Roger Nickells was chief executive for seven years until 2021
Former Buro Happold chief executive Roger Nickells has died. He was 58.
He joined the firm from Atkins in 2010 as managing director of its Middle East region before becoming chief executive of the group four years later.
He left Buro Happold in 2021 to join the Neom project in Saudi Arabia as head of design and construction before returning to Atkins as an advisor.
Schemes Nickells worked on included the Burj Al Arab in Dubai, the London 2012 Olympic Park, Battersea Power Station, Dubai Metro, the High Line in New York and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Paying tribute, Buro Happlod’s chief executive Oliver Plunkett, who replaced him as managing director for the Middle East in 2014, said: “Roger set direction and then kept out of the way, allowing me and other partners ‘the space to dance’ as he put it. We knew we could call on him and would get good, grounded advice but it was not imposed.”
He added that after he left the business in 2021 ”Roger remained a supporter and friend to the practice to the end and an ongoing mentor and sounding board to me.
“We are better for his leadership and grateful for the challenge and support he brought. Roger’s passing at such a young age is a shock to us all. Rest in peace Big Rog.”
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