Patricia Allen, the founder of Business Diversity Works, LLC, is a rarity. She is a Black woman with over 40 years of experience in male-dominated manufacturing and construction industries.
Patricia Allen is a product of the Midwest’s 20th Century Great Industrial Era. Over the last 50 years, many of the factories that made this region one of the strongest economies in the US have either shut down or moved overseas, leaving many once-thriving communities full of shuttered buildings and high unemployment rates. Indiana-born Allen has a vision of being instrumental in reinvigorating the economy in her community. That’s why the mission of Business Diversity Works, LLC is “to encourage, educate, assist and guide Black Owned Businesses in building generational wealth through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.”
Of all her SLAPstats, Patricia is most proud of being a business owner for over fifteen years. In 2009, she took her years of industry experience, including working as a project manager for GE’s historic Six Sigma Training Program, and became an independent business consultant. Her work focused on providing project management and administration for construction companies, and she has been incredibly successful. Ten years after she developed a successful consulting business, Allen started Business Diversity Works, which focuses on training business owners to manage construction and infrastructure projects. The construction industry is exploding because of federal government investment from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and demand for individuals with Allen’s expertise in contract compliance and contract administration is high. She hopes to become a part of preparing her community’s workforce to ride the wave.
Actions = Results
Because Patricia is such a high performer, let’s explore how she accomplished her results.
SLAP is all about helping small business owners create more time and money so they can build a sustainable business and reach their goals. What have you learned about the Cashflow Capacity Catch 22 and what helps you manage it now?
Patricia Allen: I have built a very successful consulting and administrative support business, but it is very time consuming. In search for help, I found there are few people from the Black community with the unique combinations of skills I have — deep knowledge of the government contract and compliance arena, yet the communication skills to make it easily understandable for those who only have a journeyman’s skill level. This has placed me in a situation where I have more work than I can keep up with!
As an experienced business owner who wants more time to enjoy what I’ve accomplished, I feel it’s my time to pass my wisdom along to the next generation. SLAP™ is helping me accomplish my goal of transitioning my work from providing administrative support for construction companies, to training aspiring entrepreneurs in the construction industry who want to do what I do. They are perfectly positioned for success in an industry that is getting millions in investment from the federal government because they are the folks construction companies love to work with!
SLAPcommunity Call Out
No one succeeds alone, and SLAP supplies all of our small business owners with an incredible system of support. Here, Patricia brags on the folks who helped her become a SLAPstar!
PA: I came across the Small Business Resource Navigator in an email from a local business assistance organization. That’s where I learned about Wells Fargo’s American Small Business Growth Program and SLAP™. I was interested from the very start! I have been in a lot of other marketing programs — and I’ve learned a lot of knowledge — but the application support was always somehow missing. So SLAP™ offered the application support, accountability, and behavior change strategies. I did the research and I just really saw how SLAP™ made sense!
Support This Small Business Owner!
Alright, SLAPcommunity! Now it’s your turn to show our SLAPstar some love! Check out the Call to Action below and help Patricia hit her business goals!
Patricia is ready to pass her skills to other business owners — especially other minority entrepreneurs like herself — and create more wealth in her community. Patricia has instructional packages available to help construction subcontractors learn the world of government contracts and compliance rules. Sign up to learn and become profitable in one of the United State’s most lucrative industries!
