Our Leadership
At Octavius, being a leader is not defined by job title, but by the impact you have on others and the standards you set every day.
Our leaders create an environment where people feel valued, supported, and empowered to perform at their best.
They prioritise safety, act with integrity, and take ownership for delivering high-quality outcomes for our customers and within the communities we work. Just as importantly, they invest in developing others, recognising that inspiring leaders in everyone is key to building a sustainable and high-performing organisation.
Authentic Leadership lies at the heart of our culture. Grounded in the principles of The Octavius Way our leaders live our values and uphold our principles to inspire our people and deliver our vision of being the UK’s most respected provider of transport infrastructure by bringing people together and creating positive change.
This starts at the top with our Executive Leadership Team who, led by our CEO John Dowsett, encourage fairness and shared success by maintaining an inclusive and collaborative working environment that brings our people and supply chain partners together to delight our customers. Our leadership structure is shown below.
Our Executive Leaders are supported in the day-to-day running of the business by our Octavius Leadership Team which comprises senior leaders and managers from across our four operational Business Units and eight Group Service Functions. Working cohesively, they influence and guide our teams towards delivering shared goals whilst empowering them to grow - listening with curiosity, speaking honestly and challenging with assertiveness to create a space for our people to be themselves and feel valued.
Read below to hear from some of our leaders!
John Dowsett, Chief Executive Officer
John was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Octavius in September 2021 having joined its legacy business Geoffrey Osborne Limited as a Graduate Engineer in 1996. A Chartered Civil Engineer, John's leadership is defined by his passion for ensuring we do what we say we will do and deliver quality projects and services safely, on time and within budget.
"Authentic Leadership lies at the heart of our culture. Grounded in the principles of The Octavius Way our leaders live our values and uphold our principles to inspire our people and deliver our vision of being the UK’s most respected provider of transport infrastructure by bringing people together and creating positive change".
Isayas Teclebarhan, Regional Director (Rail)
As a member of the OLT, Isayas oversees some of Octavius’s largest frameworks including North West & Central and Eastern CP7 regions and the Southern Multi-Discipline Framework (SMDF) CP6 extension. Since joining the business in 2020 Isayas’s solution focused leadership is defined by piercing clarity and alignment of expectations to deliver best value outcomes for all stakeholders.
“Leadership fundamentally to me is to listen to the teams and customers, but also to take accountability and decisions to lead the ship along whilst empowering the teams to deliver excellence and positive change”
Laura Brown-Glaholm, Head of Highways Engineering and Innovation
Laura joined Octavius in 2025 and is responsible for leading engineering excellence, design management and innovation across the Highways and RCE Business Units. A Chartered Civil Engineer, Laura’s leadership focuses on developing people, strengthening capability and creating the conditions for teams to safely deliver high-quality outcomes for customers and communities. She is passionate about continuous improvement and believes that innovation is most effective when it is grounded in operational reality.
"For me, leadership is about creating the environment where people can succeed. By providing clear direction, developing capability and embracing innovation with purpose, we can deliver safer, smarter and more sustainable infrastructure while creating lasting value for our customers, communities and colleagues. Leadership is measured not by authority, but by the positive difference we make to the people we serve and the teams we support."
Adam Crawley, Engineering Manager (Navitas Engineering)
Having joined Navitas as a Graduate Engineer in 2014, Adam was appointed Engineering Manager in 2020 and he is now responsible for the technical and operational leadership of the business, building capability and ensuring the safe, high-quality delivery of engineering consultancy services.
"Leadership isn't about having all the answers or being the loudest voice in the room. It's about providing clarity, making good decisions when they matter, and helping people achieve more than they thought they could. If the team is growing, taking ownership and succeeding without relying on you every day, you're leading well."
Future Leadership Programme
In today’s dynamic and competitive business environment we constantly strive to delight out customers The Octavius Way by inspiring our people to create exceptional value through assured and safe delivery that leaves a sustainable legacy in the communities we serve.
Ensuring we continue to sustain long-term success requires succession planning that creates future leaders with the knowledge, skills and behaviours needed to lead our teams with authenticity. Our Future Leaders Programme plays a vital role in bringing this to life. Designed to accelerate the growth of potential leadership talent from all areas of the business, it equips emerging talent with the skills, confidence, and self-awareness needed to lead in line with the Octavius Way.
It provides a comprehensive pathway to senior leadership that ensures delegates are well-prepared to meet the challenges and responsibilities that lie ahead.
Find out below what some of our people think about the Future Leadership Programme and how it encourages individuals to step forward, take initiative, and grow their leadership capability at every stage of their career.
Cat Cliffe, People & Sustainability Director
A member of the Executive Leadership Team, Cat is responsible for delivering outcomes that benefit our customers and the communities we serve by focusing on environmental and societal outcomes both during the development and delivery phases of a project. She is passionate about ensuring that we attract, nurture and retain industry leading talent to ensure we become recognised as an Employer of Choice.
“The most effective leaders are those who are willing to explore the needs, motivations, assumptions, interactions and challenges of their teams to find optimal solutions. The Future Leaders Programme has been designed to equip the next generation of Octavius leaders with the skills needed to create an open and transparent environment where different perspectives are listened to by working collaboratively in a multi discipline setting.”
Paige Baker, Project Manager (Rail)
Paige is a Project Manager working in the Southern Renewals Enterprise rail framework. Since joining the business as a Graduate Civil Engineer in 2019, Paige's leadership journey has evolved with a focus on building strong, trusted relationships with her team and stakeholders to work towards shared goals.
“The Future Leaders Programme strengthened my belief that leadership is about empowering people, fostering collaboration and creating a culture of continuous learning. It reinforced my commitment to authentic leadership, building trusted relationships and driving improvements that enable both individuals and the wider business to succeed in line with The Octavius Way.”