Pierre Anjolras
"We have never needed to build as much as we do today."
— Pierre Anjolras[1]
Overview
Pierre Anjolras | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 4 February 1966 Thonon-les-Bains, Haute-Savoie, France |
| Citizenship | French |
| Education | École Polytechnique; École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées |
| Alma mater | École Polytechnique; École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées |
| Occupation(s) | Civil engineer; business executive |
| Employer | Vinci |
| Known for | Leadership of Vinci's construction and concessions businesses |
| Title | Chief Executive Officer of Vinci |
| Term | 1 May 2025 – present |
| Predecessor | Xavier Huillard |
| Board member of | Vinci; Fédération Nationale des Travaux Publics; Syndicat des Entrepreneurs Français Internationaux; La Fabrique de la Cité |
| Spouse | Christine Anjolras |
| Children | Three sons |
| Awards | Knight of the Légion d'honneur |
🏗️ Pierre Anjolras (born 4 February 1966) is a French civil engineer and business executive who has served as chief executive officer (CEO) of Vinci, one of France's largest construction and concessions groups, since 1 May 2025, after being appointed chief operating officer of the group in 2024.[3][4][5] A long-serving figure within Vinci, he previously headed motorway concessions businesses including Cofiroute and Autoroutes du Sud de la France (ASF), served as chairman and chief executive officer of the roadworks subsidiary Eurovia, and later became president of Vinci Construction, giving him responsibility across the group's main construction and concessions activities.[6][7][8]
🧭 Career overview. Rising from a small town on the shores of Lake Geneva to the helm of a CAC 40 group, Anjolras has followed a classically French technocratic path that blends elite engineering education, early public service and a long career in a single industrial champion.[3] After starting in the French civil service and at the European Commission, he joined Vinci in 1999 and progressively climbed through operational roles in regional construction, motorway concessions, international roadworks and large-scale building projects before being identified as one of the company's key internal successors to longtime chairman and CEO Xavier Huillard.[9][10][11]
Early life and education
🌄 Family background. Anjolras was born on 4 February 1966 in Thonon-les-Bains, a lakeside town in the French Alps, far from the traditional political and business centres of Paris and its grandes écoles ecosystem.[3] Growing up in this provincial setting, he later recalled remaining attached to the “terrain” and to the practical realities of infrastructure and local communities, themes that would recur throughout his management style at Vinci.[8]
🎓 Elite engineering education. After excelling academically, he was admitted to the École Polytechnique, one of France's most selective engineering schools, before continuing his studies at the École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées (today part of ParisTech), where he trained as a civil engineer.[3][9] Holding both diplomas places him among the so-called X-Ponts, a corps of engineers traditionally associated with public service, major infrastructure projects and senior positions in state administration and industry; commentators note that this dual culture of technical expertise and public interest has shaped his later decisions as a corporate leader.[11][10]
Public-sector career
🏛️ Public-sector beginnings. In the early 1990s, Anjolras began his career in the French civil service at the infrastructure directorate (Direction départementale de l'équipement) of the Loire-Atlantique department, where he worked from 1991 to 1996 on roads and transport projects for local authorities.[3] He then moved to Brussels to join the European Commission's Directorate-General for External Relations between 1996 and 1999, gaining experience in international policy and broadening his understanding of cross-border infrastructure and development issues before deciding to leave public service for the private sector.[6] Colleagues later suggested that this period consolidated his interest in infrastructure as a lever for economic development while reinforcing his desire to work closer to the operational realities of construction sites.[10]
Career at Vinci
Entry into Vinci and motorway concessions
🚧 Arrival at Vinci. In 1999, Anjolras joined Vinci, then expanding rapidly as a global construction and concessions group, marking a decisive shift from civil servant to corporate manager.[3][7] His first post was as regional director of Sogea Sud-Ouest, a Vinci construction subsidiary, where he oversaw local building and civil-engineering projects and became known internally for his field presence and ability to translate strategy into day-to-day operational improvements.[9][8]
🛣️ Motorway concessions leadership. In 2004 he moved into Vinci's motorway business as chief operating officer of Cofiroute, gaining hands-on responsibility for toll roads and complex concession contracts.[3] Three years later, in 2007, he was appointed chief executive officer of Autoroutes du Sud de la France (ASF), a major motorway network in southern France acquired by Vinci the previous year, thereby taking charge of a key profit centre in the group.[9][6] Under his leadership, Vinci's two motorway networks ASF and Cofiroute were steered in a coordinated way, and business press later highlighted his “solid experience in motorway concessions” and his capacity to integrate operational teams after acquisitions.[8][12]
Eurovia
🧱 Eurovia expansion. In May 2010, Anjolras joined Eurovia, Vinci's global roadworks and urban infrastructure subsidiary, as deputy managing director responsible for international markets and public-private partnerships.[9] In this role he contributed to the development of Eurovia's activities outside France and to the structuring of large PPP contracts, extending the group's footprint across multiple countries and deepening his expertise in complex project finance.[6]
🌐 Eurovia chief executive. On 1 March 2014 he became chairman and chief executive officer of Eurovia and at the same time joined Vinci's executive committee, taking charge of a business employing more than 40,000 people in around 16 countries with annual revenue of several billion euros.[6][7] His tenure at Eurovia was marked by steady international growth and by an emphasis on innovation in materials, recycling and low-carbon road construction, in line with Vinci's broader focus on environmental responsibility; in 2016 he moved to a non-executive role as president of Eurovia while retaining strategic oversight of the subsidiary.[7][10][7]
Vinci Construction and group leadership
🧑💼 Vinci Construction presidency. In January 2021, as part of a wider reorganisation of the group, Xavier Huillard asked Anjolras to take over the presidency of Vinci Construction, the historic core of the company that brings together building, civil-engineering and specialised infrastructure subsidiaries employing more than 100,000 people worldwide.[3][10] Observers saw this appointment as a key step in the internal succession process, giving him responsibility for Vinci's most complex and operationally demanding division.[8][11]
🧩 Reorganisation of construction arm. Huillard tasked Anjolras with unifying Eurovia and Vinci Construction into a single construction division in order to simplify the group's organisation and generate efficiencies.[12] He led the merger of overlapping structures, promoted a "one team" culture between general building and roadworks businesses and emphasised common tools and management practices; the company later pointed to a continuous improvement in performance and margins within the integrated Vinci Construction division, which generated roughly €30 billion in annual revenue and accounted for almost half of Vinci's total sales even as the French construction market was experiencing a downturn in new projects.[12][10][8] Commentators highlighted his ability, as an experienced X-Ponts engineer, to manage a traditionally low-margin business where construction projects often deliver operating margins of only 3–4 per cent.[11]
📊 Elevation to group leadership. Building on this track record, in May 2024 Vinci's board appointed Anjolras as chief operating officer (directeur général opérationnel) of the group, giving him oversight of the main business lines, including construction, concessions and energy, under the authority of chairman and CEO Huillard.[4] The move was widely interpreted as the first step in a carefully prepared succession plan, with analysts describing him as a natural “dauphin” thanks to his experience in both motorways and construction, the two pillars of Vinci's model.[4][8][11] Following shareholder approval to split the functions of chairman and CEO, he formally became chief executive officer of Vinci on 1 May 2025, while Huillard remained non-executive chairman; the company announced his appointment publicly, and he chaired his first executive committee meeting as CEO shortly thereafter.[3][4][5]
Leadership style and strategic priorities
🤝 Leadership style. Journalistic profiles describe Anjolras as a warm, attentive and consensus-oriented manager who nonetheless retains the habits of a field engineer, regularly visiting construction sites, talking with foremen and workers and maintaining direct contact with operational teams.[10][8] Within Vinci he is sometimes nicknamed “Monsieur Construction”, a reference both to his civil-engineering background and to his long experience running the group's construction projects.[8] Colleagues have stressed his bon sens (good common sense) and simplicity in decision-making, qualities often contrasted with more distant corporate styles and attributed to his early years working alongside experienced site supervisors and skilled tradespeople.[10][8]
🌱 Strategy and sustainability. Strategically, Anjolras has emphasised simplification of the group's structures, operational efficiency and a degree of decentralisation that leaves significant autonomy to local entities while maintaining financial discipline at the centre.[10][4] He has argued that society has “never had so much need to build”, expressing the view that infrastructure and construction can be part of the response to social and environmental challenges provided they are carried out with lower-carbon materials, more efficient processes and a long-term perspective.[10] In 2024, the year preceding his accession to the chief executive role, Vinci reported around €71.6 billion in revenue and a workforce of some 280,000 employees in more than 120 countries, together with record free cash flow of about €6.8 billion, and early communications under his leadership have maintained these performance ambitions while highlighting growth in energy services and airport operations and continued investment in sustainable mobility and green construction technologies, signalling continuity with the strategy pursued under Huillard alongside renewed emphasis on environmental transition and digital innovation.[8][11][10]
Compensation, wealth and other roles
💶 Compensation and wealth. As chief executive of a major CAC 40 company, Anjolras is expected to receive remuneration broadly in line with the upper band of French blue-chip CEOs, although the details of his 2025 pay package had not yet been disclosed when he took office.[4] A study by governance advisory firm Proxinvest reported that the median total compensation for CAC 40 chief executives in 2024 was around €6.5 million, with several surpassing €10 million, providing an indication of the potential scale of his future pay.[4] Vinci's governance documents state that he is a Knight of the Légion d'honneur and show that he holds only a modest personal stake in the company's share capital, consistent with Vinci's diversified ownership structure rather than a founder-led model.[7] The group's share register is fragmented, with employees collectively owning about 10% of the capital and the largest single investor, Qatar Holding, holding a minority stake of a few percentage points in a company whose market capitalisation exceeds €70 billion.[13]
🏙️ External mandates. Beyond his executive responsibilities, Anjolras sits on several industry bodies linked to public works and international construction, including the Fédération Nationale des Travaux Publics and the Syndicat des Entrepreneurs Français Internationaux, reflecting his standing within the sector.[14] He has also held roles within Vinci-related entities such as Eurovia Stone, Eurovia Innovation Venture and the supervisory board of Eurovia's German subsidiary, positions that underscore his long association with the group's roadworks activities.[14] Since late 2024 he has served as president of La Fabrique de la Cité, an urban innovation think tank supported by Vinci, where he contributes to debates on the future of cities, mobility and sustainable urban development in line with the group's strategic focus on environmental transition.[9][8]
Personal life
👨👩👦 Family life. Anjolras is married to Christine Anjolras, and the couple have three sons.[15] A 2019 family announcement published in the French press portrayed him in a private capacity as a devoted son, husband and father, offering one of the rare glimpses of his personal life in a media landscape otherwise focused on his corporate responsibilities.[15] Originating from Thonon-les-Bains, he has remained attached to the outdoors and to regional France despite a career largely based in the Paris area and on international projects.[3][8]
🙂 Personality and image. Journalists and colleagues frequently describe Anjolras as discreet and unassuming in public, in contrast to the visibility associated with leading a large listed company, yet also as approachable and charismatic in person.[8][11] Profiles have noted his tall frame and salt-and-pepper hair, with one French commentator likening his appearance to that of an American actor, while emphasising that he prefers worksite visits and technical discussions to media spotlights.[8] His management style, which stresses simplicity, listening and common sense, is often attributed to his formative years learning from experienced site supervisors, and he has been cited as a role model for younger engineering graduates seeking to combine public-interest concerns with careers in the private sector.[10][9]
Controversies and challenges
⚖️ Motorway concessions debates. As chief executive, Anjolras faces significant political and regulatory scrutiny around Vinci's French motorway concessions, many of which are due to expire in the 2030s.[8][11] In 2023 the French government proposed a special surtax on motorway concession companies, arguing that they had earned excess profits, while Vinci Autoroutes warned that such measures could ultimately lead to higher tolls for motorists, fuelling a public and political debate over the balance between state revenues and private returns.[16] A French Senate report also criticised the opacity surrounding the original concession contracts, highlighting the risk that the end of these long-term agreements could unsettle a business that has long been one of Vinci's major profit generators.[11]
🚨 Labour and human-rights issues. Vinci's strong financial performance under Huillard, and the continuation of ambitious profitability targets, has been accompanied by criticism from some trade unions that the benefits of growth have not been sufficiently shared with employees; union representatives have pointed to increased workloads, rising sick leave and difficult working conditions in certain activities, such as airport ground services.[11] The group has also faced legal challenges over working conditions on international projects: in November 2022 Vinci Construction Grands Projets was indicted in France over allegations of abusive labour practices on construction sites in Qatar, including works linked to the 2022 FIFA World Cup, accusations that the company has firmly denied while pledging to uphold international human-rights standards.[11][10] Although the legal proceedings pre-dated his appointment as CEO, they fell within the period when Anjolras was president of Vinci Construction, making the reinforcement of labour-rights policies and monitoring a central part of his wider environmental, social and governance (ESG) agenda.[7][10]
🚀 Future challenges. Commentators note that Anjolras inherits from Huillard a financially robust group that has delivered strong shareholder returns over two decades, with Vinci's total shareholder return having significantly outperformed the CAC 40 index, but that he must now maintain this trajectory in a context of decarbonisation, regulatory pressure and changing mobility patterns.[11][4] Investors generally view him as a figure of continuity who “knows the group perfectly” through his experience in both concessions and construction, while non-governmental organisations and unions are likely to assess his tenure by the extent to which he adjusts Vinci's practices on issues such as profit-sharing and human rights.[4][8] His ability to balance financial performance, industrial strategy and broader societal expectations is seen as a key test of this new phase in Vinci's corporate history.[11]
References
- ↑ "À nos lecteurs : découvrez le Magazine de Batiactu". Batiactu.
- ↑ "VINCI Construction – Essentiel 2022" (PDF). VINCI.
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 "Pierre Anjolras — Wikipédia". Wikipedia (in French). Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 "Vinci balise le plan de succession de Xavier Huillard". L'Agefi. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Pierre Anjolras became Chief Executive Officer of VINCI on 1 May ..." X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 "Pierre Anjolras becomes Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Eurovia". Vinci. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 "Pierre Anjolras". Vinci. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 8.00 8.01 8.02 8.03 8.04 8.05 8.06 8.07 8.08 8.09 8.10 8.11 8.12 8.13 8.14 8.15 8.16 "Pierre Anjolras, futur visage du CAC 40". Carole Bellemare. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 9.6 "Intervenants : Pierre Anjolras". La Fabrique de la Cité. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 10.00 10.01 10.02 10.03 10.04 10.05 10.06 10.07 10.08 10.09 10.10 10.11 10.12 10.13 "Grand témoin : « Nous n'avons jamais eu autant besoin de construire », Pierre Anjolras, Vinci". Batiactu. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 11.00 11.01 11.02 11.03 11.04 11.05 11.06 11.07 11.08 11.09 11.10 11.11 11.12 "A Vinci, la vraie-fausse sortie de Xavier Huillard, l'homme qui a métamorphosé le groupe de BTP". Le Monde. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 "Vinci : Pierre Anjolras nommé directeur général opérationnel". Décideurs Magazine. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ "Vinci (entreprise) — Wikipédia". Wikipedia (in French). Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 "Pierre Anjolras: Positions, Relations and Network". MarketScreener. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 "René Anjolras". Le Figaro. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ "Taxe sur les sociétés d'autoroutes : comprendre le bras de fer avec le gouvernement". Le Point. Retrieved 2025-11-20.