• Posted: June 14, 2021
• better careers, Chicago Voice and Data Authority, Cristina Beran, YouTube video

 

Coming from a large family where money was tight, college wasn’t an option for Cristina Beran, President of Chicago Voice and Data Authority. Instead, when she finished high school, Cristina’s father took her to work with him where she began her career as an electrical assistant. For Cristina, working alongside her dad was all the exposure she needed to know that this was the path for her. 

Over time, Cristina started her own company, a non-union electrical contractor. As her company grew, they began seeing larger jobs that they couldn’t bid on because they weren’t union. Eventually, Cristina decided for her company to grow in the way she wanted, they needed to unionize. 

For Cristina, the process to unionize had its difficulties. One of the challenges she faced was finding insurance for her company. Though she had the money, she didn’t have the experience needed to qualify for many policies. She credits the assistance of others in the industry with helping her to navigate the process to unionize. 

Cristina’s company unionized in 2015, after running as a non-union shop for the previous four years. Before unionizing, Chicago Voice and Data Authority had a maximum of seven employees, now they have 30. The company grew because they were able to bid on larger jobs that were previously inaccessible to non-union shops. Recently, they completed the electrical work for the new deicing facility at O’Hare, a $6 million contract that had to be completed in a month. 

In 2017, 30-year industry veteran Carlos Lopez joined Cristina as a partner at Chicago Voice and Data Authority. Together, Carlos and Cristina have grown the company to more than $10 million in sales and contracts.

Aside from the great work her company does, one of the things that makes Cristina most proud about her business is being able to provide meaningful work for their employees, especially women and minorities. Currently, about 60 percent of Chicago Voice and Data Authority employees are minorities.

Cristina’s drive to hire diverse talent is rooted in her respect for everyone, holding the position that every employee is equal and deserves the same respect. No matter your race, gender, or if you work in the field or the office. Cristina views this culture of respect as being critical to the growth and success of her company. 

If you watch the accompanying video, you will notice it’s Powering Chicago’s first Spanish language video. Coinciding with the timing of the publication of this video, Powering Chicago is proud to announce a partnership with Univision, the United States’ largest provider of Spanish language content. As part of this new partnership, Powering Chicago ads will be on both video and radio beginning today.