Introduction
In this Q&A, we go deep on an electrical contractor business with Enrique Rodriguez, who acquired Mac General Power Solutions in Sterling, VA. He tripled revenue in one year, built backlog, modernized systems, and is mapping a clear path to $15M using strong bid flow, better margins in complex work, and disciplined project operations.
Founder Success Story QnA
Start us off with some background on you, Enrique.
Okay. I’m a local Northern Virginia. I moved here from Peru with my parents when I was seven. I went to school in Annandale, Virginia, then to Virginia Tech and studied electrical engineering. I worked summers at Whitey’s Pool Construction, my first foray into blue-collar work. After graduating, I worked at a small engineering firm in Fairfax, then at larger firms including the largest engineering firm in the country. I managed people, projects in the millions, and got deep exposure to small business through Fortune 500 environments.
What led you to buy a business?
I started in 2018 thinking what’s next—start an engineering firm or buy a business. I learned about the SBA program but didn’t feel ready. My wife asked, “What makes you think you can run the place?” She was right. I got my MBA and my master electrician license so I could take over an electrical contractor.
Was the MBA part of the plan to eventually buy a business?
Yeah. It was part of the plan to either start or buy a business. I have extensive engineering background but not in business. I didn’t like getting into things unless I’m comfortable. It made me feel very comfortable—finance, accounting, entrepreneurship, case studies. I’m not an expert, but I know how to speak the language now. I did it in three years, 16 classes, including summers.
After graduating, did you consider building versus buying?
I had an LLC doing side engineering projects—20 to 50 grand a year—to get comfortable doing the work, getting the work, and doing the business. By mid-2024 I focused on buying. I looked on BizBuySell and found a listing in Sterling, Virginia—Mac General, Inc.
What were your search criteria and first impressions of Mac General?
I’d heard bigger is better—max SBA to $5M—but Mac General was smaller than I wanted. The broker said the price was right: $450,000 on about $1.35M revenue and ~$240k SDE (3-year average). Less than a 2x multiple at first blush. Meeting Mike (the seller), I saw something special—his bid email was dinging every 10 minutes. Decades of relationships. Serious bid flow. That was like a waterfall and you put your red cup out to drink.
How did you think about buying smaller versus maxing SBA?
If you take out a $5M loan, that’s financial risk—$800k a year in debt service. Instead, I transferred financial risk to execution risk by doing an all-cash purchase. I have to execute to grow to $5–10M revenue, but far less financial risk. And this is my wheelhouse. I’m a master electrician and local with deep industry relationships. I’d give myself a 98% business buyer fit.
What didn’t you like about the business you were buying?
Zero backlog. A healthy project-based business needs a year to a year and a half. He had a month. Owner-centric—he was estimator, PM, accounting. No management team. Tech was dated. The space was a mess—borderline hoarderish. Day one, I decided: clean it up, modernize, and build a team.
How did you structure the acquisition?
$450k cash. No SBA—it was too small. I did a 20% holdback into escrow for one year. One month transition included, then I pay his hourly rate. I did my own QoE—line-by-line since 2020—1,362 transactions. I included working capital in the purchase—about $170k worth, half of A/R to me, half to him. I changed to accrual, put ~$125k into the account day one to cover payroll. All in, I put about $750k of cash into the business plus ~90k of foregone salary—around $840k effective. Then I added lines of credit as A/R grew.
What exactly does Mac General do and why did you like the niche?
Mac General Power Solutions is an electrical contractor—primarily commercial, industrial, and wastewater. Wastewater has less competition and larger projects. This is not Chuck-in-a-truck territory. On prime electrical jobs, we can see 30–40% gross margins. On design-build, 40–60%. Bigger, more complex projects = higher margins, and less competition as you scale.
What was your value creation plan on day one?
I didn’t like the legacy data, so I rebuilt it. I implemented a new estimating stack—Vision Infosoft Electrical Bid Manager and Bluebeam—to crank estimates faster. I deployed NoFi as the ERP for project-based accounting with QuickBooks. I cleaned and organized the shop. I hired key management: promoted the office manager, made Mike head of estimating (sales), hired a PM from my past industry to become head of PMs, and my dad (a CPA) handles accounting. I follow the ReWW (ReWild) Group growth stages—moving from owner-centric (stage 2) to the delegation stage (stage 3) with 3–5 managers. I brought on a strategy consultant, Lee Malberry from Northern Star, from day one.
Why change everything immediately rather than wait 90 days?
I disagree with waiting. Day one you’re the walking representation of change—use it. Buy equipment, change the ERP, rip out what doesn’t work. That advice fits because I know the industry deeply. I wouldn’t buy into an industry I don’t know—that’s huge execution risk.
What happened when you discovered there was only ~$80k in backlog?
It was an “oh my god” moment two days before closing. My wife said, “Go for it. You’ll fix it.” I started bidding even before close. Once in the seat, we bid non-stop while transitioning payroll, systems, and solving random issues. A month in, we started winning work. By end of January we were break-even; February a little profit; March a big profit and we started our third project. Then I began hiring to support growth.
Where are you now on revenue, margins, and backlog?
Target billing was $200k/month; we’re around $320k/month now. We’ll likely finish around $3.5–$4M this year—2.5x to 3x last year. Backlog is around six months, targeting 12–18 months at a $4M run rate. Limiting factors are working capital and bonding capacity, not bid flow. I’m preparing a three-year plan to get SBA working capital lines to support growth—eventually up to $5M LOC to unlock much larger revenue capacity.
What’s the growth plan and why is $15M the milestone?
Plan: ~$4M this year, ~$7M next year, ~$11M the following, targeting a $15–16M run rate by end of year three. At ~15% profit, $15M puts me over ~$2M EBITDA—opening lower middle market credit options (SBIC, larger non-dilutive credit). Bid flow could support ~$25M+ without heavy biz dev. Long term, I’ll develop operators internally and likely acquire in a high-growth region (e.g., NC or GA) to run in parallel with Mac General.
How do you manage people in a blue-collar environment?
You have to be assertive. Clear direction and discipline—like the military. Foremen are like sergeants. Safety and site conduct are non-negotiable. I’m social, but when it’s time to work, it’s time to work. That style fits construction. It’s where I’m comfortable and effective.
Why are project-based construction businesses better than people think?
At tiny, owner-centric scale, banks shy away. But with professional managers, ERP, and multiple projects, you can plan manpower and smooth revenue. Backlog lets you project 12–24 months out. As you scale, competition thins on complex, larger projects—margins improve. We’re not competing with Chuck-in-a-truck; we do switchgear replacements, design-build service upgrades, wastewater, and complex commercial. With steady estimating (our hit rate is roughly 1 in 17 bids), multiple active projects, and strong operations, the model becomes stable and scalable.
Enrique Rodriguez Method
I came in with a plan to modernize, build management, accelerate estimating, and grow backlog—focusing on complex electrical work with better margins while tightening operations and finance.
- Implement modern estimating with Vision Infosoft and Bluebeam to increase bid velocity.
- Deploy NoFi ERP with project-based accounting integrated to QuickBooks.
- Build a management layer: head of estimating, PM lead, office manager, and accounting via CPA.
- Target prime and design-build work to lift gross margins.
- Grow qualified bid lists and maintain a steady bid cadence to fill backlog.
Enrique Rodriguez Tools
I use tools to compress cycle times in estimating, maintain financial visibility daily, and coordinate projects cleanly. The goal is fast, accurate bids, clear dashboards, and tight execution across teams.
- Vision Infosoft Electrical Bid Manager: Modern electrical estimating to speed bids.
- Bluebeam: Takeoffs, markups, and automation in preconstruction.
- NoFi + QuickBooks: ERP for project-based accounting, backlog and cash dashboards.
Key Notes
Scaling a project-based business hinges on bid flow, execution systems, and working capital. With the right buyer fit, you can de-risk by upgrading operations and focusing on complex, higher-margin work.
- Bid flow is the lifeblood—maintain pre-qualification and steady cadence.
- Backlog smooths revenue and manpower planning across 12–18 months.
- Prime and design-build electrical projects deliver superior margins at scale.
Get Started in Just 5 Steps
If you’re eyeing an electrical contractor business, prepare your operator toolkit, build your bid machine, and shore up working capital to fuel growth.
- Get the right licenses and strengthen your business acumen.
- Pre-qualify with GCs and expand your bid lists.
- Implement ERP and modern estimating before scale.
- Recruit key managers early to handle projects and estimating.
- Secure working capital and bonding to unlock larger jobs.
Conclusion
This electrical contractor business shows how strong bid flow, management layers, and better tools can transform an owner-centric shop into a scalable operation. With clear backlog targets, disciplined estimating, and complex project focus, Enrique Rodriguez is driving Mac General toward $15M.