John Kissinger has been named chief operating officer of Graef-USA Inc. and is now in line to become the next chief executive officer of the Milwaukee-based consulting engineering, design and planning firm.
“One of a CEO’s most difficult jobs is to prepare the firm for a new, future leader,” said Richard Bub, president and CEO of Graef, who began a leadership succession plan at the company five years ago. “These actions were in concert with Graef’s strategic planning. The announcement we are making today is the result of this careful process. John and I will be working closely together throughout the next 21 months, culminating in January 2012, when John will become the next CEO of Graef.”
Kissinger joined Graef in 1984 as a structural engineer in the firm’s Milwaukee office. Since that time, he has held positions of increasing responsibility including project engineer, project manager, principal, vice-president, and most recently, regional vice president.
Kissinger has also served on the Graef board of directors since 2002.