Costain has appointed Matthew Higham as chief digital officer and a member of its executive board. He will start on 1 December 2021 and will work closely with the leadership team to further embed the use of digital technologies as part of meeting clients’ changing infrastructure needs.

Higham joins from Microsoft, where he was chief digital officer for the UK and led digital business transformation, advising Microsoft’s customers on adapting their business models to maximise the benefit of digital technology across multiple industries, including infrastructure.

His technology career started in engineering through to architecture and into disruption and innovation, working across numerous industries including critical national infrastructure, financial services, government, airspace and Formula 1. He is also passionate about inclusion and sustainability and was the sustainability lead for Microsoft UK.

Alex Vaughan, chief executive officer at Costain said: “I’m delighted to welcome Matthew to our team. He brings an impressive track record and his experience will enable us to accelerate the integration of digital technology in every solution we deliver to our clients, helping to maximise the productivity and efficiency of our nation’s infrastructure.”

Higham said: “Harnessing the power of technology to drive the shift needed in business operations for sustainable economic growth while empowering people to tackle some of the challenges ahead of us, is the key to future success. I’m looking forward to ensuring that digital is at the forefront of Costain’s service offering to our customers.”