Banking on KC – Fahteema Parrish of Parrish & Sons Construction
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Kelly Scanlon:
Welcome to Banking on KC. I'm your host, Kelly Scanlon. Thank you for joining us. With us on this episode is Fahteema Parrish, the owner of Parrish & Sons Construction Company, and the 2023 winner of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce's Mr. K Award named after, of course, the legendary Ewing Kauffman. Welcome Fahteema.
Fahteema Parrish:
Thank you for having me.
Kelly Scanlon:
Congratulations. That's so amazing. I think you're the first minority female to win the award in its history too.
Fahteema Parrish:
Absolutely. Just really, really exciting to stand on the shoulders of so many before me who have received and earned the Mr. K Award. And so honestly, when you think about the big shoes that you're filling and carrying on the legacy of Mr. K back in 1968 when he purchased the Royals and helping further develop our economy, greater Kansas City, and it's just merely just a token of appreciation and a badge of honor as we continue to carry this torch forward to continue to focus on those principles.
Kelly Scanlon:
Is there a specialty area of construction that you focus on?
Fahteema Parrish:
Yes. Parrish & Sons Construction is a general contractor. Of course, we specialize in earthwork. And so earthwork means the excavation of land, the clearing of land, the demolishing of concrete, asphalt pavement types, the preparation of the sub base before you actually put a slab for a building because that slab has to go on a level grade approved by the architects and engineers. And then when you think about recycling, first from the sustainability perspective, we are taking the demolished concrete and asphalt chunks and we're recycling that using a huge crusher. So in addition to aggregate recycling, we also do hauling, but we've been doing this for eight years again.
Kelly Scanlon:
So preparing all of these sites. It is a very niche area that you're focused on there. Your parents were entrepreneurs, so you had a strong entrepreneurial influence. And what did they do? They had an HVAC company, I believe.
Fahteema Parrish:
Yes. My dad owns and operates his own HVAC company, and he does structural electrical and mechanical property inspections. And so of course my mom, she's the numbers gal, and what she does is all the accounting. And so when you think about her installing in me, the principle of you never do math with a pen. And so I'm sitting here doing long division and calculating equations with a pencil so that I can go back and making revisions as needed. So I saw this as a young girl going with my dad, serving the community, starting with our neighbors, our church members, and even providing honest living for people in front of the basic Home Depot saying, "Hey, if you want to learn how to make an honest living, here is a skill that you can take with you," so you're teaching people how to fish. Instead of just providing that handout, I'm going to give you something that'll help you keep going even after that $10 or $5 is spent.
Kelly Scanlon:
So you had this entrepreneurial influence and then you're a software engineer for 20 years working with people from all over the world. It sounds like you had quite a bit of autonomy in that role.
Fahteema Parrish:
Yes, it definitely was because it taught me the management of people, meeting folks where they are so that you can then set our level set on the expectations, and being able to mentor them and help them develop professionally was something that I took great pride in because me having several mentors throughout the year, starting with my parents and seeing them and then our church members and then the members of the neighborhood, because it takes a village to raise a child. And so when you are a part of this village that continues to serve and then pay it forward where we all care about each other, it helped me hone in on this gift that exists naturally within me, and that's to continue to serve on another level. And so as I continued on this entrepreneurial journey, having several businesses, cleaning companies, Barbara and Beauty, lawn services, and all these things that I had learned and tried and felt forward from property management, I still do that to this day, but providing another opportunity for one to provide a living for their family.
And so that's greater employment opportunities. And so thinking about how me and my husband reconnected since we were friends from middle school, and he had always come by and helped me do different things over the years, we ended up reconnecting. And when we were dating and ended up getting married, I would hear him managing and doing different things on these job sites because he was a heavy equipment operator, and so he grew up in a heavy equipment operating home, so operating engineers. And so I hear him basically managing these job sites, but not even being paid at the foreman or not even being paid as a superintendent.
And so they'll come up to him saying, "Hey, Clark, what are we doing today," and then after that, "What's next?" And so he's checking grade with the eye level, putting something on grade with a ruler, and just reading the set of blueprints and plans and just hearing this over the years as we are married, I'm like, "Okay, so of all these businesses, I fell forward at, what am I getting from this? Can you do this and can you make me money doing this?" And so the entrepreneur part of me was like, "Okay, I'm up to the challenge. I can manage any task. I'll go and take the leap of faith and retool myself." And so I started researching the industry, taking a whole slew of classes on construction management, Turner School of Construction Management. TE Dunn has a construction management program.
Kelly Scanlon:
Well, there's some wonderful programs in construction management here in Kansas City.
Fahteema Parrish:
Yes. And even earning my OSHA 30 because the industry standard is to have OSHA 10. So I went on and was like, "Okay, if I'm going to set myself apart, let's go in and go for OSHA 30." And then I constantly do continue education along the way and things like the ENV SP credential, which is envision sustainability. So when we think about quality of life for all and being a part of projects like the Kansas City, Missouri Smart Sewer Program, so we're touching on revitalizing and renewing our infrastructure.
Kelly Scanlon:
And you actually drive the equipment. I've seen pictures of you on one of those heavy pieces of equipment driving it, and you might have started without really knowing much about the construction in industry, but you sure jumped right into it and learned it all. And you can be out there participating on any project it sounds like, but still as the owner, your real job is to orchestrate, manage the growth of the company. So how have you managed that growth in just eight short years to the level where we see it now, winning the Mr. K award over some really, really tremendous companies that participated in the program. So how have you done that?
Fahteema Parrish:
Again, continuing education. So continuing education is the key to managing growth of any sustainable organization. So when you think about wanting to create a legacy business, so there are many cohorts that have been provided or sponsored by the generous contributions of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, such as the Rising Trades Cohort, which is the most recent cohort that I graduated from back in December. So again, they required me to fill out application that talked about the goals that I wanted to put forth and accomplish as a part of the result of the cohort. So number one, growing and solidify my accounting team, having very, very solid and sound legal counsel. And then in addition to that, human resource management. And then the last item on it was creating a green energy growth plan. Because a lot of the things that we do, we want to make sure that it's sustainable. And so we're increasing the quality of life for all. So constant education, continuing education to be retooled and staying up with the latest and greatest things that the industry is requiring.
Kelly Scanlon:
You have grown quite a lot. I was curious though, about this long background you've had in technology. You have spoken a lot about your entrepreneurial influence, some of the businesses that you've had along the way, but this 20 year period where you were in technology, how has that helped you guide Parrish & Sons?
Fahteema Parrish:
So when you think about the parallels of information technology, applications development lifecycle or systems development lifecycle, there is a striking parallel when you think about being process oriented. So coming from software engineering, you are crossing into construction, which too requires engineering and it has a lifecycle. So you think about the parallel construction management lifecycle. So there is always a process and you always have to start out organizing, planning, monitoring, executing, and then controlling. And so those are the key things that carry over despite the industry. And when you're managing any process, these are commonalities. And so the joy of being able to say, "Hey, I can take this skillset and utilize some of those same things in developing process for a construction company," has been priceless. And so again, you have to go in sequence in this order of events, which is a lifecycle that is the same thing that would be required on any construction project. And so you were just changing the key stakeholders.
Kelly Scanlon:
I've mentioned some of the major projects that you've been a part of, and it's hard to win those, especially as a new company. You're eight years old now, but there was a point when you were only a year old, a few years old, you're a woman in a male dominated field. Did you find you had to prove yourself to win those?
Fahteema Parrish:
Yes. So while it's yet another male dominated field for me because information technology, another male dominated field, and so the constant charge is, or the barrier to entering into another male dominated market is can she do it? And is she okay asking for help or is she okay asking for direction or guidance? Because no, I will never know everything. And so it's about establishing relationships. And so each project started with the relationship. So back in 2018 when I was awarded the first project with the city of Kansas City Parks and Recreation Department, it started out as a part of a small local business enterprise. And so those are projects that are set aside for small businesses. And so the parameters of that project allow you to have a little bit of grace, but you're reaching out and you're talking to the construction manager, you're talking to the inspectors, or you're talking to the contract administrators.
And so GC'ing this type of work, so about 18 projects GC with the city of Kansas City underneath those women business enterprise and minority business enterprise programs, some of it was pricey, but we were able to learn and take those lessons that we learned and apply them to corrective measures for the next project. So again, having those types of resources within the city of Kansas City to support small businesses and being able to one day graduate into taking on a much larger volume project such as the KCI airport, the single terminal project.
Kelly Scanlon:
Yes, yes. So it's just beautiful.
Fahteema Parrish:
Yes.
Kelly Scanlon:
Another big thing you hear a lot about is the skilled trades. Even before COVID, they were experiencing in a labor shortage. Just a lot of people were not going into the skilled trades and other people were retiring. Would you advise young women to pursue the skilled trades? I mean you, you've broken barriers in it. There's other women who have broken barriers and it's not easy. Would you recommend that young women go into that field?
Fahteema Parrish:
Yes, absolutely. I'd recommend any woman who is aspiring to be a part or learn about the many opportunities that are available within the skilled trades, not just laboring, not just truck driving. The things that are commonly spoken of, but there is the heavy equipment operating, which requires a good deal of seat time. So going through the Operating Engineers Local 101's apprenticeship program where you get tons of hours spent practicing up at the training center up in Tracy, Missouri. So exploring those pasts and tapping into those desires that may be just kind of sitting at the bottom or bottom of your stomach or the back of your mind, and you're only thinking like, "Oh, well, I don't think I could do that," but yes, you can. So reach out, utilize your resources to at least get the experience and see if it's something that you truly want. Because I definitely think that I would continue to say, yes, women reach out. It's not uncommon for women to be successful in these fields.
Kelly Scanlon:
Yeah. What have you learned about yourself? I know you were introduced to entrepreneurship through your parents, you've had a long history of it, but what you're doing now with Parrish & Sons is your biggest entrepreneurial venture that you have embarked on, and it's yours. It's not your parents, it's yours. What has this taught you about yourself that maybe you didn't know before?
Fahteema Parrish:
Going back to growth and comfort, they cannot coexist. My sorority sister shared this meme with me many, many years ago when I was on the fence about truly jumping from a cushion career of predictability, the ones and zeros, I'm writing the program and I am in more control. So when I was on the fence about truly jumping, she sent and shared that meme with me that said, "Growth and comfort cannot coexist." And in order for me to step into my purpose, I had to come out of my comfort zone and take that risk. And it's not going to be comfortable. If I'm continuing to grow, I have to stretch setting the stretch goal and knowing that, "Hey, will it be perfect?" No. Do I have a resource of people to reach out and ask for help? Yes. And being okay asking the question a fifth time if it didn't make sense the first four times, "Hey guys, can you give me a hand," or this just, "I'm adding one plus one and it's equaling 11." So just being okay stepping out of my comfort zone and knowing that there is help.
Kelly Scanlon:
Mm-hmm. And in Kansas City there is so much help. I mean, you've mentioned some of the mentoring that you had, some of the programs that you took advantage of, and I know that you continue that. You mentioned that earlier you're continuing education, but you also said, I heard you say earlier that Parrish & Sons is a legacy business. What do you mean by that?
Fahteema Parrish:
So what I mean by legacy business, Parrish & Sons Construction is being created for our four sons to carry on after us. And we think about succession planning, and we think about wealth building, some of the things that are not so common in minority communities. And so that is what the company is being set up for so that our kids are working in the business and by the time they take it on, they're able to grow the business from the coaches' box and not have to worry about being in the field operating or heads down like mom and pop were working from the back of our pickups for the first couple of years until we were able to say, "Okay, we now have a solid team in place that is able to take on and fulfill these duties with great pride and pleasure".
Kelly Scanlon:
Tell us about what you're doing to prepare them for this role.
Fahteema Parrish:
Yes. So all four of our sons, of course, the ones who are of age are interns. And so our oldest just graduated from high school, and so he spends his day to day being a part of our operations. So he comes in and he understands what it means from the professional services side, processing, scheduling, our daily morning call that's at 6:15 AM they're hearing, they're listening to what's going on in the field, and we started with a safety topic. So they're absorbing and listening, and then they're able to go in and participate on the projects that they're able to be on site with. And then the youngest, he is 10, and so they operated their first excavator in our backyard at the age of five.
Kelly Scanlon:
Wow.
Fahteema Parrish:
Just getting comfortable with the controls.
Kelly Scanlon:
And everything, seeming familiar to them?
Fahteema Parrish:
Yes. Keeping them submerged in the business so that they can gravitate to any of the career paths that are available. If you think about legal, if you think about accounting, if you think about civil engineering, structural engineering, geotechnical science that is involved in when we are stabilizing the foundation for a building path or for a runway, it's so many endless amount of opportunities when you think about career pathing on the construction management side and the skilled trade side. So I'm just allowing them the opportunity to see and be exposed to the endless amount of opportunities for them to choose from.
Kelly Scanlon:
You mentioned that you learned about the importance of serving your community through your parents, that they always believed in giving back. How is it that you are doing that now through Parrish & Sons?
Fahteema Parrish:
One of the many ways that Parrish & Sons Construction continues to give back is by means of mentoring. Through our internship program, starting with Big Brother, Big Sister, Awesome Ambitions, I was able to connect with Cynthia Newsome and the Awesome Ambition girls at the KCI Airport Project, Virginia Dobesh of Edgemoor. I sent out an email asking for all the women on the project to see if they'd be available to come up on a Saturday, our personal time to talk to a group of girls. And I was like, "Absolutely, I'll make the time to be a part of sharing my scope of work, my experience, and my why with ladies that I had no clue about." And so when we made that a conscious decision for me to go and attend, there was three busloads of girls from Awesome Ambitions that came up, and we were able to share that insight with and inspire them hopefully to continue pursuing these ambition opportunities for them to explore as young people graduating from high school.
So again, Awesome Ambitions, amazing organization. After Awesome Ambitions, there is NUCA, their Dozer Day. So they provide young people the ability to come in and get on the dozers, get on the excavators, and so you're seeing these tiny little people sitting on the laps of our operating engineers digging in a pile of dirt, gravel, or sand or whatever it is that we have in those areas. So again, Awesome Ambitions, Big Brother, Big Sister internship programs, CyberTech Creations, that's another 501(c)(3) that's doing great things in the community in the space of technology. So she takes on cohorts and brings in young people and give them the ability to have a laptop and learn about writing code. Great opportunities there. The American Heart Association being a part of the Hard Walk. So when we talk about having that quality of life and making sure we remain balanced, so physical mental health and heart health. So being preventative in those aspects. So those are just a few. I'm sure there are others that I'm missing, such as a STEM Village.
Kelly Scanlon:
What is your vision for Kansas City? If you had to step back and say 20 years and look back, not just on the work you've done, but how's the city took advantage of opportunities that was in front of it and how they have permeated out into the city, into its residents, what would you like to see?
Fahteema Parrish:
What I would like to see is a greater Kansas City when you think about the welcoming of all, when you think about the inclusivity of all, in thinking about what it means to be stronger together, and having been the first black woman to receive the Mr. K Award, that sets a tone for more welcoming, more inclusivity. Parrish & Sons Construction is the uncommon when you think about the greater Kansas City. We want to continue to let everyone know that we are the fly to state. We welcome and we are stronger together.
Kelly Scanlon:
Well, thank you so much for all of the work that you're doing with Parrish & Sons, not just for the construction industry, but with the greater good in mind. And congratulations again on the Mr. K Award. We appreciate you coming by and talking with us.
Fahteema Parrish:
Thank you very much for having me, Kelly.
Joe Close:
This is Joe Close, president of Country Club Bank. Thank you to Fahteema Parrish for being our guest on this episode of Banking on KC. For an example of someone whose entrepreneurial spirit supersedes any potential obstacles, look no further than Fahteema Parrish. The 2023 Mr. K Award winner started several small businesses before realizing there was opportunity in the construction industry. No construction experience? No problem. She went to school and earned all the credentials she needed and got hands-on training as well. A minority woman in a male dominated field, been there, done that. She'd faced the same kind of scrutiny when she was in the IT field. Undeterred, Fahteema launched her company, and now just eight years later, she's earned the most coveted award among Kansas City small business owners. As Fahteema says, "Growth and comfort cannot coexist." It's a great reminder of what we're all capable of if we're willing to stretch our boundaries. Thanks for tuning in this week. We're banking on new Kansas City, Country Club Bank member FDIC.