Chicago, IL – May 10, 2022 – Clune Construction (Clune) is proud to continue its long-standing tradition of promoting from within by announcing the promotion of five of its talented professionals in its Chicago office to executive-level positions, and three will join the ranks of the company’s senior management.

Joe Van Oosbree, Brian Donahue, Dave Sitkowski, Deirdre Burke, Joe Zobel, Mike Carr, Derek Lemmon and Scott Pfiffner received promotions in recognition of their significant contributions to Clune and the important role they play in the company’s future growth.

“Each of these individuals have dedicated their careers to Clune Construction and servicing our amazing clients. The company and those we serve have benefitted tremendously from their contributions,” said Dave Hall, CEO of Clune Construction. “I am proud to see them all continue to rise through the ranks, as we continue our traditions of employee ownership and promoting from within.”

Managing Director

Joe Van Oosbree has been promoted to Managing Director of Midwest Operations. He has 21 years of construction industry experience, and co-leads Clune’s Chicago office. Prior to assuming his current role, Van Oosbree was instrumental in establishing Clune’s nationally recognized Mission Critical team. Known for his ability to personalize interactions with employees, he enjoys working with people in the many different roles. Van Oosbree is actively involved with Habitat for Humanity and is a volunteer and partner with Chicago Public Schools Career & Technical Education. He has a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Brian Donahue has been promoted to Managing Director, Project Executive. Joining Clune’s Mission Critical department in 2008, Donahue has been critical in growing the team’s national footprint. During his tenure, the team has evolved from a group of five in the Chicago office to more than 50 professionals across all of Clune’s markets. Donahue has established a reputation for being able to efficiently overcome the complex challenges of Clune’s data center build-outs, while always maintaining Clune’s high level of quality of excellence. An active member of the 7 X 24 Lake Michigan Regional Chapter, Donahue has a B.S. in Business from Iowa State University.

Dave Sitkowski has been promoted to Managing Director, Project Executive. He started with Clune in 2004 as an Intern, and joined the company’s Mission Critical team in 2012. He has spent the last ten years growing the team nationally, and expanding into new markets to keep up with the intense demand. Sitkowski has established himself as an industry expert on the unique challenges of building data center facilities. Clune’s Mission Critical department has become a nationally recognized data center construction team, and is consistently ranked among the top data center general contractors in the U.S. Sitkowski has a B.S. in Construction Management from Purdue University.

Senior Vice President/Vice President

Deirdre Burke has been promoted to Senior Vice President, Talent Acquisition and Learning & Development. She joined Clune as an Assistant Project Manager in 2000, and worked her way up to become a Senior Project Manager. In 2016, Burke joined a special team to implement an ERP system. Her knowledge of the construction process uniquely positioned her to help with this major undertaking. As the leader of Clune’s Talent Acquisition and Learning & Development teams, Burke designed and implemented an all-employee learning and development plan. Burke holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Civil Engineering from University College Cork in Ireland.

Joe Zobel has been promoted to Senior Vice President, Virtual Construction & MEP. With nearly 30 years of experience in the technical field, Zobel joined Clune’s Mission Critical Group in 2006. Shortly after he became the company’s first MEP Coordinator. While growing the company’s MEP Department, Zobel also recognized the need for Clune to adopt Virtual Construction capabilities, and spearheaded the establishment of the company’s growing Virtual Construction team. A board member for the 7 x 24 Lake Michigan chapter, Zobel has a B.S. in Electrical Engineering Technology from Purdue University.

Mike Carr has been promoted to Vice President, Information Technology. With 16- years of experience managing IT departments in the construction industry, he joined Clune in 2016 to implement a systematic change in the direction of the department. Since then Mike has standardized Clune’s IT infrastructure nationwide. In addition, he has implemented many layers of security to keep Clune’s technology free from intrusion and malware.  He has a B.A.S Degree in Computer Science, and is an active member of the Chicagoland AGC Technology Committee.

Derek Lemmon has been promoted to Vice President, Senior Project Manager, Team Leader. With 19 years of construction industry experience, Lemmon joined Clune’s Healthcare Team in 2012. Lemmon has a reputation for being fair and honest, and is extremely hands on with the projects he manages. He considers patient safety to be his biggest priority, and has his team members approach each project as if their family members are being treated in the room next door.   Lemmon is actively involved in several charitable organizations including Hard Hats with Heart, ACE Mentoring, Habitat for Humanity and Bucks for Burn Camp. He has Bachelor of Science degrees in Construction Management and Business Administration.

Scott Pfiffner has been promoted to Vice President, Senior Project Manager. He has been with Clune for nine years, and is the lead Senior Project Manager in the Mission Critical group. Pfiffner has earned a reputation for delivering true excellence on all of his projects. For the past 5 years, Pfiffner has mainly been responsible for Mission Critical projects outside of his home town for extended periods of time. He has provided leadership and training to Clune employees in each region as we continue to expand the Mission Critical footprint. He has helped many individuals grow their own careers and continues to coach the newer project managers. Pfiffner earned B.S. degrees in Construction Management and Business Administration from the University of Illinois.

“It has been a pleasure to watch each of these individuals grow their careers and establish themselves as impactful leaders at Clune,” said Vince Gutekanst, Clune’s President of the Midwest Region. “I congratulate each of these talented professionals on their well-deserved promotions.”

Clune is proud of its culture of promoting from within. Many officers started with the company as interns and the average tenure of a Managing Director is 17 years. Additionally, 20 percent of Clune’s employees have been with the company for over 10 years. This culture has also contributed to Clune’s consistent placement nationally in numerous “Best Places to Work” rankings.