We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Melissa Toliver, PE a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Melissa , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

I attribute my success to hard work, dedication, passion, and faith. True passion for one’s work drives the commitment to excel and provide exceptional service.

Before dedicating myself fully to my company, I worked diligently to learn and grow. While I succeeded in expanding my skill set, I realized I wasn’t truly excited about my work. Now, as a business owner, my passion for engineering has grown immensely. I’m grateful to work on projects that resonate with me, and I look forward to building new connections and offering my services to the community.

I’m confident that this passion will be evident in the quality of service I provide to my clients, as I am committed to ensuring that my reputation speaks for itself. All of this would not be possible with my faith in God who orders my footsteps.

Melissa , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am an electrical engineer and the founder of SEE Design. I’m an alumna of Michigan State University. Although I’m based in Charlotte, NC, my roots are in metro Detroit, and I also provide engineering services in the Chicagoland area where I previously spent 11 years.

My path into engineering began in high school through the Detroit Area Pre College Engineering Program (DAPCEP), which my mother introduced me to. Initially drawn to computer science, I realized I wanted a more social role and transitioned to electrical engineering.

My early career was in maintenance and reliability within the oil and gas sector. Inspired by the design engineers we hired as consultants, I transitioned to MEP design, focusing on power design for mission-critical facilities. I’m experienced in power plans, lighting plans, load calculations, and arc flash studies. I obtained my professional engineering license to enhance my expertise.

I founded SEE Design to offer these services to small business owners, initially focusing on electrical engineering. Recognizing the need for comprehensive MEP services, I partnered with mechanical engineers to provide complete MEP construction drawings.

SEE Design specializes in MEP design engineering for small commercial and residential properties. We collaborate with architects to deliver full construction drawing sets. As a team of licensed engineers, we bring extensive industry experience and innovative solutions to every project, focusing on client relationships to ensure project success.

I am incredibly proud of the business I’ve built, especially while managing it part-time. Now, I’m dedicating my full attention to SEE Design, which means our clients will benefit from a more personal connection with the business owner. I am committed to delivering high-quality engineering drawings on time and within budget, and I value building strong client relationships to exceed expectations

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

LinkedIn has proven invaluable for growing my clientele. I connect with individuals who directly need engineering services for their projects, such as architects, general contractors, and commercial real estate agents.

I offer to meet, either virtually or in person, to discuss how my business can help them achieve their goals. Getting to know my partners well is important to me. I want them to understand my company’s vision and see my passion for success in every project.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

In the early days of launching my business, I partnered with engineers without prior work experience together, trusting that their word would be reflected in their work. Unfortunately, I quickly learned the importance of properly vetting engineers and establishing working relationships, as the initial lack of these led to poor drawing quality. The negative feedback I received regarding communication and work quality was particularly tough to handle, especially when your reputation is all you have while building a brand.

Despite this initial setback, I remained determined to pursue projects, trusting that God would guide my steps and grant me the wisdom to become a better leader. This experience prompted me to establish clear criteria and requirements for bringing on engineers. I also prioritized developing strong working relationships with my team, creating an environment where they feel comfortable approaching me with any issues.

Now, I focus on team building and continuous training to ensure we remain up-to-date on the latest design requirements.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://seedesignpllc.com/
• Instagram: see_design_