We’re thrilled that our President & CEO Dave Shaffer has been named a finalist for the second year in a row in Ernst & Young’s 2012 Entrepreneur of the Year® Awards. Dave is being recognized, in part, for paving an entrepreneurial pathway in the world of alternative staffing.
So, what is alternative staffing? Alternative staffing agencies operate just like your standard staffing agency–solving labor market issues for businesses–but with the added goal of helping disadvantaged individuals access job placements on a competitive basis. In DePaul Industries’ case, we focus on creating employment opportunities for people with disabilities–the nation’s largest minority group.
Traditionally, acquiring employment for people with disabilities and other disadvantaged groups comes from government policies, grants, and quotas. This is where the entrepreneurial piece kicks in: Rather than relying on outside regulations, alternative staffing organizations go where the jobs are–in the business world–and compete just as any other staffing agency. Bottom line? They get the job done.
Leveraging a model that already exists in the for-profit world for social benefit may seem like an overly simplistic idea, but often the best entrepreneurial ideas are. In the words of Peter F. Drucker, innovator and namesake of the Drucker Institute, “The greatest praise an innovation can receive is for people to say: ‘This is obvious. Why didn’t I think of it? It’s so simple!’” Alternative staffing is proof that people with disabilities make up a highly efficient and successful workforce.
The Entrepreneur of the Year Awards for the Pacific Northwest region will be presented at a special gala on June 15, 2012 at the Hyatt Regency Bellevue in Washington. Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards are nationally sponsored in the United States by SAP America and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. In the Pacific Northwest, local sponsors include ADP, Puget Sound Business Journal, Scherzer International, The Big Picture Video Film & Arts, and Union Bank.
Want to learn more about Alternative Staffing and its entrepreneurial approach? Check out the Alternative Staffing Alliance.
