Dunaway Announces Kelley Hendrickson Promoted to CAO

Dunaway is pleased to announce that Kelley Hendrickson, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, has been promoted to Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) and Principal at Dunaway. In her role as CAO, she will lead firmwide strategy and operational excellence, supporting Dunaway as it enters its next phase of growth. 

An accomplished human resources and operations executive, Hendrickson brings more than two decades of experience providing strategic and operational leadership in the AEC industry. In her previous role as HR Executive, she led Dunaway’s human resources programs while supporting broader business objectives to ensure the firm’s growth remained aligned with its core values and culture. Her expanded role as CAO reflects the natural progression of her career and her deep understanding of the firm’s people, operations, and long-term vision. 

The Chief Administrative Officer is a unique executive role within Dunaway’s C-suite, designed to integrate multiple administrative functions under a single strategic leader. The CAO is responsible for how core administrative functions work together – creating alignment, consistency, and efficiency across the organization. 

At the core of Dunaway’s success is its One Heart culture, which emphasizes collaboration, transparency, and shared purpose. As CAO, Hendrickson is responsible for ensuring that the firm’s people, workplace, compliance, and administrative functions operate as an integrated system – supporting consistency across the organization while empowering employees to grow, lead, and innovate. “Dunaway’s people and culture have always been at the heart of our success,” explains Hendrickson. “In this role, my focus is on building the structure and cohesion behind the scenes that allows us to support the business effectively, ensuring our people feel supported, connected, and empowered as the firm continues to grow.” 

Additionally, as CAO, Kelley serves as a strategic partner to Dunaway’s CEO and Principal, Chris Wilde, PE, translating business strategy into scalable people, workplace, and governance systems. Her responsibilities include organizational design, workforce planning, compliance, risk management, and operational consistency across Dunaway’s eight office locations throughout Texas. By centralizing this role across the firm, she can standardize processes, manage risk more holistically, and ensure a consistent employee experience regardless of location. 

As the firm celebrates its 70th year in business, Dunaway continues to prioritize flexible and hybrid work environments, leadership development, and long-term career pathways – an approach that has become a key differentiator, driving employee engagement, retention, and the high-quality service clients expect. 

“Kelley’s appointment to CAO comes at a very exciting time for Dunaway,” said Wilde. “I am excited about the leadership, perspective, and impact Kelley will bring to this role as we continue to grow and evolve.”