By Chantalé Fletcher
FIND your God-given talent, pray about it and just start.
This was the message to youths from 26-year-old civil engineer and entrepreneur Jedidiah Alleyne.
Alleyne, who lives in Morvant and works at the Ministry of Works and Transport -Drainage Division as a site engineer, and is also the CEO of Jedidiah Alleyne Construction (JAC).
He has a BSc in Civil Engineering with a specialisation in Construction Management from UTT and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Integrated Coastal Management at the same.
From Success Village, Laventille, to Maraval, Alleyne’s passion for the youth of Morvant brought him back with a desire to change their future. That love resulted in providing SEA and CXC math classes for the children in his community for the past three years.
Alleyne recalled the first time he asked the children what they wanted to become, all their responses were gun-related and some went as far as to say, gang leaders.
But now the children were desirous of careers in medicine, law, engineering, zoology, and even the military.
He credited God for his life’s success and for shaping him into the man he is today.
Asked what words best described him, he responded, “Hardworking, ambitious and innovative.”
Journey to JAC
Alleyne told AZP News, “Technical drawing and Autocad (a commercial computer-aided design and drafting software application) were his God-given talents but he really wanted to be an architect, however, was unable to afford studies in Jamaica and this led to Civil Engineering.”
While doing his degree at UTT San Fernando, he worked in construction to fund his studies but due to its intensive nature, he sometimes fell behind on assignments and fell asleep in class.
Alleyne remembered a breakdown in communication between his father who did construction and a client that resulted in him drawing house plans for his father’s business. This led to clearer direction on the project.
He paused to thank his father for believing in him and marketing him to his colleagues, who he also drew plans for, and from then to now, work has never stopped coming in.
JAC started seven years ago as a one-man show. Alleyne did everything from accounting to designs for about five years and realised his financial cap was achieved. His meetings would usually take place at any Starbucks location or be held virtually.
However, it was a podcast that taught him the difference between being an entrepreneur and having a business. And this was when Shurnelle Spencer, of S Creative Group, a new business at the time contacted him offering to provide social media content services to expand his business.
“I agreed and that’s when I realised my clientele increased and so too did the workflow. And I knew it was time to expand my business but I was adamant as I did not like to set deadlines and be disappointed,” he said.
Alleyne said JAC consisted of himself, another civil engineer, a social media content manager and four drafters two of whom were international people hired through Fiverr (online marketplace for freelance services) and the others local.
He also used Upwork (a freelancing platform) to also source potential clients and employees.
Right Balance
Alleyne said his business does not conflict with his current eight-to-four job. He said, “Everything is planned on the calendar which allows me to do the things I want and the operations of my business usually happens after dark.
He said, “I draw three times per week, either very early in the morning or late in the night and meetings are held once per week around 7 pm to ensure deadlines are met and persons understand their tasks.
“After work, I play football until after 6 or do something I enjoy. While Saturday nights are for liming and Sunday mornings for site visits.”
#1 Cheerleaders – Family
Alleyne said his biggest support system is his parents and younger brother.
“I usually discuss all my business ideas with my mom and she critiques them. And I also have close friends and cousins who support me as well with my endeavors.”
However, those outside his close circle only have to wonder and see what new ventures arise from J.A.C.
Birth of JAC Annual Business Networking Event
Laughing, Alleyne told AZP News that he wanted to give God thanks for seven years of business.
What was supposed to be a small gathering of ten friends, turned into an event with over 30 entrepreneurs in various fields at the Gasparillo Community Center in La Pastora, Santa Cruz.
“My friends then suggested the event be yearly but it was my interior decorator who gave me the idea on how to do the networking event,” he said.
Alleyne said for $100 patrons were treated to lectures on insurance, resilience during Covid and ways to scale up their businesses from industry professionals.
He said, “The event’s aim was to grow each other’s social media pages and also for me to see what others had to offer and how I could support them.”
Alleyne said he used what he called the MovieTowne business model. “I have never seen a commercial of MovieTowne but when persons go and experience it, they normally share the experience with everybody. My motive was if I can grow my business through this event, I expect people to grow theirs as well” he added.
The event also featured a speed networking segment where the young entrepreneurs were able to briefly pitch their business ideas to each other, share contact information and develop ties within the many industries represented.
Alleyne said, based on the excitement for the next installment of the event carded for August 7, 2023.
He said, “Every quarterly, we will have a clubhouse meeting where persons will come on say what they do, forward, like and subscribe everybody’s page and learn valuable information to grow and avoid different pitfalls.”
Keep Pushing Forward
Alleyne advised young people who want to start a business to get a mentor in the same field.
He said, “And never allow fear and the opinions of others to prevent you from starting something.”
Persons interested in networking opportunities or engineering services can call Alleyne at 470-0127.
