Dickey Electric transitions to next generation of leadership

Staff report

NORTH LIMA

Dickey Electric, a North-Lima based electrical contractor that has been in business in the Valley for 61 years, announced Wednesday it has begun the process of transitioning to the third generation of company leadership.

The family business will be led by Eric Carlson, an employee who has worked at Dickey Electric for 27 years, according to a news release. Carlson, who started working there as a teenager, was named company president last year.

“We are very proud of what our family has accomplished,” said CEO Dave Dickey. “It’s simply time to start making the necessary transitions so that our company can be here another 60-plus years. We’re only able to do this because of the confidence we have in Eric. He is a young man who literally grew up in our shop and will continue to maintain and grow the legacy and success we’ve experienced since my dad started the company in 1957.”

The company said the transition will occur gradually, and no significant operational changes are planned.

“We’re still going to be ‘Joe’ Dickey Electric and we’ll continue to operate with the same focus on providing the highest level of customer service and investing in our people that my mentors Joe Jr. and Dave Dickey have long established,” said Carlson. “I can’t think of a better place to be, and I’m fortunate to have had the opportunity to not only learn this business from the best, but from the ground up.”

Joe Dickey founded the company in 1957. His son, Dave Dickey, took over as president of the company in 1984. At that time, Dickey Electric employed about 15 full-time employees; today, it employs about 100 full-time employees and about 350 during peak construction periods, the company said.

Carlson studied electrical engineering at Youngstown State University. He resides in Berlin Center with his family.