by Caroline Gabsewics
Staff Writer
From a corporate trial lawyer to the president and CEO of a major design firm, Steve Halverson, says he enjoyed being a lawyer, but he has never looked back on his decision to make such a radical career change.
About seven years ago, when Preston Haskell realized he was ready to step down as president and CEO of his company, he approached Halverson about running a company that seems to have its hand in virtually every major construction project in the area. Halverson listened to the offer and took the job, coming into Haskell as the president. Six months later he was also named the CEO.
“I met Preston Haskell in the mid-90s. We served on some national industrial boards together and I always thought he had a unique business model and a tremendous platform for building a great company,” said Halverson.
When Haskell approached him, Halverson was working at Mortenson Construction, a large construction company based in the western United States, and was ready for a change.
“When Preston and I first met we formed an instant friendship,” said Halverson. “It is just one of those things.”
Halverson added that the job change from Mortenson to Haskell was one of those “really fortunate things in life.”
Many know Preston Haskell as a nationally regarded collector of contemporary art, and Halverson said that is one of the things the two have in common.
“(I don’t know) nearly as much about art, but we do have some eerie parallels,” said Halverson. “I do enjoy abstract art, but I don’t have as much knowledge as he has about it.”
Besides art, Halverson’s office is full of family photos of his wife and two children as well as awards from various non-profit organizations.
“I like working — it’s the biggest thing that I do, but I always try and maintain a high level of activity on non-profit boards,” he said.
Halverson and his family enjoy skiing and golf. They visit Colorado and Europe frequently, but a trip planned for South America is the most unique, he said.