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Bechtel’s Impact Report

Brendan Bechtel

  • portrait of Brendan Bechtel
    Chairman and CEO of Bechtel

Brendan Bechtel is chairman and chief executive officer of Bechtel.

Brendan became Bechtel’s chief executive officer in 2016 and chairman in 2017. From 2014-2016, he served as the company’s president and chief operating officer, responsible for management and oversight of Bechtel’s global operations.

Previously, Brendan served as president of the company’s global energy business and, earlier, led Bechtel’s Liquefied Natural Gas business line. He also held a series of leadership and operational roles on energy, infrastructure, and power projects in North America, Australia, and Africa, with responsibilities including safety, project controls, field engineering, contracts, construction supervision, and project management.

The fifth generation of the Bechtel family to lead the company, Brendan started working for the company during summer breaks in high school. He graduated from Middlebury College with a bachelor’s degree in geography and a minor in environmental studies. Brendan spent two years working for a conservation nonprofit before earning two master’s degrees from Stanford University – an MBA and an MSE in construction engineering and management – before re-joining Bechtel.

Brendan is a member of the boards of directors of the Business Roundtable and the Fremont Group, and is a trustee of the National Geographic Society and the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Brendan is based in the Washington, DC, area.

Posts by Brendan Bechtel

7 results

  • The World’s Largest Metro Project Built in a Single Phase

    Most metro systems grow gradually: one line at a time. Not Riyadh. It’s the largest metro project in the world to be built in a single phase—and the first to conceive, design, and construct six fully integrated lines simultaneously. All of this unfolded in Riyadh’s dense urban core, which had to remain open to traffic and fully functional for its millions of residents.

  • Confronting Suicide in the Construction Community

    Among job occupations in the United States, construction has one of the highest rates of suicide. The time has come for us to treat mental health – and suicide prevention specifically – with the same determined focus that we have successfully brought to physical health, and as a natural extension of our historic commitment to safety.

  • Brendan Bechtel on Rebuilding America’s Leadership in Nuclear Power

    The U.S. is once again building and innovating in nuclear power. This week, the second of two new nuclear units went into service in Georgia. It is hard to overstate the significance of these milestones. Rebuilding our country’s nuclear power industry is vital to our fight against climate change, our growing need for more electricity, and our national security.

  • People walking in the city at night.

    Post-pandemic infrastructure

    • February 09, 2021
    • 2 Min Read
    • portrait of Brendan Bechtel
      Chairman and CEO of Bechtel
    • By Brendan Bechtel

    Learn why CEO Brendan Bechtel thinks the post-pandemic period will be opportunity to rethink the type of infrastructure why we should invest in it.

  • People sitting at table looking down reading

    Culture as a pillar of preparedness

    Learn why CEO Brendan Bechtel's biggest takeaway from 2020 has been a profound appreciation of an organization’s culture in determining success in a crisis.

  • U.S. EXIM Bank: A Champion for Jobs

    If we want to deliver on the U.S. commitment to responsible, sustainable development around the world while championing U.S. jobs, we need the reach of our EXIM Bank.