Omaha Business Hall of Fame Inductee: Bruce E. Grewcock

Bruce E. Grewcock, Chairman and CEO – Kiewit

“Find something you love and have a passion to work hard at – but also be curious about things. When you’re intellectually curious, doors will open for you.”

Bruce Grewcock remembers, at a very early age, telling his dad he wanted to run a company someday. Turns out, that company was Kiewit, a home-grown Fortune 500 and one of North America’s largest and most respected construction and engineering organizations.

Grewcock became president and chief operating officer in 2000, CEO in 2005, and chairman of the board seven years later. He counts his father, Bill Grewcock, as his biggest influence. Larger than life at Kiewit, Bill led construction and mining operations in the 1980s, “a no-nonsense guy with traditional Midwestern values who believed in hard work and honesty.”

His father’s encouragement led Bruce to consider a career in the mining business. He graduated from the rigorous Colorado School of Mines in 1976, took a job at a General Electric subsidiary and then in 1982, came back to Kiewit, where he had interned during college. By 1992, he was president of the Kiewit Mining Group.

“Like Kiewit, I’ve always been wired to be opportunistic and willing to consider how we can do things different. As CEO, I saw the chance to grow our business in different, more diverse ways and incrementally ran at those opportunities,” Grewcock said.

Along the way, Grewcock said he has watched the company build a lot of “fantastic things,” engineering and construction marvels like the Hebron GBS (gravity-based structure) oil platform off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Bayonne Bridge in New York City, and Rams Stadium in Los Angeles.

Grewcock said he is in awe of what Kiewit’s people accomplish, his leadership team, and the company’s “best in class” technology tools: “Not only are they changing our business for the better and positioning us for successful years to come, but they’re going to have an impact on the construction industry as a whole.”

Grewcock is a founding member of the Construction Industry Ethics and Compliance Initiative (CIECI), a member of Business Roundtable, and a trustee with the Colorado School of Mines Foundation. Also a leader in the Omaha community, he serves as a director of the Nebraska Medical Center and Creighton University.

Set to celebrate 35 years of marriage this year, Grewcock credits his wife, Debra, with helping him stay grounded, and balance work and life: “She used to ask me, ‘When you’re on your deathbed looking up at me, will you say that you wish you would’ve worked more?’”

The couple’s sons, Keith and Eric, are continuing a family tradition. Both work at Kiewit as well.