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Weeks before infrastructure giant Balfour Beatty reveals its 2025 results, the company has announced that its chief financial officer is leaving.
Phil Harrison, who joined the company in 2015, is will resign at the end of the yearthe London-based contractor announced this Tuesday. He will be succeeded by Myles Westcott, who is currently the group financial controller of BAE Systems, a British aerospace and defense company.
Harrison leaves the company in a much different state than when he found it. In 2014, the company reported a loss with average net debt of £371 million. In 2025, however, the infrastructure builder reported £1.1 billion of average net cash, or about $1.5 billion.
Indeed, the company reported an increase in profits during its half-year earnings call in August following its push to de-risk its portfolio.
While the UK side of the business performed well, its US arm struggled due to cost overruns on a highway project in Texas.
Harrison will remain a director of Balfour Beatty and continue in his current role until Westcott joins. He will also support the business through the 2025 results to March 2026. Following Westcott’s appointment to the board, Harrison will continue as an advisor for four months to ensure a smooth transition, the statement said.
The news comes almost a year after former Balfour Beatty chief executive Leo Quinn announced his departure and the selection of Philip Hoare as a replacement. Hoare took over as CEO in September.
Myles Westcott
Courtesy of Balfour Beatty
“I look forward to working alongside Philip Hoare and the Board to support the company’s profitable growth, ensuring strong financial performance and continuing to create sustainable value for shareholders,” Westcott said in the announcement.
As the new CFO, Westcott brings more than 30 years of financial leadership experience, including nearly 25 years at BAE Systems, according to the press release. As BAE’s group financial controller, Westcott led the financial reporting, planning, governance and risk functions.
Other contractors have also announced moves at theirs C-suites and in their businesses to begin in 2026. Hensel Phelps, based in Greeley, Colo., named former president and chief operating officer Brad Jeanneret as new CEO effective January 1.
Minneapolis-based Adolfson and Peterson also made a change: COO Brad Hendrickson will take over as CEO on June 1 once current CEO Jeff Hansen retires.
