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Our History and Our Future:
Dikita Celebrates Three Decades and Three Generations
During the past three decades, Dikita Enterprises has survived three economic storms without laying anyone off
due to financial reasons. Dikita has designed and/or managed over a billion dollars in projects including transit, aviation, transportation, schools (k-12) and universities, infrastructure, water resources as well as sports and entertainment complexes. Dikita was founded by Lucious Williams, our current Chairman of the Board, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin after he sold his car for $6,000 and used it for startup capital. Dikita maintains corporate headquarters in Dallas, Texas, and employs a total of 62 people.
Mr. Williams says, “Part of the reason our company has survived through some tough times is because we learned to diversify early on.” Dikita, which started out as a civil design firm, also provides planning, transit data collection, and program/construction management services. “2001 was our worst year ever. It started out weak and then worsened when all of our airport contracts were frozen because of the September 11th terrorist attacks. We had to concentrate on other markets, like education and public transit. Fortunately, my daughter and I had saved for lean times, and were able to continue to pay our employees while we only took one month salary that year.”
He also attributes the longevity enjoyed by our firm to outstanding services, dedicated personnel, and high client satisfaction – resulting in a high level of repeat business. Three of the largest projects include:
- Data Collection services for Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) since 1991
- Two terms as Bond Program Managers for Dallas Area Independent School District (DISD)
- DART’s sole provider of light rail car vehicle inspection QA services in Dallas and Japan, since 1993
Lucious hired his daughter Eve, Dikita’s current President and CEO, before she graduated from college. “I computerized the financials in 1986, before desktops were popular,” says Eve, who earned a BBA and an MBA degree in accounting and information systems. “I brought the first computer to the company: my graduation present. We have been a great team for over 27 years, with Dad’s engineering and marketing experience, and my financial and management knowledge.”
Eve’s daughter, Erika Warren, has joined the family business. Erika works at Dikita via Internet, providing transit data quality control, while pursuing a degree in International Studies at Texas A&M University - College Station. “I am glad to have this business legacy of survival and excellence to pass on to my daughter and granddaughters,” Lucious Williams says.
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| Lucious and Evalynn Williams – photo from the Fort Worth Star Telegram, May 1990 |
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