Andy Saul replaces Paul Whitmore, who left at the end of 2013 after working for Morgan Sindall for more than 14 years.
Saul, 50, will report directly to John Morgan chief executive.
He worked for Bullock Construction for just over three years, but was lured by a place on the main board of one of Britain’s top five contractors.
Like Morgan Sindall group managing director Graham Sheenan, Saul previously worked at Kier where he had had several roles, the last of which was as commercial director of the construction division.
He brings extensive knowledge of both UK and overseas construction markets, including housing, energy efficiency, building, energy, waste and infrastructure.