Kraus-Anderson Construction announces executive promotions
April 5, 2022
Leadership demonstrates company’s positioning for continued growth and success
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. (April 2022) – Kraus-Anderson today announced several top-level executive promotions. Al Gerhardt remains president of Kraus-Anderson Construction and also has been named executive vice president of Kraus-Anderson Companies. KA Construction (KA) has promoted Rich Jacobson to chief operating officer and executive vice president, and Wayne Gray to senior vice president of finance. Leslie Greves has been promoted to executive vice president of human resources for KA Construction and KA Companies. All work in the Minneapolis office.
“These leaders punctuate our strategic growth planning for our enterprise and demonstrate sustained achievement and commitment to our culture. They will continue to position us for continued success in our dynamic world,” said Bruce Engelsma, chairman of Kraus-Anderson Companies.
Al Gerhardt – President of KA Construction and Executive Vice President of Kraus-Anderson Companies
Gerhardt is a visionary force for stability and progress at KA Construction. He also will take on an executive leadership role at Kraus-Anderson Companies, including strategic collaboration with KA Realty and Development operations. Gerhardt joined KA in 1980 and rose to senior management positions. He became chief operating officer in 2007 and was named president in 2017.
Gerhardt earned a B.S. in Construction Management from Minnesota State University-Mankato, and holds General Contractor licenses in Florida, Mississippi and New Mexico. He is a LEED Green Associate and serves on the boards of the Construction Industry Round Table (CIRT), AGC of America as a Life Governor and the ACE Mentor Program. He is a member of NAIOP and past presenter at its national conference. In addition, he has served the State of Minnesota Building Code Advisory Board, Construction Specification Institute, Minneapolis City of Lakes Rotary Club; and as past chair of the Minnesota State University-Mankato Construction Management Advisory Board and a past chair of the Board at Cornerhouse.
Rich Jacobson – Chief Operating Officer, KA Construction
Jacobson will be responsible for KA Construction’s operational management. He is highly regarded for his leadership skills and grounded in a deep knowledge of construction project management. Jacobson joined KA in 1992 as a project manager and rose through the ranks to become executive vice president in 2017. He has been responsible for hundreds of major national construction projects and is regarded as a consensus builder for his relationships with architects, developers and subcontractors and with all levels of government.
Jacobson received his B.S. in Construction Management from the University of Wisconsin-Stout, Menomonie. He is a member of the National Builders Alliance and co-chair of the legislative committee of Associated General Contractors of Minnesota. He also serves on the board of Cornerhouse, a non-profit child advocacy organization. Previous service includes the Woodbury Public Safety Board, Minnesota Construction Association, UW-Stout Industry Advisory Board and UW-Stout Alumni Board; and past membership in Allied Executives, the International Council of Educational Facility Planners, International Council of Shopping Centers and Center for Educational Performance and Information (CEPI), a nationally active organization of educational professionals.
Leslie Greves – Executive Vice President, Human Resources, KA Construction and KA Companies
A licensed attorney, Greves previously served as KA’s vice president of human resources. Greves has championed development of KA’s talent strategy, including best practices for employee engagement, collaboration and increased leader transparency. In addition, she has provided compliance and crisis communications counsel through COVID-19 and its related uncertainties. Prior to joining KA in 2015, she held senior leadership positions across multiple HR disciplines at Target Corporation and Marshall Field’s.
Greves earned her B.A. in Communications from the University of North Dakota and J.D. from Hamline University School of Law. She serves on the board of the Anoka County Workforce Development and is a member of the governing body of Evanta’s Minneapolis CHRO Summit.
Wayne Gray – Senior Vice President, Finance
Gray has previously served as vice president of finance for KA Construction. As senior vice president he will oversee the company’s accounting and financial operations. Gray joined KA in 2019 with more than 20 years of experience in senior financial and operational management and corporate planning at Clark Construction Group, LLC in Bethesda, Md.
He earned an MBA from the University of Maryland University College in College Park, Md, and a B.S. in Business Administration, Finance and Economics from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore in Princess Anne, Md. Gray is on the board of Twin Cities R!SE, a member of the Construction Financial Management Association and CFO Leadership Council (Twin Cities Chapter), and serves on Summit Academy OIC’s operations committee.
Brittany Yelle – Associate General Counsel
In addition to KA’s executive promotions, the company has hired Brittany Yelle as associate general counsel. In her new position with KA, Yelle will advise and work primarily with the KA Realty, KA Development and KA Financial Services teams in the areas of real estate leasing, purchases and sales development and financing. Most recently, Yelle was a real estate, corporate and finance attorney for Moss & Barnett. She served as a judicial clerk to the Honorable William H. Koch for the 4th Judicial District Court in Minneapolis.
Yelle earned her B.A. from the College of Saint Benedict, Saint Joseph, Minn., and her J.D. from the University of St. Thomas School of Law, Minneapolis. Yelle is a member of Minnesota Commercial Real Estate Women, a volunteer ethics investigator for the 4th District Ethics Committee and a mentor for the Mentor Externship Program at the University of St. Thomas School of Law.
About Kraus-Anderson Companies
Established in 1897, Kraus-Anderson (www.krausanderson.com) is an integrated construction management, real estate and risk management enterprise working independently and in collaboration with a family of companies, including insurance, finance and realty operations. Kraus-Anderson, an Equal Opportunity & Affirmative Action employer, is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minn. and has regional offices in Madison and Milwaukee, Wis., Bismarck, N.D., and Duluth, Bemidji and Rochester Minn.