Lisa Kelly is the CEO of a small contracting construction firm in the New Orleans suburb of Chalmette, Louisiana. She started the fencing and welding company, G&L Welding Service & Repair, with husband Gerald Kelly in 2020. Gerald managed people working in the field, while Lisa concentrated on growing the business using the skills she acquired as a project manager for a bigger construction firm. As a project manager, she engaged in back-office processes, such as developing policies and procedures, bidding on projects, safety plan development and revision, ordering supplies for projects, and hiring new employees.
Now that she and her husband run their own firm, they have struck a deal with the Iron Workers Local Union 623 to expand staffing on jobs that require more people. “We were the first fencing contractor that the union signed on with” in the New Orleans area, said Kelly, who earned her business degree in 1999.
As Kelly moves her iron work and fencing-focused business toward more varied commercial and public sector construction projects, qualifying for surety bonds will become a necessity for continued growth.
“Now I’m getting into the bidding arena where I’m bidding on big jobs from people who really don’t know me,” Kelly said. “I am in the process of seeking contracts that require bonding. I plan on starting off small to make sure I can get the bonding I need. I am in the process of looking for the right opportunity. I do plan on bidding on something, so I can get my foot in the door with bonding in place.”
Kelly’s construction experience is broad, but her expertise did not include knowledge or acquisition of construction surety bonds. “I had no idea what bonding was for or how it worked,” she said.
She had many questions. What documents would she need? What applications should she fill out? How would her credit history figure? How would her husband’s assets relate? These were some of the questions she needed answering, and some of the questions she didn’t even know to ask, as she started her bonding journey.
After helping develop the online curriculum, Tucker now serves as a program mentor to contractors like Kelly who complete the online curriculum and still need help understanding the process.
Tucker says the first thing she does when she meets contractors is direct them to the online curriculum, which includes three pathways: one for contractors who need transactional bonding only (Modules 1 to 3), another for those who require an on-going bonding relationship (Modules 4 to 9), and a third to the complete set (Modules 1 to 9).
The different paths reflect the fact that the curriculum is aimed at contractors who find themselves on a continuum within the construction industry.
“There’s a lot of respect for someone who has taken the time to go through these modules–they become a priority for my attention. You want to help contractors that help themselves,” Tucker said. For the clients who engage the online curriculum, “You know they mean business.”
Tucker said working with small contractors trying to grow their businesses is a satisfying feeling.
“It’s very rewarding because we do have a certain amount of responsibility to help facilitate their growth,” Tucker said of her own role. “It feels good to help small businesses navigate what can often be a difficult and daunting process, in an effort to help them succeed.”
Others involved with the bonding process, such as the surety underwriting mentor, see it the same way.
“One of my biggest delights is the excitement and collaboration from the surety mentor,” Tucker said. “As soon as an email goes out to the surety mentor, they contact me immediately and genuinely want to help in any way possible.”
Tucker estimated that she spent two hours with each of her two mentees—Kelly and another local contractor who is aiming to shift his business toward government contracts. She said advising a mentee requires a more focused conversation than it would for a typical contractor inquiring about bonding qualification. “It’s less about the basics and more about clarifying a plan because they already have that fundamental knowledge.”
Kelly said Tucker’s plan has put her on track toward qualifying for surety bonding. One of the hurdles Kelly knew she would have to overcome is her credit history.
“I knew I had blemishes on my credit report. I was honest with her, and she told me what I needed to do, and I’ve been doing it. Working together has been an asset to me,” Kelly said. “I think it’s a partnership.”
Kelly said that before reaching out to Tucker for help, she was at a loss for where to begin.
“Jill opened my eyes that having problems on your credit is not the end of the world. There are ways things can be fixed, and there are ways you can show there are reasons things happen,” Kelly said. “Jill is a great resource for advising you. It’s up to you to do it once she has explained. If you’re willing to do the work, it’s possible.”
Tucker said the educational value of the online program works in combination with her mentoring of emerging contractors. She suggested that other bond producers would find the same value in the online program for themselves and their clients. “The program definitely helps contractors when they go through it. The positive results demonstrate that.”
For more information about the Contractor Bonding Education & Mentoring Program, contact bondingeducation@surety.org.