Tom Gunkel has been promoted to CEO and president of Minneapolis-based Mortenson Construction. Gunkel, a 25-year veteran of Mortenson, has been serving as president and chief operating officer (COO) of the family-owned company for the past seven years.
‘Tom's leadership as the president of our company for the past seven years has been exemplary, and I know that in his new position he will continue to shape the company's future legacy that he is so passionate about,’ says M. A. Mortenson, chairman of the company.
Gunkel leads a veteran senior management team that possesses nearly 300 years of collective Mortenson construction experience. Succeeding Tom McCune as president and COO in 2001, Gunkel became the second non-family member to serve as Mortenson's president.
Under Gunkel's leadership, the company has diversified company operations, broadening its presence to include new offices in Chicago, Phoenix, and Shanghai, China, while also propelling its Renewable Energy Group to become the largest design-builder of wind energy in North America.
A native of Madison, Wis., Gunkel began his career at Mortenson in 1983 as a project estimator following his graduation from the University of Wisconsin with a B.S. degree in construction management. He subsequently became a project manager and led both design and construction on projects nationwide.
