Sisters in charge: innovative women entrepreneurs

Ebony, March, 2002

McKissack Greene started her architectural firm in 1990, at a time when Washington, D.C., had a miniscule construction industry. There was one building in the city under construction and all the major companies in the area were either downsizing or going out of business, she says. Seeing this as a perfect opportunity to grab immediate business, McKissack Greene compiled a list of 150 contacts. Her first contract was a $5,000 project for Georgetown University, which she got through a contact from her old position at Howard. Georgetown continued to give her projects.

Little by little, McKissack Greene received more work with different colleges. But running a business costs money. After paying business expenses and salaries, McKissack Greene's take-home that first year was $3,000. She managed a way to live that first year, with the help of friends and family. Hairdressers styled her hair for free. Friends paid for meals.

McKissack Greene's business grew consistently--she made $6,000 her second year and $27,000 the third year--before she scored her biggest contract. After she began to receive contracts for federal projects, the young entrepreneur met with then- Secretary of Treasury Robert E. Rubin for lunch in 1994. After that meeting, she either called the office or visited the Treasury building every two weeks for the next two years, asking to work on a project. Finally, the department relented and gave her a $200,000 project to review designs.

McKissack Greene's timing was perfect. The day after she signed her contract with the department in June 1996, she received a call from the U.S. Secret Service. The Treasury building was damaged by fire and they needed her at the site. By 6 a.m. the next day, McKissack Greene had been put in charge of the cleanup, a $10 million project. The firm worked around the clock and completed the assignment in three months. Because of that effort, her company was hired to manage the renovation and restoration of the Treasury Building, a $200 million project. "That really turned my company around," McKissack Greene says.

During this prosperous time, McKissack Greene married Washington entrepreneur Marion (Duke) Greene, who also serves as the firm's executive vice president. The firm also has other high-profile assignments, including the new Washington Convention Center and a new headquarters and laboratory facilities for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

Now that her company is doing so well, McKissack Greene says her next step is to make the McKissack & McKissack name recognizable on the regional level within the next two to three years, and hopefully to become national in five years. In order to do that, McKissack Greene says the firm needs to earn revenue of more than $100 million and expand into other cities.

Shirley L. Gross-Moore Barrington Dodge, Barrington, Ill.

When Shirley L. Gross-Moore moved into the driver's seat at Barrington Dodge in November 1988, some people said she would last only six months; others didn't give her that long. Now, over 13 years later, Barrington Dodge in suburban Chicago has not only survived, it has thrived. Moore has expanded to a second location nearby, and Barrington Dodge is now a Five-Star dealer, the highest ranking possible from the manufacturer.