William Parrish achieved more in 500 days with his construction management firm than most companies do in years.
Parrish, of Maplewood, is president and CEO of NobleStrategy. The firm serves as an owner’s representative on construction projects. It focuses on program and project management, sustainable design and construction practices, and emerging contractor development and mentoring, Parrish said. The firm has offices in Harlem and Long Island City, N.Y. and in Newark.
Parrish grew his business from a one-person consultancy to a 25-person firm. Within a period of 500 days, NobleStrategy generated revenue of almost $2 million. When Parrish realized how unique and noteworthy his success was, he decided to share his story. Through a book, he said he felt he could tell about the experiences and develop a template of 14 key concepts or chapters that individuals and firms could replicate to have similar success, even during tough economic times.
He released “Making Bold Moves: Creating Multimillion-Dollar Success in 500 Days or Less!” in October 2011, at the Rutgers Small Business Development Center Awards Gala.
Parrish spoke to The Star-Ledger about being an author and his experience in the construction management field.
Q. How long did it take you to complete the book?
A. The process took almost four years from the time I said I wanted to write the book. Although I said I wanted to write it in 2008, I didn’t get serious until January 2010. At that time, I hired a professional writer to assist me and spent the next five months recording dialogue. When it was time to edit what he had written, I realized that he did not speak in my voice and really wasn’t saying what I wanted to say. At that point, I scrapped the project and started over, writing the book entirely on my own from July 2010 through February 2011. I continued the process of rewriting and editing through July of 2011 and convinced a well-known editor-in-chief friend of mine (Derek T. Dingle, editor-in-chief of Black Enterprise) to pen a foreword for the book. The entire story was edited and completed in October 2011 and printed by the end of that month.
Q. Who is the target audience for your book?
A. Emerging businesses, traditional firms, established professionals and anyone who is serious about creating their own version of success.
Q. What has been your most memorable project?
A. That’s a hard choice, but I would select one of my first projects out of school, which was the construction of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem. I had to match all I learned in school with how the real world works, while acquiring a good amount of people skills. And they don’t exactly teach you everything you need to know about that in school.
I also have had very memorable experiences working on the re-building of 1 World Trade Center, formerly known as the Freedom Tower, due to its significance in world history and the sheer magnitude of the $1.8 billion project.
— Rhea N. Bernard
Please submit suggestions for “Three Questions” to [email protected].
