2009 SBA NORTH CAROLINA SMALL BUSINESS PERSON OF THE YEAR

Lisa Anne Piñeiro, President
Technical Services, Inc.
Durham, NC

Lisa Piñeiro, President of Technical Services, Inc. (TSI) in Durham, NC has been named 2009 North Carolina Small Business Person of the Year. TSI is an electrical training and recruiting firm.

Piñeiro was honored for TSI’s staying power, growth, innovative services, response to adversity and contributions to the community. Under Piñeiro’s leadership, TSI has been growing steadily and has gone from 30 to 78 employees since she started the business in 1998. In 2008, the company grossed over $3 million in sales.

Things haven't always been highway-smooth for Piñeiro, a former hairstylist. As a divorced, single mom she searched for a good-paying job to support her daughter. Piñeiro landed a job with a construction staffing firm. As Pineiro worked, she learned. She knew she could provide a better quality of service.

With a $45,000 loan from her parents and a solid business plan, Piñeiro started TSI—and it took off. The loan was repaid with interest in six months. Pineiro then invited a former co-worker to join her as a 10% partner in the company. She learned a valuable lesson when she became a victim of her partner’s fraud, embezzlement, and forgery. A criminal and civil trial ensued and Piñeiro fought to keep her business alive.

TSI recovered until 9/11/01. After the terrorist attacks, building activity in the Durham area slowed and Pineiro looked for alternatives to generate income. She opened two Edy's Ice Cream parlors to help keep TSI afloat. For two years she scooped desserts while raising her daughter and running TSI from the store room of the ice cream shop. During this time, she began dating her husband, Frank Piñeiro, a project manager for an electrical contractor. Frank now works for TSI.

The current downturn in the U.S. economy is slowing construction again. But Piñeiro may be better insulated this time. She recently acquired a company that does the electrical work for national and international technology and pharmaceutical companies in Durham's Research Triangle Park.

Piñeiro credits SBA programs with helping her become successful. In 2005, she got advice from volunteer counselors at Raleigh SCORE, a resource partner of the SBA. In 2006, TSI got a $75,000 SBAExpress Line of Credit from Wachovia Bank. Lisa actively participates in training and counseling offered by the Women's Business Center of North Carolina (WBC). The WBC is a collaboration of the SBA and the North Carolina Institute for Minority Enterprise Development. At the WBC, Piñeiro met with counselors who advised her on bonding requirements and other contracting issues. The WBC also helped her secure an on-going contract with United Mechanical Services. So far the contract has a net worth $30,000 for TSI.

“SBA has been an integral part of TSI’s continued existence and growth,” said Piñeiro.
 
With solid growth, came inspiration and innovation. One of the innovative services offered by TSI is The Electrical Apprentice Program. In cooperation with Durham Technical Community College, TSI offers specialized training for employees or people in the Durham community interested in pursuing a career in the construction industry. This certificate program is endorsed through the North Carolina and U.S. Departments of Labor. The program combines paid, on-the-job training and classroom instruction. An apprentice's training is paid for by TSI. Students receive regular pay increases as more complex tasks are performed and good work ethic and attendance are displayed. 
Graduates are qualified journeypersons and have a better chance of becoming supervisors or starting their own businesses. This program helps participants acquire skills and local contractors solve their workforce shortages.

Meanwhile, Piñeiro works hard to attract women and men to the construction trades. She is a volunteer committee member for Women's Business Enterprise National Council Southeast Region, which describes itself as "the nation's leading advocate of women-owned businesses as suppliers to America's corporations.”

In February, Piñeiro received Enterprising Women magazine's 2008 National Enterprising Woman of the Year Award. She was named to the advisory board of the magazine for women business owners. In June 2008 she was named the Greater Durham Business of Excellence.

Locally, Piñeiro founded Southern High School Women @ Work, a program that encourages girls to enroll in a traditionally male-dominated construction “school-within-a-school" at Southern High. She is a member of the board of the school, called the Construction and Architectural Design Academy. She is vice-president of the nonprofit Durham Careers in Construction, a group made up mostly of construction professionals that educates young, at-risk kids in public schools about the wide array of lucrative careers in construction.

The Piñeiro’s live in Durham, where they raise three daughters and a son.

Piñeiro was nominated by Alton Barnes, Work-based Learning Coordinator of the Durham Public Schools.