Raymond B. Gonzales

Raymond B. Gonzales started his company with only $1500.00 on hand and began from a small room in his own home. After being in the construction industry all of his professional life, Raymond decided it was now time to branch off on his own. Today, RBG Construction Company, LLC. is one of the most recognized booming construction companies in the valley.

Raymond was first introduced to the construction industry by one of his older brothers, who had taken him to help with a side job and later told him that he really needed to pursue this talent. It was that side job that later got him a job as a laborer. As any good employee, Raymond was able to climb up the professional ladder and then worked his way through to Foreman, Project Manager and later Estimator. However, he never forgot the work and labor that went into the job and the sacrifices he had to make as he grew professionally.

After years of love for the profession, Raymond looked at his three sons and thought he wanted to build something for them and for their future. It was then that Raymond Gonzales took his family’s savings and invested it into launching what is now RBG Construction. At the time, it took $1500.00 investment to do so. He used it to get licensed, set up the company’s legal files and then to purchase a few materials….he then went to work.

RBG Construction began with small residential and commercial work. Raymond B. Gonzales remembers vividly how he would spend his early days out in the field performing the labor and completing the jobs at hand, then at night when the kids were asleep, he would stay up late working on completing bids, managing the paper work of the jobs, tracking the progress of the jobs, his own accounting…whatever it took to have his company in order.

RBG continued to grow and soon he was able to hire several laborers and a Superintendent to manage the field crew. This helped as now he was able to spend more time during business hours to bid bigger jobs as well as manage the current jobs he was working on.

Now, after 11 years in business, Raymond B. Gonzales has successfully grown RBG Construction into a vivacious and successful business entity….with over $12 million in annual revenues, RBG Construction has had the opportunity to work on major high profile jobs such as the Arizona Cardinals Stadium, TGEN Building, ASU Bio Design Building, Sky Harbor Rental Car Center, and Phoenix Municipal Stadium among others.

One of the most rewarding things of growing his company is that now all three of his sons play a very crucial role in the business. Ray Jr. manages the HR needs of the company and oversees all of the projects planning and scheduling. Daniel enjoys managing the concrete pouring and ensures the delivery of quality work we promise to all of our clients. David manages and oversees all of the projects that require forming and carpentry.

Now, in 2007, RBG Construction has successfully grown into a strong business entity and has collected a number of business awards from the various communities it serves. Raymond B. Gonzales has not forgotten where he came from and why he started his own company. For Raymond, as well as the team at RBG, it is important to give back to the community. Raymond makes sure that he does that as often as possible. He is a member of various professional organizations and does what he can to mentor other small businesses. Raymond B. Gonzales and RBG Construction will be awarded “Entrepreneur Of The Year” this year from the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and was also awarded Minority General Contractor of the Year by the AMCA in November of 2006.

What are three challenges that you overcame that others might need to look out for and prepare as they launch or grow their business?

Funding is always a challenge: how to keep your self funded and manage to keep cash flow is always an issue.
Equally, building the team, finding the people to believe that we were a legitimate company, even when we were guaranteeing them a good salary was another challenge.
Building clientele was a challenge. At the beginning, I was the foreman, laborer, office manager, marketing manager; you name it, I did it. Marketing and trying to run a business is difficult. I can remember only getting 2-3 hours sleep a night. That was a real challenge.

QUICK FACTS ON RAYMOND B. GONZALES SR.

La Familia: Ray Gonzales Sr. has three children: Ray (30), Daniel (25), David (23) …and three grandsons and one granddaughter.

In the beginning: Where were they born? Ray Gonzales family originated from Abernathy, Texas and later moved to Glendale, Arizona where he grew up; and later his three children were born.

Ethnic Background: Hispanic (Mexican American)

Higher Education: After graduating from Glendale High School, Ray Gonzales attended Glendale Community College and later graduated from the Small Business Executive Program – University of El Paso. In addition, Ray has continued to educate himself in the various areas of his business industry: Estimating Training, Carpentry – Glendale Community College; NxLevel for Entrepreneurs, Austin Industries Mentor-Protégé Program; Risk Management Training in Excavation; Special Teaching Certificate for Az Community Colleges; and OSHA Training in these areas: fall protection, construction equipment, respirators, PPE, ladders, safe driving, electrical and hazcom.

Favorite Movie: Godfather

Favorite Libro: Attitude that Attracts Success by Wayne Cordeiro

Quotable Quotes: “Do onto others as you would like them to do unto you”

The People I admire most are: My parents, Panfila Gonzales & Severo Gonzales, they raised 15 children (11 brothers & 4 sisters) and did a wonderful job raising us all….I can’t remember anything that I would change about my upbringing.