With tentative plans to major in busi-


ness, she was on a college tour trip with her dad when he asked her whether she had ever thought about joining Royal as a career. “I just never pictured it until he mentioned it,” she said. The idea had immediate appeal. Kimble began looking at schools with


construction management majors – some- thing her father had already done a bit of research on – and ultimately chose to attend Arizona State University, where she obtained her B.S. in construction management. She later obtained an MBA from UC Davis. Starting out as a project manager,


Kimble learned the business from the inside out. She took on increasingly bigger projects over time and had a hand in vir- tually every aspect of the business before transitioning to the role of President and Partner in 2017 and then, President and CEO three years ago. From day one, her approach was sim-


ple: “just work really hard, be willing to admit what you don’t know, and show up to every meeting super prepared.” Early on she was often the only woman in the room. Today the tide is changing, Kimble noted, as the construction industry has become much more focused on culture than it ever was, and growing numbers of women have joined the workforce.


Elevating the Company Culture As a family business with many long-term employees, Royal Electric has always maintained a strong company culture. But in recent years, it has taken a more intentional approach to building a thriv- ing, growing and increasingly diverse workforce with a focus on three strategic pillars: building people, building rela- tionships, and building projects. “I tell people they are in that order


for a reason,” Kimble explained. “We are technical experts; we get the job done.


10


CALIFORNIA CONSTRUCTOR MARCH-APRIL 2022


“My goal is for our members to clearly understand the ways they (and their teams within their companies) can


connect, engage in their passion areas and lead the industry towards the future.” – Dina Kimble


But for us our primary job is to build the people within the company, people who are inspired to grow in their career. Ten those people build great relationships with our clients, our vendors, and other trades on the jobs. And finally, those relationships are what allow us to build excellent projects and have fun doing it.”


Embracing the Opportunities Ahead As she looks to the year ahead, juggling leadership of her company and of AGC (while still finding time for family), Kimble said she looks forward to the challenge. She plans to continue steering Royal


Electric’s expansion and growth, guided by a long-term strategic plan. “We know


the opportunities are going to come to us, and we want to be able to grow so the talented people on our team have room to advance and be successful in their careers,” she said. At the same time, she plans to de-


vote plenty of energy leading AGC and continuing to build on its reputation as the state’s preeminent construction association – one that doesn’t shy away from a challenge when it comes to ad- vocating on behalf of its members and the construction industry. “My goal is for our members to clearly understand the ways they (and their teams within their companies) can connect, engage in their passion areas and lead the industry towards the future.”


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