In 2025, WBENC continues its legacy of honoring exceptional women business owners through the WBE Star Award. Each WBE Star has been hand-selected by one of the 14 Regional Partner Organizations, with a special focus this year on honoring those who embody the spirit of “ACCELERATE” by championing progress, growth, and advancement for themselves, their businesses, and the communities they serve. The WBE Star Award stands as a powerful acknowledgment of the profound impact these extraordinary women have made throughout their careers, shaping industries and inspiring lasting changes in their communities.
The 2025 WBE Stars will be celebrated throughout the year, culminating at the vibrant WBENC National Conference from June 23-26, 2025, in New Orleans, Louisiana. This dynamic event will serve as a hub for business excellence, innovation, and networking. Thousands of attendees will gather to celebrate the strength and rich tapestry of the WBENC Network. It will be a time to recognize the ongoing contributions of entrepreneurs and change makers, including the 14 exceptional WBE Stars, who are ACCELERATING impact across the network.
Meet Michelle Aristeo Barton, President of Aristeo Construction, with the Great Lakes Women’s Business Council Regional Partner Organization. Michelle is a trailblazer in the construction industry. With over 20 years at Aristeo, Michelle has spearheaded strategic growth initiatives and driven the company’s success. Her outstanding accomplishments have earned her several prestigious accolades, including Crain’s 40 Under 40, Crain’s Notable Women in Construction, DBusiness’s “30 In Their Thirties,” and Women’s Enterprise Magazine WBE CEO of the Year.
In both her career and educational background, Michelle exemplifies leadership and discipline. Michelle successfully transitioned Aristeo’s leadership team from its first to second generation in 2018, solidifying its future with her innovative strategies and keen understanding of Aristeo’s position in the industry. Under her visionary leadership, Aristeo has expanded its influence across manufacturing, energy, industrial, and commercial markets.
Get inspired by Michelle’s insights, and stay tuned for more wisdom from the other 2025 WBE Stars throughout the year!
Founded in 1977 as a small excavating and concrete contractor, Aristeo started with humble beginnings: only $10,000 and a truck. Since then, Aristeo has scaled into one of the nation’s leading general contractors. Aristeo prioritizes safety, integrity, excellence, and getting the work done – the right way. Based in Livonia, Michigan, Aristeo Construction plans, manages, and executes their customers’ largest strategic programs nationwide. Aristeo offers a complete range of services, including general contracting, design/build, construction management, steel fabrication and erection, civil and concrete services. As the construction industry has changed, Aristeo has remained true to the core values built into the foundation of their business decades ago. Because of their commitment to these values, Aristeo remains a chosen partner to globally recognized customers in the manufacturing, commercial, power & energy, and industrial markets.
Wisdom from WBE Star, Michelle Aristeo Barton
For business owners and leaders who are looking to ACCELERATE their success, what key advice or actionable steps would you recommend for them to implement today?
From a strategic perspective, instead of focusing on changing our business, we have grown by doubling down on the things we excel at and taking those to new areas.
I would recommend investing in your team and your future workforce. We provide a rewarding environment full of opportunities for personal and professional fulfillment across our team. Aristeo University is a bi-annual training course for all Aristeo team members that promotes continuous professional development. Now in its sixth year, we’ve provided thousands of hours of training across numerous disciplines.
Can you share personal strategies or actions that have successfully AMPLIFIED efforts in the WBENC community over the past year? How can those strategies be built upon to ACCELERATE outcomes in 2025?
Through formal and informal mentorship programs, Aristeo has mentored dozens of WBEs over the last few years. The most rewarding part of this is when we see our mentees achieve high levels of success—we have amplified the voices of our female mentees to help them grow and succeed. A number of our mentees in the MentorWe cohorts decided to also become mentors to subsequent cohorts, which created a ripple effect that helps more WBEs. In fact, two of our MentorWe mentees received public recognition in 2024 – Gwen Hale was the 2024 GLWBC WBE Star, and Tiffany Klingensmith received the 2024 Michigan SBA Small Business Person of the Year.
Provide an example of how Environmental, Sustainability or Governance initiatives have helped you overcome a challenge, pivot, or adapt your business.
Aristeo entered the renewable energy sector about twenty years ago, a few years prior to the 2008 recession. We saw an opportunity to take our existing operational capabilities to a new market, and the leadership team worked to secure our first projects building wind farms. To date, we have created 2 gigawatts of renewable energy for our clients, and are now engaged in clean energy through numerous battery energy storage system projects.
What legacy do you hope to leave in the business community?
Our grandfather’s advice when he co-founded Aristeo was, “Work hard, be honest, be safe, respect people, and do the work right.” I hope that when our next generation of leadership takes the helm, they understand that our entire leadership team practiced stewardship of this company—that we delivered excellence to our customers, provided our employees with significant opportunities for growth, and improved across our business functions to better serve our customers and our team.
What suggestions would you like to share with a newly certified WBE who is looking to get involved in the WBENC community?
I would say first to get involved in your regional council and make connections with other WBEs and with corporate members. Attend conferences and other networking sessions, and be prepared to pitch your business formally and informally. Also, plan to scale your business by joining mentorship programs and learning the strategic planning process so you are ready for shifts in the market.
Learn More about Aristeo Construction.
