Prince William entrepreneur is runner-up for national SBA award

Published May 17, 2017 by Robert Powell, III

Corliss Udoema, a Prince William County entrepreneur, was a finalist for U.S. Small Business Administration’s National Small Business Person of the Year.

Udoema, the president and CEO of Contract Solutions Inc., is the 2017 Virginia Small Business Person of the Year.

She was third runner-up in the national competition announced earlier this month in Washington, D.C., during National Small Business Week.

The national winners were Garrett and Melanie Marrero of Maui Brewing Co. in Hawaii.

Udoema was one of 54 winners in the running for the national award from across the U.S. and its territories.

She founded Contract Solutions Inc. in 2006 after a 32-year career with the federal government.

The company has grown from a one-person company operating from her kitchen table to a multi-million-dollar business. 

CSI is a staffing and consulting company providing professional support services to federal and state government agencies, and private sector clients. 

The company's primary areas of focus include: administrative, business, logistics, acquisition, human resources, training, and general management consulting support and services. 

Udoema is also founder and president of Agape Love in Action (ALIA), a nonprofit organization that she established to assist those in need. 

In addition, Udoema is a small-business SCORE counselor, providing business mentoring to other entrepreneurs.