Ralph Hawkins

Company: HKS, Inc.
Title: President and CEO
Stats: $220 million gross revenue and 110 major projects completed in 2005, 1,031 employees, founded in 1939
Why you need to know him:
As the leader of HKS, Inc., the largest architectural firm in Texas and one of the top five in the nation, he’s changing the face of Dallas. Long before the June opening of their glamorous W Dallas Victory Hotel and Residences, Hawkins’ team had already moved on to their next high-profile project: the new Cowboys’ stadium in Arlington. And that’s just locally. Hawkins, who started with HKS as an intern in 1973, has seen his staff more than double in size since he took over in 2002. In his first year as CEO, the company had less than a billion dollars under construction; as of July, they have $14.2 billion under way nationwide, making up around three percent of the national nonresidential construction market. Not surprising from a man who had found his calling by age 8 and seen his architectural designs constructed by age 17. But Hawkins, 54, hasn’t lost sight of what’s really important—he stresses the need for having fun (e.g. company-sponsored Beer Fridays) as well as values in the workplace (apparent in his endless charitable efforts). “I’m a really big supporter of servant leadership,” he says. “I serve the employees. If they have all the tools they need and all the support they need, then they can do their job. And they do a great job.” Maybe it was that humility that led PSMJ, the leading industry management consulting firm, to select Hawkins as the large firm CEO of the year for 2006. Either that or the free beer.