Neil Nelson Named 2026 CEO of Influence

The Idaho Business Review honors ESI’s CEO and President for his leadership, community investment, and high-performing culture he has built at ESI.

We’re proud to share that the Idaho Business Review (IBR) has honored Neil Nelson, CEO and President of ESI Construction, as a CEO of Influence in 2026. Now in its 16th year, the program recognizes business and civic leaders across the Gem State who are driving meaningful growth, investing in their teams, and making an impact in their communities. Honorees are nominated by colleagues, peers, and community members and selected through a competitive review process.

Neil’s path to ESI leadership started long before he walked onto a job site. Growing up on his family’s ranch in Montana, he learned early on that results come from showing up and doing the work. This mindset and work ethic served him well when he joined ESI in the 1990s, a time when the company had only a handful of employees and a few commercial projects to its name. Over the next three decades, through steady growth and powering through a few hard economic cycles, ESI was forged into the strong organization it is today. ESI employs over 1,000 team members, with about a third working in the field. They are consistently delivering complex projects across the region and throughout the world, from retail and office buildings to water infrastructure and advanced technologies facilities.

That growth didn’t happen by accident. Neil has always believed that the strength of any organization is measured by its people, and he has built ESI around that conviction. Some of his proudest moments as a leader aren’t tied to any particular project; they’re the times when the people he hired started in the field and worked their way into senior roles, who are now leading their teams to write ESI’s next chapter.

ESI’s recent initiatives, such as establishing the ESI Academy and various professional development programs, forming the Corporate Responsibility Council, and furthering the ESI CARES foundation’s mission, also reflect a genuine investment in the team and the communities they serve. Neil consistently champions these efforts as they reaffirm ESI’s purpose: Everyone Succeeds Together.

This recognition belongs to Neil, but it means something a bit more. It’s a reflection of everyone at ESI who shows up every day and makes this organization worth recognizing. We’re proud to work alongside a leader who values hard work and leads by example, and we’re grateful that IBR is shining a light on ESI’s brand of leadership and what it can build in the community.

Please join us in congratulating Neil on this well-deserved honor.