markets, Black & Veatch announces a new leadership team and operational structure designed to address the goals and issues of its expanding client portfolio.
“Our new operating model will allow Black & Veatch to accelerate its development and delivery of integrated solutions that are grounded in innovation, ultimately delivering better solutions for our clients,” said Steve Edwards, CEO of Black & Veatch. “This new structure will better serve our clients’ broad infrastructure challenges by enabling our teams to access global talent more quickly and efficiently at any stage of a project’s development.”
“This agility – paired with our deep market knowledge – will allow us to develop innovative and sustainable solutions that address our clients’ goals and issues in a cost-, schedule- and safety-effective manner,” Edwards added.
Each market sector will be underpinned by a cross-company operations group to provide clients with seamless access to resources and expertise throughout the company, with a new global strategic growth organization centered on innovation, strategic advisory services and sustainability. The traditional core business also has been transformed into three global client-focused businesses – Connectivity and Commercial, Energy and Process Industries, and Governments and Environment – alongside an additional regional business for Asia Pacific and India to address this region’s high-growth markets.
Mario Azar is appointed president of the Energy and Process Industries global market sector, a new business sector that integrates Black & Veatch’s energy and industrial-oriented business portfolio to serve power, oil and gas, mining and other process industry clients such as pharmaceutical, manufacturing, and food and beverage with integrated solutions. With more than 30 years of industry experience, Azar joined the company in 2018 as president of its global power business, just months before guiding the business through a strategic repositioning to align it towards growth in renewable electricity generation, grid modernization and resiliency.
Hoe Wai Cheong is named president of the Asia-Pacific and India regional market. With Southeast Asia as Black & Veatch’s second largest market, this team will focus on providing market-specific solutions to clients in the region, capitalizing on the company’s integrated solutions across the full portfolio. Cheong, who joined Black & Veatch in 2007, previously served as president of Black & Veatch’s gas, fuels and chemicals business, responsible for global strategy, business development, and project acquisition and execution.
Dave Hallowell is appointed president of Connectivity and Commercial, a new business sector focused on the telecommunications and broadband markets, advanced transportation and sustainable data center development. With more than 29 years of service at Black & Veatch, Hallowell spent six years guiding the company’s telecommunications public networks business before serving as leader of Black & Veatch’s global renewable energy business.
John Janchar is named president of strategic growth, a new organization that will focus on strategy and solution innovation, client services and communications. Janchar, who joined Black & Veatch in 1990, has been president of the company’s telecommunications business, including public and private networks, connected communities and transformative technologies lines.
Mike Orth is appointed president of the Government and Environment market sector, which focuses on serving the needs of government clients at the federal, state and municipal level as well as the growing field of environmental services. During his 32 years with Black & Veatch, Orth most recently served as executive vice president and managing director of the company’s water business in the Americas, where he guided the company’s growth in supply, storage, treatment and conveyance.
Laszlo von Lazar is named president of operations. Von Lazar served in the company’s power business as leader of global project services, which housed the primary functions of engineering, procurement, construction, quality and business excellence. He has more than three decades of experience in the global energy industry.
“In addition, two of our long-time executive leaders, Cindy Wallis-Lage and Marty Travers, will become our first executive directors with a mission that is solely externally focused,” Edwards said. “They will work to address these megatrends by driving broad solution sets that address our clients’ most pressing challenges. These roles will leverage their unique ability to speak to the company-wide portfolio, influence policy impacting infrastructure, and help clients navigate the future.”
Marty Travers, executive director. A 42-year Black & Veatch veteran and member of the company’s board of directors since 2012, Travers has led the company’s telecommunications, federal, data centers and management consulting business lines. He will be focused on enterprise-wide client and market growth.
Cindy Wallis-Lage, executive director. A 35-year veteran, Wallis-Lage served as president of Black & Veatch’s water business and is a member of the board. An active champion of water’s true value and its impact on sustainable communities, she will be focused on enterprise-wide client sustainability and resilience.
“The pandemic illustrated how responsive and agile our employee-owners are when it comes to serving our clients, and transforming our operating model is only the next step in delivering greater levels of adaptability, service and value,” Edwards said. “When it comes to infrastructure investments, our clients are actively pursuing solutions that deliver more sustainability, more resilience and greater adaptability in the future. This new operational structure will ensure that we continue to deliver these solutions safely, on a global basis.”***
Editor’s Notes:
The new operating model is designed to expand the company’s client portfolio and broaden the depth of solutions accessible to existing clients.
To learn more about the megatrends reshaping global infrastructure markets, please visit
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About Black & Veatch
Black & Veatch is an employee-owned global engineering, procurement, consulting and construction company with a more than 100-year track record of innovation in sustainable infrastructure. Since 1915, we have helped our clients improve the lives of people around the world by addressing the resilience and reliability of our most important infrastructure assets. Our revenues in 2020 exceeded US$3.0 billion. Follow us on www.bv.com and on social media.
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