Carja Construction Inc. founder and owner Carly Puleo was recently featured in a profile on leadership, and the story begins somewhere you might not expect: an elementary school classroom.
Before she poured her first slab, Puleo earned a degree in Elementary Education from the University of South Florida and taught for five years. Those years shaped how she leads today. Patience, communication, preparation, and helping people believe in themselves became the core values she carried into business.
The move into construction was not planned. As a single mother raising three children, Puleo was focused on building a secure future for her family. A conversation with a student’s mother about the need for legitimate women- and minority-owned businesses in the industry planted the seed. Drawing on her family’s construction background, she founded Carja Construction Inc. in 2012.
The early years were a test. Pulling from her father, Ross, and brother, Anthony, for guidance, Puleo built credibility in a traditionally male-dominated field the only way it can be built: one job at a time. An early opportunity to pour concrete for Julian B. Lane Park and its Visitor Center became a defining project and proof of what the young company could do.
Her leadership philosophy is simple. Confidence paired with preparation. Results over resentment. As she puts it in the feature, “I believe leadership is not only about proving people wrong; it is about proving what is possible.”
Today, Carja Construction is guided by integrity, accountability, respect, and a solution-oriented mindset, whether the work is changing skylines, supporting women in business, or giving back to the community.
