Adham El Sharkawy Appointed to Lead Holcim UK
Holcim has appointed Adham El Sharkawy as Chief Executive Officer of its UK business, placing an executive with 18 years inside the group at the head of an extensive building materials and contracting operation.
El Sharkawy took up the position on 1 September 2026, moving from Algeria, where he most recently served as CEO of Holcim’s local business. His career spans more than two decades in the building materials and construction sector, with successive country leadership positions giving him experience across markedly different markets.
His route to Britain has included a series of senior roles within Holcim. El Sharkawy became country CEO in the UAE in 2017, moved into the equivalent role in Iraq in 2020 and took charge of Holcim’s Algerian business in 2025. He now joins a UK operation employing around 4,000 people across more than 200 sites, little more than 18 months after the former Aggregate Industries business adopted the Holcim name.
Briefing
- Adham El Sharkawy became CEO of Holcim UK on 1 September 2026.
- He has spent 18 years with Holcim Group and was most recently CEO of its Algerian business.
- His previous country leadership positions have included the UAE and Iraq.
- Holcim UK operates more than 200 sites and employs around 4,000 people.
- Interim CEO Danny King remains with the company as Managing Director for Aggregates, Asphalt, and Contracting.
International Experience
El Sharkawy’s progression through the group has taken him through building materials markets with different construction cycles, operating conditions and commercial pressures. His move to the UK follows leadership assignments across the Middle East and North Africa, culminating in his appointment to lead the Algerian operation in 2025.
Grant Earnshaw, Holcim’s Region Head for Western Europe, said: โIโd like to congratulate Adham on his appointment. Heโs an excellent leader to take the UK business forward, with vast experience in our business and our industry.
โHaving got to know Adham and seeing his successes with Holcim Group, I am confident his commercial and people focused approach will continue to drive the UK business forward as the leading partner in sustainable construction.โ
The UK portfolio is broad. Holcim’s activities extend across aggregates, asphalt, cement, ready-mixed concrete, mortars, building and landscaping products and contracting, giving El Sharkawy responsibility for businesses operating from raw materials extraction through manufacturing and downstream construction services.
That range also distinguishes the UK role from a narrower country materials operation. Quarries and processing plants sit alongside asphalt and concrete production, cement, building products and road contracting, with individual parts of the business exposed to different customers, costs and market conditions.
The UK Business
El Sharkawy arrives after one of the more visible changes to Holcim’s British operations in recent years. Aggregate Industries adopted the Holcim name in March 2025, bringing businesses and brands that had previously operated under several identities more closely together under the group’s global name.
The underlying UK business was already well established within Holcim. The rebrand instead gave the operation a clearer connection with the parent group and its international materials and building solutions portfolio, while retaining activities that stretch across infrastructure, commercial construction and housing.
El Sharkawy has linked his appointment directly with Holcim’s NextGen Growth strategy:ย โItโs a privilege to take on this role in one of Holcim’s most competitive and exciting markets. Itโs clear that we have the potential to leverage our past experience and successes, alongside adopting new approaches and transformative ideas to further unlock growth opportunities in the UK.
โIโm looking forward to working alongside our great colleagues across the UK, and globally, to deliver our next chapter in NextGen Growth.โ
NextGen Growth 2030 sets out Holcim’s plans to strengthen its core building materials businesses while expanding higher-value building solutions and investing in markets where the group sees attractive growth opportunities. In Britain, that strategy is being applied across a business whose scale comes from both its national footprint and the range of activities sitting within it.
Continuity in the UK Operation
The leadership change retains experience within several of Holcim UK’s largest operating businesses. Danny King, who had been serving as interim CEO, remains with the company as Managing Director for Aggregates, Asphalt, and Contracting.
Those activities account for a substantial part of Holcim’s physical presence in Britain, from quarrying and asphalt production to road contracting. Keeping them under King’s leadership provides continuity while El Sharkawy assumes responsibility for the wider UK portfolio.
His appointment also continues a career built around national leadership roles rather than a move directly from a group corporate function. After running Holcim businesses in the UAE, Iraq and Algeria, El Sharkawy now takes responsibility for more than 200 UK sites and a portfolio stretching from extracted aggregates and cement to concrete, asphalt, building products and finished infrastructure.
Key Industry Questions
- Who is the new CEO of Holcim UK?ย Adham El Sharkawy became Chief Executive Officer of Holcim UK on 1 September 2026.
- What was Adham El Sharkawy’s previous role?ย He was most recently CEO of Holcim’s business in Algeria and has worked within Holcim Group for 18 years.
- Where else has Adham El Sharkawy worked as a country CEO?ย His Holcim career has included country CEO positions in the UAE and Iraq before he took charge of the group’s Algerian operation.
- How large is Holcim UK?ย The company operates more than 200 sites and employs around 4,000 people across the UK.
- What products and services does Holcim UK provide?ย Its activities include aggregates, asphalt, cement, ready-mixed concrete, mortars, building and landscaping products and contracting.
- What happened to Aggregate Industries?ย The UK business adopted the Holcim name in March 2025, bringing its operations more directly under the group’s global identity.
- What is NextGen Growth 2030?ย It is Holcim’s group growth strategy, covering investment in its core building materials businesses and the expansion of higher-value building solutions.
- What role does Danny King now hold?ย King, who had been acting as interim CEO, remains with Holcim UK as Managing Director for Aggregates, Asphalt, and Contracting.
Strategic Takeaways
- El Sharkawy brings 18 years of Holcim experience to the UK operation after running businesses in several international markets.
- His previous country CEO positions in the UAE, Iraq and Algeria give the appointment a stronger operational dimension than a move from a corporate group function.
- Holcim UK’s portfolio spans both materials production and downstream contracting across more than 200 sites.
- The appointment follows the consolidation of the former Aggregate Industries operation under the Holcim identity in 2025.
- Danny King’s continuing responsibility for Aggregates, Asphalt, and Contracting retains operational continuity through the CEO transition.
