Stepnell appoints construction MD: implications for UK project teams and pipelines
Reviewed by Joe Ashwell
First reported on The Construction Index
30 Second Briefing
Stepnell has appointed former Lendlease executive Simon Gorski as managing director of its construction business, drawing on his 30+ years’ experience in defence, justice, healthcare and central government frameworks, including 20 years with Bovis/Lendlease Europe. Based at the Rugby head office, Gorski is tasked with scaling Stepnell’s post-demerger “controlled growth” model, targeting a wider public sector and regional client base. The contractor, which opened its seventh office in Exeter in May 2026, reported £150m turnover with a forecast 20% uplift this year, signalling increased bidding capacity for complex projects.
Technical Brief
- His leadership experience explicitly spans defence, justice and healthcare estates for central government and local authorities.
- He cites direct experience steering construction businesses through Covid-19 disruption and subsequent materials hyperinflation.
- Decision-making at Stepnell post-demerger is described as “agile”, implying shorter governance chains for project approvals.
- Further regional office openings are planned, indicating more localised site management and supply-chain engagement on projects.
- Emphasis on “honest” budget communication and selectivity points to tighter cost-risk screening for technically complex schemes.
Our Take
The appointment of a managing director with a 20‑year Lendlease background comes as Lendlease’s former European construction arm (now Bovis under Atlas) is expanding UK offices and reporting strong profits, suggesting Stepnell may be targeting similar complex urban regeneration and public‑sector project profiles rather than traditional regional workloads.
Within our 911 Infrastructure stories, most UK regional contractors with more than a century of trading history, like Stepnell Group’s 159 years, tend to leverage that longevity to de-risk procurement for local authorities and institutional clients, which could support margin protection as competition intensifies from Bovis and other ex‑Lendlease platforms.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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