The Christman Company, a national construction management firm headquartered in Lansing, Michigan, with regional offices in Greensboro and Raleigh, North Carolina, welcomes John Merrill as their new regional business development director. Merrill joins the company after 15 years as executive director of Gateway Research Park in Greensboro. Merrill is an experienced leader, communicator and collaborator who has facilitated public-private-partnerships, grant/privately funded projects and collaborations for more than 25 years. He has also been actively involved in regional and statewide economic development efforts supporting the growth and vitality of Greensboro and the State of North Carolina.

“I am pleased to welcome John to the Christman team. His experience in developing facilities in higher education, healthcare, science and technology will be a great asset for our North Carolina operations,” said Steven Roznowski, president and CEO of Christman. “As we continue to grow the organization and expand our regional services he is just the caliber of individual needed to build not only great buildings but long-term relationships with our partners throughout the industry.”

Tim Gray, senior vice president for The Christman Company’s Greensboro and Raleigh operations said, “We’ve worked with John on prior projects in Greensboro and it became clear to us that he’d be an excellent addition to the Christman team and culture. As we look to expand services and seek more development opportunities throughout the state, John’s energy and network will be a rich resource for the organization.”

John Merrill commented, “While I leave my former position with mixed emotions, I will continue to be supportive of the Greensboro community, Gateway, NCA&T and UNC Greensboro. The decision to change jobs at this stage of my career did not come easily. However, after exhaustive evaluation of the opportunity and extensive discussion with family, friends and my many mentors, it became obvious this was the right move at the right time. So, now I pass the torch to new leadership at Gateway and move on to what I hope will be another successful phase of my career.“

“After more than 25 years developing higher education focused research parks in support of regional economic development, I look forward to the challenges of working in the private sector with similar economic development objectives. After careful deliberation, it became clear that Christman’s culture is an excellent fit with my personal beliefs about integrity, passion for work and the desire to build long-term relationships. I’m very excited about what the future holds and the opportunities that lie ahead. Christmanites refer to it as The Christman Way and I look forward to sharing its meaning.”