Springfield’s Triec Electrical Services Story Part Three

“I don’t know if you’ve heard this story but way back when, Triec was as a little hole in the wall,” recalls company Accounting Manager Carol Allen. That was over 25 years ago.

Today, Triec offers commercial, residential, and industrial services. It has long since moved into a bigger building and has a workforce of about 50.

At the time, Allen was just beginning her career. A friend she worked with at another Springfield based business, was also working at Triec, and suggested she interview for a job there. But when Allen arrived, she found it to be a very modest operation.
As she recalls, “Before they moved into this building everybody was in one big room. All the estimators, and everyone else.  From my understanding it used to be a house. At the time, I was like thanks, but no thanks.”

The year 2024 sees Carol Allen celebrating 26 years with Triec Electrical Services.
If you’ve read the first in this series about Triec, you might remember that before the one-room-facility, one of the three businesses which would later merge to become Triec... was operating out of a chicken coop. Progress is progress.

Not long after Allen’s initial interview, Triec leveled up and acquired a suitable edifice to conduct its operations, and where it remains to this day.  

“After they got this building, they asked me to come interview again. This time I accepted the offer,” she says.

Allen was born and reared in Springfield. Her father was a contractor. Before landing at Triec, she worked in sales related to electrical services. She wasn’t a total greenhorn to this kind of work when she accepted an entry level position at Triec.

“I actually started out in the tool room,” she says, “I was in charge of the stock, inventory, and getting all the tools in the trucks. I know I’m dating myself but at that time we used radios. It was before cell phones.”

Allen says there was a lot of learning to do in the early years. “It was a challenge making sure the guys had the tools they needed,” she says.

“But looking back now, I had it kind of easy. Things were simpler. There were fewer employees too.”

Carol Allen moved into office operations about 20 years ago out of necessity. As she describes the situation, “We were growing, and they brought me up to help with accounting. I was good at math in school, but it was totally a learning curve. Accounting is so much more than just math you know?”

As you may recall from installment one of this series, Triec Electrical Services was founded by Springfielders Scott Yeazell, Dennis Jones, and Dan Heaton in 1984.

Allen says, “Scott was a good teacher, but he could be demanding at times. I don’t mind saying it was scary. Scott was a little intimidating for sure.”

Before being promoted to Accounting Manager, Allen worked with two others in the department. One of them left to get her CPA and the other was a part-time employee.

After the departure the demands of work increased, and Allen leaned in, as she says, “I always liked a challenge. I grew up with four brothers, so I learned not to shy away from much.”

The company has always employed mainly male electricians. Her fraternal background helped make Allen more comfortable in such a male-dominated environment.

“I got along with everyone,” she says, “the women too. People are surprised when they hear women can get along with each other, but we totally can.”

Speaking more on the male leadership of Triec, Allen says, “Dennis and Scott were total opposites. Scott, to me, was all business. Dennis was the go-out-and-meet-the-customers-guy. A people person.”

As Triec matured as a business, and Allen moved into accounting, she was afforded a concrete appreciation of its growth.  

As she explains, “I absolutely could see the growth. Especially when I started doing payroll.”

Allen says that turnover at Triec is minimal, and she attributes this to a supportive company culture. She is the mother of two, and besides solid monetary compensation, Triec offers the flexibility she needed as a mother. Over the years, Triec has supported Springfield families with agreeable wages and the flexibility needed to take care of said families.

“If I needed to stay home to take care of a child that wasn’t a problem. They would let me take time off when needed so long as I never abused it, and I never did,” she says.

Of their present workforce Allen says, "A good number of them have been here many years. So many employees have worked here. Still do, and make a good living at it. I think that’s really benefited the community.”

Skilled labor is an important part of Springfield’s economic health, one that many community leaders say will be vital to its future.

Springfield is a relatively small community. As Allen says, “I mean it’s not huge.  A lot of people say why are you still there? It’s always been home to me. I’m not a big city person. I prefer a slowed down place. If you like, you can go to Dayton, or Columbus if you want the extra things Springfield doesn’t have.”

According to Allen, most of Triec’s employees are from Springfield. Some are coming from New Carlisle, others from Troy, and a few from Dayton.

“At a bigger company you’re just a number. They don’t know who you are. They don’t know your background, your story. I feel here, we know each other better than at a bigger company,” she says.

It is often said that if you want to know what is going on at a hospital ask a nurse, not a doctor. Perhaps it's true that if you want to know what’s going on at a local small business, ask their Accounting Manager.

We’re sure Triec’s co-founder and current President have plenty to say too. Their stories will be told in the final installments of Springfield’s Triec Electrical Services story in the coming weeks.