Karen Colonias, CEO of Simpson Strong-Tie, announced plans to retire after 38 years with the company. As part of a planned succession, Colonias will continue her role as CEO with the Pleasanton, Calif.-based company through the end of the year, and will remain employed as an executive advisor to assist with the transition until her retirement becomes official on June 30, 2023.
Additionally, Colonias will remain on the board of directors at Simpson Strong-Tie until the company’s annual stockholders meeting.
During her career, Colonias filed 13 patents in the Simpson Strong-Tie engineering department. During her tenure as president and CEO, the company initiated a performance management program for all employees, as well as a culture and leadership assessment to inform and measure the company’s progress in strengthening its values-based culture, and has launched an initiative to review efforts in diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Colonias served as CEO for over 11 years, helping grow Simpson Manufacturing from $657 million in revenue in 2012 to over $1.573 billion in revenue in 2021.
“I am honored to have led Simpson Strong-Tie as its president and CEO over the past decade and am very grateful for the many opportunities and experiences I’ve had throughout my career here,” Colonias said in a news release announcing her retirement. “I am also extremely proud of our employees and their unwavering commitment to take care of our customers. Given the strength of our people, culture, and values, I believe the company is well-positioned to grow and thrive in the years ahead.”
Simpson Manufacturing’s board of directors unanimously elected current company president and chief operating officer Mike Olosky to succeed Colonias as CEO effective Jan. 1.
“During Karen’s tenure, Simpson has grown considerably and established itself as a global leader in the building products industry with a trusted brand reputation,’ James Andrasick, Simpson Manufacture chairman of the board, said. “Her engineering knowledge and focused leadership over the past decade as CEO have earned her the utmost respect from Simpson Strong-Tie employees, customers, and stockholders, as well as from key constituents throughout the building community.”
