Meet Heather Yario Rice
Heather Yario Rice is the expert when it comes to flooring, leveling and concrete moisture mitigation. When Rice comes up with a solution on the job, people sit up and listen, though there have been times throughout her career when she has had to grab her drill and prove her solution will work. As a rare woman in her field, she has had to navigate frustrating instances of her capabilities being questioned. Over time, she learned to derive empowerment and satisfaction from proving herself during these exchanges, saying “You wouldn’t take my word for it, but now you HAVE to take my word for it!”
After working for a manufacturer, Rice started Smart Concrete Technologies in 2017. Her company is responsible for the Obama Presidential Center project’s moisture mitigation and leveling work in partnership with a larger firm, Consolidated Flooring. She says Lakeside Alliance’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion has changed the way she does business.
For Women’s History Month, Lakeside Alliance spoke with Heather about how her journey in the industry, how working on the Center has impacted her and more:
How did you get to where you are today?
I started in flooring in 2003 in California. After about a year, I moved back to Chicago and worked for another contractor. That contractor saw that I had a different skill set and quickly realized I would be better suited working for a manufacturer. So, I ended up working for manufacturers for almost 15 years. In 2017, I decided I was traveling too much with little kids at home, so I started my own thing. I was doing moisture testing on concrete slabs – moisture mitigation and leveling. I did everything under the floor that you don’t see. After pursuing that for about six months or so, people started coming out of the woodwork and I began independently representing different companies. Through that process I got my WBE certifications, and we’ve been going strong ever since! We did about five sizable jobs last year.
Tell us about your role at Smart Concrete Technologies.
I am the owner, founder and president. I consult and distribute, but I also do testing and the installation piece. Every day is a little bit different! I’m very hands-on and on site a lot. I’m also dedicated to providing education for the AEC community, so I will lead presentations on some of my very technical and very necessary knowledge. Lastly, I’m constantly prospecting for business. I would say two to three nights a week, there’s some sort of event I attend to build my network.
What work is your company performing on the Obama Presidential Center project?
I partnered with Consolidated Flooring, the flooring contractor, early on. It’s a mentor-mentee relationship. I’m doing all their submittals and close-out documents and I also have ownership of the moisture mitigation of the flooring and the leveling. Kristy Burlingame from Consolidated Flooring has been a great mentor to me! She’s awesome.
What does it mean to you personally to participate in this project, and what does it mean for your business?
This project has made me think differently about how I do everything. I see the thought process behind what Lakeside Alliance is trying to do, and the opportunities they’re opening up, and it has given me insight into uncovering so many new people I otherwise might not have had the chance to work with. One of the guys I work with now is a veteran-owned business, and I’ve also connected with an LGBTQ-owned WBE as well. We’re showing her how to do lead submittals so she can do that for other people to give her another avenue of business. I also found another minority and women-owned business supplier, and we’ve gotten a couple of products they can distribute. I had to find a new lawyer, and now I’m working with a WBE. This project has been really eye-opening for me in that way. I see the dream.
What is your greatest hope for the outcome of the Center?
That it’s somewhere people can go and gather. The outdoor areas look really nice, so I hope those are another opportunity for people to enjoy the area. It’s long overdue.
In your opinion, has the industry improved in terms of opportunity for women? Respect?
I think there’s been a huge improvement. Anyone that steps foot on the Obama Presidential Center site that is a woman would feel the camaraderie immediately with the other women there. If you look around the construction community more generally, I used to go to shows and I literally would be the only woman at these events. Today, there are more women and people of color than there ever were before. You need to have diversity to have collective ideas get better, and there’s still a long way to go.
What would you say to women who are considering a career in the construction industry?
If you love what you do, it will all work out. If you find a field of construction you like, stick with it, but know it doesn’t happen overnight.
“Today, there are more women and people of color than there ever were before. You need to have diversity to have collective ideas get better, and there’s still a long way to go. ”