Flexible Staffing, Inc. is true to its name.
It fields a flexible cadre of talented workers for temporary, full-time
and professional placements at an endless variety of businesses throughout
northwest, north central and central Missouri.
"Our motto is: 'We create a world of opportunity by matching the
best people and services to the best companies,'" says Carol Gregg,
founder, owner and president of Flexible Staffing.
The company, with offices in Chillicothe and Warrensburg, has a permanent
full-time staff of seven and has placed a workforce of more than 800
people with specialties in such divergent areas as manufacturing,
human resources, sales, safety and accounting. Flexible Staffing's
sales last year reached $2 million.
And that's after less than two years in business.
Gregg, who has a background in economic/community development and
training, started the firm in June 2003.
"Recruiting companies into rural communities has been a passion of
mine for almost 15 years," explains Gregg. "So when I got involved
with staffing, finding labor for those companies as well as helping
bring good companies to rural communities seemed like a great fit.
"I jumped ship from my old employer one Tuesday at the end of May.
With the help of the SBDC (Small Business
Development Center) and several good friends, I put together and opened
Flexible Staffing the following Monday."
Gregg needed solid business data in order to seek start-up financing.
So she turned to counselors at the Chillicothe office of the Missouri
SBDC — part of the extension mission of the University of Missouri
— for help in projecting cash flow estimates and developing a
business plan and a marketing program. Counselors Jeannie Dau and
Lurinda Turner helped Gregg and Flexible Staffing meet the initial
requirements of setting up the business. The two SBDC specialists
also provided advice concerning the periodic challenges that surfaced
during the first year of the enterprise.
Jim Hunt, another SBDC professional and director of the center at
Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, has high praise
for Gregg's entrepreneurial talents: "Flexible Staffing has made a
significant contribution to the rural economy. Carol Gregg is a very
motivated individual who has worked extremely hard to build her business,
and is very involved in her community."
And what is Gregg's analysis of the guidance she has received from
the SBDC specialists? She credits them with providing a big portion
of her firm's springboard to success.
"I have been so impressed with the expertise the SBDC specialists
have to offer their clients, and their willingness to help with the
business-sense guidance they have given me," says Gregg. "I believe
SBDC offers an incredible service to entrepreneurs in our area."
Because of the success demonstrated by Gregg's company, Flexible
Staffing represented MO SBDC at the first Client
Showcase and Legislative Breakfast Feb. 10, in the State Capitol
Rotunda in Jefferson City.
At that event hosted by MO SBDC, Flexible Staffing and 24 other outstanding
Missouri companies met with legislators to discuss their products
and services. They also received recognition for their contributions
to the economic development of the state of Missouri. Recognition
from MO SBDC was accompanied by legislative resolutions presented
to each company by its district state senator and state representative.
For more information on the services of the MO SBDC program, call
Jim Hunt, center director at the Northwest Missouri State University
SBDC, at 660/562-1701 or e-mail him at jhunt@mail.nwmissouri.edu.s
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