Paul B. Olsen

Biography

Paul B. Olsen serves as the President and CEO of Honor Builders, LLC, a strategic engineering firm specializing in Sea Level Rise planning, critical infrastructure assessment, and complex project management. He also serves as the Director of Programs and Partnerships for the Old Dominion University’s Office of Research, where he enables research projects between the University and key federal agencies, including the Department of Defense and NASA. Olsen also leads regional organizations in the public and private sectors.

Olsen retired from the United States Army in 2015 as a Colonel after nearly 30 years with the Corps of Engineers, where he held leadership positions in Europe, the Middle East, and the United States, with decorated combat service in Somalia, Bosnia and Iraq. Additionally, he has held a number of strategic planning assignments with Headquarters, U.S. Army, and the Department of Defense. His culminating assignment was the command of the Norfolk District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, where he gained national recognition in Sea Level Rise Planning and Port Modernization.

Olsen was named the 2014 Champion of the Port for Hampton Roads, the 2015 Government Engineer of the Year by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and the winner of the Pentagon’s 2004 Pace Award for Innovation. Olsen also serves on the Norfolk Botanical Garden’s Board of Directors.

Education

Master of Arts, Strategic Studies, U.S. Army War College

Master of Science, Civil and Infrastructure Management, George Mason University

Master of Arts, Business Management, Webster University

Bachelor of Science, Geography, University of Wisconsin