Emma Gilthorpe Appointed in Construction Enquirer Transformation Role
construction enquirer reports that Turner & Townsend has appointed Emma Gilthorpe as its first Chief Transformation Officer in a newly created role. The company said she will drive global transformation, including the use of AI and technology, as it seeks to become the world’s leading programme management business.
Emma Gilthorpe at Turner & Townsend
Gilthorpe was most recently Chief Executive of Royal Mail, after nearly 15 years on the executive team at Heathrow Airport. David Whysall, Turner & Townsend’s Chief Operating Officer, said she brings a strong record of delivering transformation across large, multi-sector organisations.
Whysall said: “Emma is one of our industry’s most prominent figures with a tremendous track record of operating and delivering significant transformation across a range of large, multi-sector organisations and will play an integral role in accelerating our own global growth ambitions.”
Heathrow and Royal Mail
Whysall also pointed to her Heathrow background, saying: “Emma’s role in overseeing Heathrow’s transition to become one of the world’s leading infrastructure operators will be very relevant as we continue to support our clients’ deliver major complex programmes.” That link to Heathrow is the most direct clue to how Turner & Townsend expects her experience to be used in the new post.
Gilthorpe said she is excited to join the business and that she had first-hand experience of Turner & Townsend as a client during her time at Heathrow. She added: “I am looking forward to working with a great team of people at what is a pivotal time in the company’s growth journey.”
Turner & Townsend Growth
The appointment gives Turner & Townsend a senior leader whose background spans airport operations and mail, while the new role is tied to transformation across the business rather than a single project. For readers in the construction and programme-management market, the practical signal is that the company is putting AI, technology and large-scale change at the center of its next phase.
The company now has to turn that remit into delivery, and Gilthorpe’s job starts with a clear brief: help push global transformation while supporting major complex programmes. Her appointment is the first move in that plan, not the finish.
