Jacobs has announced that President and Chief Operating Officer Bob Pragada will succeed Steve Demetriou as CEO and join the company’s board of directors. Demetriou will continue as executive chair of the board.
The changes are effective Jan. 24, the date of the company’s annual shareholder meeting.
“It has been the highlight of my career to lead Jacobs over these past seven years,” Demetriou said. “With a strong foundation and clear trajectory in place, now is the right time to implement our succession plan.
Pragada joined Jacobs in 2006, holding several senior management positions over nine years. He returned to Jacobs in 2016 as president of the global industrial and buildings and infrastructure lines of business. In 2019, he was president and COO.
“It is an exciting time for Jacobs,” Pragada said. “We have just launched our bold new strategy and are at the forefront of our industry ⏤ anticipating the global trends most important to our clients and developing differentiated, data-enabled solutions that meet their needs. I am honored to take on the role of CEO early next year and advance the exciting work underway.”
Demetriou will serve as executive chair for a minimum of 2 years and will provide executive sponsorship for several key client engagements and ongoing culture initiatives.
“On behalf of the board of directors, I thank Steve for his service to Jacobs and his inspirational leadership during his tenure as CEO,” said Chris Thompson, lead independent director of the board. “Steve demonstrated the highest standards of ethics and integrity, and established an unparalleled culture of inclusion, accountability and innovation that has positioned Jacobs at the forefront of the industry.”