Rufus Judson

Rufus Judson

Chief Executive Officer, The Pike Companies

Years in current role: 6

What do you enjoy most about your role?

What I love most about my role are the people that I work with and being a part of a great team. I am always inspired by our people and the collaboration they achieve to get things done while we turn our clients’ goals into realities. As CEO, I enjoy being involved in every aspect of our business while thinking about and executing against our long-term vision.

What has been the biggest challenge you’ve dealt with over the past year?

The COVID pandemic has been a huge challenge over the past year. Keeping our employees, jobsites, and offices safe is always our number one priority. We ensure that our project teams and shared services have the resources they need to continue working safely.

What do you see as the biggest changes in the real estate and construction industries in the next 3-5 years?

We are currently dealing with major volatility throughout our supply chains. We are seeing a strong demand for our at-risk construction services but the supply side is very dynamic. Hopefully this craziness will settle down into reasonable, sustainable inflation levels that our economy can digest.

What community organizations do you support as a volunteer and why?

I am proud to serve on the United Way of Greater Rochester, ROC2025, Associate General Contractors (AGC) of New York, Greater Rochester Enterprise (GRE), and the Builders Exchange of Rochester (ROBEX) boards. We also support and volunteer for numerous nonprofit organizations across the communities and industries we serve.

What are you most looking forward to doing as COVID restrictions ease?

For me personally it has been getting back out there to the projects, regional offices, various client functions, and industry events. Our project teams have been tirelessly working through the pandemic and I am so proud of them all. So far, the best part of the eased restrictions has been being able to make eye contact while saying thank you to our people.