Lifetime Achievement in Business: Patti Penny

Patti Penny

Patti Penny has come a long way from her first job as a waitress earning 35 cents an hour. Penny, who is regarded as one of Springfield's more successful entrepreneurs, is the owner and founder of Penmac Personnel Services Inc., which provides regular and temporary staffing solutions for employers in the manufacturing, clerical, industrial, healthcare and transportation industries.

Since its inception, the company has experienced phenomenal growth, and Penmac now has 28 branch offices in five states that employ more than 3,200 associates. In 1999, Penny spent $470,000 to open the Penmac Workforce Devel-opment Center, which offers a wide variety of job training programs, skills enhancement programs and basic education classes.

Penny's success hasn't gone unnoticed, and over the years, her company has received numerous awards. Recently, Working Woman magazine named Penmac as one of the Top 500 Women-Owned Businesses in the United States. From 1993 to 1996, Inc. magazine named Penmac as one of the 500 fastest growing, privately owned companies in America.

Although the local job market has shifted in recent months, Penmac has shifted right along with it. According to Penny, the demand for workers in the manufacturing sector has decreased while the demand for workers in the food services in-dustry has in-creased. As a re-sult, the company's Workforce Develop-ment Center now is providing more job training classes in this field.

Penmac also has started a new medical staffing service called Penmed. The service will allow Penmac's associates to capture more work in this rapidly expanding job sector.

In addition, the company is making plans to open a new office in Independence on Sept. 1. According to Penny, opening the office represents a big first step for the company because Penmac has never competed in a metropolitan area before.

"We've gone through a lot of changes recently, but I still believe the best is yet to come," Penny said. "There are just so many opportunities out there right now, and I see a lot of room for growth."