Bala Consulting Engineers is pleased to announce the promotion of Kimberly Burkert to Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Kim began as Bala’s Controller and throughout her 20+ years grew to become Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, a member of the Senior Leadership Committee, a partner in the firm, and a member of Bala’s Board of Directors. Kim’s unique perspective and keen insights have advanced Bala’s project management capabilities and guided our overall growth strategies.
Kim succeeds Michael Anastasio as CEO. During her tenure with Bala, Kim has worked side by side with Michael, Bala’s founder, to drive innovation and growth. She was an integral leader throughout all of Bala’s mergers and acquisitions, expanding the firm from one office to five offices, and increasing firm revenues to $40M. Bala has grown from a Philadelphia-centric engineering firm to a strong northeast regional firm under Kim’s leadership.
Michael is enthused about Bala’s future with Kim as CEO, “Kim excelled as Bala’s CFO, and we are all confident she will do so as our next CEO. Her business acumen is exceptional, as is her understanding of Bala and the industry. Together with her compassion for our staff and commitment to our clients, Kim possesses all the skills to lead the company into the future. I look forward to continuing to work with her as Chairman of the Board and watch her continue to flourish in her career.”
Kim’s future vision for Bala is a collaborative working environment where we empower and inspire each other. She is passionate about mentoring and diversity. As a female professional who was mentored and challenged throughout her career Kim is overseeing a new formal mentoring program at Bala to give employees an opportunity to learn and grow from others in the firm. “Investing in our team is critical for Bala’s continued growth and success. Our mentor program focuses on building skills for advancing careers, developing relationships, and balancing work and life.”
Because she believes that unique experiences and perspectives broaden understanding and foster innovation, Kim is also directing Bala’s initiative to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion across the enterprise. As one of few female engineering firm CEOs, Kim understands the value diversity brings to a company, as well as its power to drive success. “As a female leader, I feel a strong sense of responsibility to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion at Bala. It is important, not only because it is the moral and ethical thing to do, but because it reinforces a sense of belonging across our teams.”
Kim will collaborate with the Bala senior leadership team of President Robert Voth, COO Scott Lawson, and Executive Vice Presidents Wesley Lawson and Edward Dolan to guide Bala into the future as a thought leader and engineering expert. Michael will remain involved with Bala as Chairman of the Board and will work closely with Kim to forge and implement company goals.
