How Greg Donaldson Contracting Built a High-Performing Civil Construction Business
In 1997, Greg Donaldson founded the business with a single excavator. Nearly three decades later, GDC has grown into a thriving family-owned civil construction company with almost 50 employees and a modern fleet of more than 150 pieces of plant and equipment. From its Canterbury base, the company now delivers complex infrastructure projects across the region while continuing to invest in innovation, sustainability, and its people.
That growthdidn'thappen overnight. It came from consistently investing in the right areas, including people, technology, systems, and leadership, long before those investments became essential.
The Challenge
Growth in construction can be deceptive.
Winning larger projects is exciting, but without the right people, equipment, systems, and leadership, growth can quickly become a liability.
As GDC expanded, the company recognised that larger clients expected more than competitive pricing. They expected reliability, sophisticated project management, strong health and safety practices, environmental responsibility, and the confidence that projects would be delivered successfully.
Rather than stretching beyond its capability, GDC invested in becoming the kind of business clients could trust with increasingly complex infrastructure projects.
The Decisions Behind the Growth
Investing Before Growth Required It
GDC continually reinvested in specialist equipment, digital construction technologies, GPS machine control, and modern project management systems so it would be ready when larger opportunities emerged.
This meant that when growth opportunities came along, they were prepared for it.
Building Capability Across the Entire Business
For GDC, growth wasn't measured by the number of projects won.
Instead, GDC measured the capability to deliver them consistently.
The company invested across every area of the business, including:
developing skilled teams and future leaders
strengthening workplace wellbeing and safety
improving environmental performance
embracing technology and innovation
maintaining high operational standards
This balanced approach created a stronger, more resilient business capable of sustainable long-term growth.
Treating Innovation as a Commercial Advantage
Innovation at GDC isn't about adopting technology for its own sake. Each new technology adopted must first provide proof that it will improve how projects are delivered.
Modern surveying tools, GPS-enabled machinery, and digital workflows help increase accuracy, improve productivity, reduce rework, and create better outcomes for clients.
These investments don't simply improve efficiency; they strengthen the company's competitive position.
Creating a Business That Can Scale
Instead of chasing every opportunity, GDC focused on building repeatable systems, developing trusted client relationships, and creating an organisation capable of handling increasingly complex work.
The result is a business that has continued to grow while maintaining quality, safety, and operational discipline.
The Recognition
The company's long-term investment strategy received significant independent recognition at the 2026 ANZ Business of the Year Awards, where GDC achieved outstanding results:
The Supreme Award – Winner
Excellence in Technology & Innovation – Winner
Emerging Business Leader (Michael Donaldson) – Winner
Excellence in Primary Industries (Large Business) – Highly Commended
Excellence in Environmental Sustainability – Highly Commended
Excellence in Workplace Wellbeing – Finalist
GDC shows that sustainable growth often begins much earlier, with investing in the capability to deliver.
Their journey reinforces an important leadership principle:
Revenue follows capability.
Businesses that continually strengthen their people, systems, technology, and expertise place themselves in the strongest position to seize new opportunities when they arise.
Growth isn't simply about doing more work, but also about becoming the kind of organisation that can confidently deliver bigger, better, and more complex work.
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