Shawmut Design and Construction, an employee stock ownership plan-owned national construction management firm, is accelerating its acquisition efforts to expand its national reach, said CEO Les Hiscoe.

Targets should have at least USD 100m in revenue, but Shawmut would make exceptions for unique firms below that size. On the upper end, it could look at companies with up to USD 1bn in revenue, “possibly larger if it was ESOP to ESOP,” he said.

Boston-based Shawmut has a national map of each region and sectors within each region to determine M&A priorities, the CEO said. “Acquisition is the most expensive way to grow into a market. Organic is the least costly,” he said. But M&A affords the company a faster way to attract talent, active projects and client relationships, he said.

Going forward, it wants to get larger in South Florida in certain sectors and nationally in the data center space. “It’s an unbelievably busy time with AI and demand,” he said. Geographically, it is also looking at California.

In South Florida, Shawmut could look to enter new segments or add to its capabilities in aviation, education and ports, he said. It acquired a national hospitality company, First Finish, in late 2024.

Targets must represent a good cultural fit, Hiscoe stressed, noting that the company would prefer ESOP to ESOP transactions. Firms must have good talent and reputations and be profitable, he said.

The company, which has no debt and is very profitable, plans to finance acquisitions with its own cash flow, he added. Shawmut, established about 43 years ago, only began making acquisitions in a significant way in the last two years, he noted. Chartwell is the company’s buyside advisor.

Shawmut had USD 2bn in revenue in 2024 and projects to finish 2025 with USD 2.3bn to USD 2.4bn, Hiscoe said.

“We grew organically across the country from New England, south and west,” he said. In the last three years, revenue has doubled, he said, as Shawmut focused on larger projects, some of which are now in the USD 600m to USD 700m range.

Shawmut has 15 offices, including ones in Miami, New York and Los Angeles. In addition to expanding its geography, it expanded its project size and industry focus, adding more hospitality and retail projects, he said.

It competes with the top 10 firms in the country as well as many competitors regionally, he said, saying there are too many to name.

The space has seen some large rollups, including Skanska and STO Building Group, according to the Mergermarket database.

Hiscoe, a 28-year veteran of the company, became CEO in July 2015. The business was acquired by its employees about 20 years ago, he said.

Blank Rome is the company’s law firm. Citizens is its commercial bank. Crowe provides accounting services.