Bio

Mark A. Casso
President
The Construction Industry Round Table

Mr. Casso was named President of the Construction Industry Round Table (CIRT) in the fall of 1998. As President, he is responsible for both leadership and management aspects of the business trade association composed of the CEO’s from leading architectural, engineering, and construction firms in the United States, as well as some from aboard.

The Round Table was first organized in 1987 as the Construction Industry President’s Forum, before being incorporated as not-for-profit association in 1998 “to be a force for positive change in the construction industry while helping members – CEO’s of the leading design and construction firms – to improve the management performance of their individual companies.”

To that end, Mr. Casso directs the resources and programs of the Round Table to achieve its goals to: influence public policy to free the creativity and capabilities of the construction industry to competitively provide efficient and valuable services; improve the industry’s image, and to provide a forum for networking and education of members.

Before joining the Construction Industry Round Table, Mr. Casso served as the Deputy Executive Vice President and General Counsel for the American Consulting Engineers Council (ACEC), a national business trade association made-up of some 5,000 consulting engineering firms, and as Director of Government Affairs with the American Institute of Architect’s national headquarters. Prior to pursuing his career with the design/construction community, Mr. Casso was an associate with a Washington, DC, law firm specializing in international trade and custom law.

Throughout his career, Mr. Casso has been responsible to or participated on various boards, including: (1) Serving as president and corporate secretary as well as legal counsel to the 15 member CIRT Board of Directors, (2) ten years as the general counsel to the 52 member ACEC Board, (3) Member for eight years on the American Tort Reform Association Board, (4) Member and officer of a living history society board, (5) Member and president of a local public access cable TV board, and (6) Advisory Board member of an IT company.

Mr. Casso’s educational training includes: The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania (1992) Executive Management Training: Managing People, Effectiveness Through Individual and Group Dynamics; The George Washington University (1985) continuing education program PAC’s and Campaign Financing; a Juris Doctorate degree from Brooklyn Law School (1978-81), and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Management from The University of Maryland (1973-1977).

Mr. Casso is married to Julie Noufer Casso, and has two children, Nicholas and Nia.