Richard Wankmuller,一位经验丰富的美国工程主管于6月29日担任澳大利亚Cardno Ltd.首席执行官的任期。这家总部位于布里斯班的专业服务公司应对利润下降，市场回荡和一家私人股权公司的可能收购。

Wankmuller是竞争对手澳大利亚公司GHD Group Pty Ltd.的前总裁北美业务，他在搜查后于5月下旬被Cardno董事会任命为首席执行官兼董事总经理，现在搬到了布里斯班，现在正在访问其亚太地区，即其亚太地区，即该公司说，欧洲和北美办事处。

Wankmuller取代了澳大利亚人Michael Renshaw,谁在一月份离开公司。伦肖（Renshaw）在指导其北美扩张之后，才成为自2014年初以来的首要角色。Wankmuller还是Global GHD的总监，并在其2014年收购环境服务和建筑公司Conestoga-Rover-Rover-Associates中发挥了关键作用。

Cardno ranks at No. 38 on ENR's latest list of the Top 150 Global Design Firms, with $1.19 billion reported in global design billings, mostly in transportation and environmental market sectors. It has about 8,000 employees.

但是，该公司在五月表示，预计将不得不在其美国和厄瓜多尔业务的价值上写下1.54亿美元，理由是油和天然气市场的变化，天气以及其eCuadorian基础设施子公司，对“可疑付款”的影响。Cardno Caminosca，与公共合同有关。

前代理首席执行官和现任首席财务官Graham Yerburyearlier this year had noted the firm's cooperation with authorities. He said the Ecuador firm made up only about 3% of Cardno revenue. The formal probe still is ongoing, says a Cardno spokeswoman.

Wankmuller's former employer GHD also had issues on the ethics front. The World Bank in 2013 debarred the Sydney-based firm and two Indonesia subsidiaries for one year from bank-financed projects after a review found the local units and a subconsultant had overbilled on a now-completed consulting contract for post-tsunami reconstruction.

Cardno, meanwhile, forecast that net profits for the year ending June 30 would be about $37 million to $39 million, compared to nearly $59 million for the previous year. Year-end results will be announced on Aug. 18.

该公司警告说，其美洲地区的表现不佳促使业务“重新评估”，并在澳大利亚商业媒体上猜测它可能会出售这些资产以挽救澳大利亚运营。

"Despite these near-term challenges, we continue to grow our backlog in the Americas and remain optimistic about the performance of the business in the coming year," said Yerbury.

Continuing sluggishness in Australian mining and infrastructure spending also has hurt, but the firm's outlook on its local business was "broadly positive," said Yerbury. "We are well positioned to take advantage of any improvement in the economy."

But the firm's share-price drop has led Australian media to speculate that the firm is the target of private equity acquisition interest. The Courier-Mail in late May said the rumored buyer, Crescent Capital, has bought up to a 19% stake.

Under Australian law, "buyers cannot exceed 20% in a single ‘swoop’ without instigating a takeover bid," said one online report. Press reports also indicate that Renshaw and another former Cardno CEO, Andrew Buckley, may be involved in the Crescent dealings.

Neither Renshaw nor Cardno would confirm the former CEOs' involvement with Crescent. A Cardno spokeswoman confirms Crescent now is a "significant" shareholder.

"I am confident of our ability to work our way through the current challenges and realise the potential of Cardno," says Wankmuller.