Brad Jacobs

Brad Jacobs has built a reputation as a prolific industrial dealmaker, transforming fragmented, labor-intensive sectors into higher-margin, tech-driven enterprises. 

Over five decades, he’s founded or led four “multibagger” public companies: United Waste Systems (1989); United Rentals (2001), now the world’s largest equipment‑rental firm; XPO Logistics (2011), a global freight powerhouse; and QXO (2024), his $800 -billion opportunity platform in building‑products distribution.

Jacobs’ M&A playbook has powered more than 500 acquisitions and routinely doubled profits within five years. 

By pursuing multiple targets simultaneously, negotiating several earnings multiples below his expected valuation after investment—and reinvesting that free cash flow into technology upgrades—Jacobs has routinely doubled profits within five years of closing.

At QXO, Jacobs aims to double Beacon’s profits within five years and build toward $50 billion in annual revenue. This interview has been edited for clarity and length. 

ENR: From waste to rentals to logistics to building products, what core principles of consolidation and integration have you carried through with QXO’s strategy?

Jacobs: Well, technology has made it much easier to research companies and communicate more quickly, but the core principles haven’t changed. M&A involves a lot of little things, but ultimately, success comes down to a few big things: You have to pay a fair price; you have to improve the margins through operational excellence. You must grow the top line organically, above the market rate. And if you do those things, you’ll create shareholder value. We look at each potential acquisition through the lens of: “Can we significantly increase the organic revenue growth rate? Can we significantly boost profit using our playbook? And can we buy it at a nice discount to where we trade? “One of our principles is that we always talk to many targets at once … so we don’t fall in love and overpay.

Given your 500‑plus acquisitions, how have your approaches to due diligence, risk assessment, and post‑merger integration evolved from United Waste through XPO and now QXO?

We have always looked for large, fragmented sectors with secular growth, ample efficiency gains, and where scale plus tech confers real advantage. Building‑products distribution checks every box—$800 billion in global sales, family‑owned operators, low tech penetration, strong free‑cash‑flow tailwinds from housing and infrastructure. Integration remains about speed: immediate rebranding across signage and swag, rapid systems consolidation, and creating one unified culture via our internal social platform so that every branch, every employee, and every customer sees “one QXO” from day one.

Was there any hesitation about replacing a nearly century-old brand with a single global identity?

Sellers often plead, ‘Don’t change our name,’ because of deep customer loyalty. But we’ve learned that one global brand delivers consistent service standards, boosts employee morale, and aligns everyone behind the same north star. A single name accelerates our cultural integration … and signals to customers and suppliers that they’ll get the same high quality everywhere.

After acquiring Beacon, what best practices can other CEOs borrow for smoothing post‑acquisition transitions?

First, treat the deal as shareholder‑friendly, not hostile—our proposal added clear value, so shareholders welcomed us. Then move fast: within nine weeks, we’d slashed layers of management, redirected capital to frontline roles, and begun sunsetting Beacon’s legacy ERP. Crucially, communicate crystal‑clearly and involve every employee from day one—ask what to keep, what to improve, and solicit satisfaction ratings on a 1-10 scale. That two‑way dialogue surfaces great ideas, demonstrates respect, and ignites a wave of positivity.

What digital or automation innovations from your “tech‑forward” playbook are you deploying at QXO?

We’re embedding sophisticated tools everywhere. Dynamic pricing engines adjust in real-time based on elasticity curves and customer-level profitability. Agentic AI helps our sales force prioritize leads and optimize margins. A next‑gen data lake and ERP layer drive live P&L dashboards. Machine‑learning forecasts boost item availability. Barcode-driven WMS [warehouse management system] and AI-powered TMS [transportation management systems] standardize warehouse workflows and delivery routes. Even our new POS [point-of-sale] system offers voice‑to‑text entry, real‑time margin visibility, and full CRM integration.

Is there any risk of losing talent by leaning heavily on technology?

Quite the opposite. Technology has underpinned every one of my businesses for decades, but people always come first. Our teams embrace new tools because they remove manual busy work, freeing branch staff to delight customers and salespeople to sell more. Contractors want to partner with a tech‑savvy distributor, and our employees see AI and automation as allies, not replacements. 

ENR: How have evolving regulatory and ESG expectations shaped your investments in emissions reduction, waste diversion, and worker safety?

Requirements change over time, and we’ve always met or exceeded them. Safety sits at the top of our core values: every branch holds an annual “safety stand‑down” plus weekly huddles. We invest in injury-free workplaces, discrimination-free cultures, and employee well-being, both emotional and physical. Our goal is zero accidents, and we back it with capital, technology, and training to ensure every facility outperforms industry and regulatory standards. 

What advice would you give contractors, owners and equipment manufacturers seeking to innovate in heavy construction?

Identify the levers unique to your business—pricing, procurement, SKU rationalization, logistics, digital sales enablement—and then think big, think clear, and move fast. On day one after buying Beacon, we rebranded, flattened layers to boost accountability, hired across branches to fuel growth, and launched a transformation roadmap covering pricing, procurement, inventory assortment, logistics network design, and sales compensation. Responsible speed in execution unlocks value for customers, suppliers, and shareholders alike.

You’ve said you have “the smartest of smart money” behind QXO. Who are some of your backers and what roles have they played? 

I’ve really been fortunate to have investors … that are the smartest of smart money. Sequoia Heritage has been an investor of mine in all my companies at the ground floor; Orbis … was one of our largest investor at XPO and is my largest investor after me in QXO. This is a kitchen cabinet, so to speak, that I can pick up the phone and get opinions—input and advice—that’s extremely valuable. [Other investors include Jorge Paolo Lemann, Madrone Capital (which manages the Walton family’s money) and Cercano Management (which manages Paul Allen’s estate among other ultra-high net worth families). Management, too, has serious skin in the game: collectively, the board and the executive team, including me, own about 36% of [QXO’s] equity, and that level of shareholder alignment is rare and powerful. 

Do you ever take a day off? What does that look like?

I don’t view work as work—it’s fun. I love the people, the challenges, and the thrill of building a winning team. Every day feels like a day off because I’m doing what I enjoy alongside colleagues I trust and respect. 

When you look back on your career, what legacy do you hope to leave as a business leader and a person?

On the business side, I hope to be remembered for a repeatable playbook that picks fragmented, growing industries, executes disciplined M&A to double profit within five years, and generates outsized shareholder returns—200‑bagger United Rentals, 50‑bagger XPO, 300× across all my public companies. Personally, I want to be known for unwavering integrity: treating people with dignity, empowering talent, doing the right thing, and building cultures where everyone can excel—where I’ve spotted and nurtured potential others didn’t even see in themselves.