John Rakolta
John Rakolta Jr (; born June 15, 1947, in Oakland County, Michigan) is an American businessman and a former diplomat who served as the United States Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates from 2019 to 2021. He is the former CEO of Walbridge (formerly known as Walbridge Aldinger), a full-service construction company headquartered in Detroit. He was also one of the National Finance Chairs for Mitt Romney's 2008 and 2012 presidential campaigns. Education and early life Rakolta received his bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Marquette University in 1970 and then studied smaller company management at the Harvard Business School. All four of Rakolta's grandparents were immigrants from Romania. He was - until he assumed office of US Ambassador to the UAE - the Honorary-Consul General for Romania in Detroit. Business career Rakolta's father, John Rakolta Sr. (1923–2003), was the head of Walbridge Aldinger before Rakolta. Rakolta Jr. began his career at Walbridge in 1970, and became president in 1979 and CEO and chairman in 1993. Rakolta is also on the board of the Munder Funds since 1993. In 2015, Walbridge and partnered with Brazilian company Construcap in the construction of a new 6-million-square-foot Jeep assembly complex and supplier park