Community Highlights: Meet Denise Pavona of Spherion Staffing & Recruiting

Today we’d like to introduce you to Denise Pavona.

Denise, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin? 
Thank you for the opportunity to share my story; I will start by saying I am a big believer in knowing you’re ‘why.’ Simply stated, my why is more about helping others find their passion, discovering opportunities where individuals can thrive and survive in this turbulent economy and job market, and bettering themselves as well as our communities. But there’s always more to the story. For me, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that blossomed into a 30-year-long career in IT. With no college degree or specialized training, I was fortunate enough that my colleagues saw the potential and offered me that chance where I continued to learn, earn, and thrive. Now, it’s my turn to give those chances to others. 

So how did I get here? After relocating to the Triangle in 2017, I was leading a global campus recruiting program for a large global financial institution. Within the program, we had more than 300 college interns and graduates combined, in a rotational program that spanned six countries. Advocating for and supporting these beautiful minds is how I found my why and true passion for people. It was truly the most rewarding experience of my career until I became a business owner. 

In 2019, together with my husband of 28 years, the decision was made to focus our energy and resources on broadening into entrepreneurship where we could support more people in their career aspirations. That is how we found and became franchise owners of Spherion Staffing & Recruiting, a nationally recognized brand with more than 75 years of know-how under their belt and the most highly awarded staffing agency nationally. It was the ideal solution, even if the timing of it was less than perfect but I’ve been quoted saying – opening in 2020 was a blessing and a curse! 

After purchasing the franchise, we set to open our doors in March of 2020, the day the world shut down, and thankfully, by the Grace of God, we are able to look back on that experience humbly and gratefully. Who opens a business at the height of a worldwide pandemic? I guess people like us do, people who believe in themselves and the power of living there. Why? With a dash of grit and determination, our doors ‘opened’ but not exactly as planned. In the first three months of opening, I spent my time working remotely, like most of the world; the difference was no one was looking for me – I was looking for them. The networking and Zoom fatigue set in, but we persevered and had our first full-time employee and made our first temp-to-hire placement in July. That first placement ended up going permanent with the company, and he is still working there today. A true testament to living your why, I couldn’t have dreamed of a better outcome to this story and how it began given the circumstances of opening a new business during a pandemic. 

In 2021, we welcomed business partner Daisy Lilley, formerly the VP of Marketing at Spherion. Leveraging each other’s strengths, Daisy leads sales, marketing, and new business development while I focus on delivery, recruiting, and operations. In 2022, with 94% growth, we earned recognition for Sales Excellence and Multi-Million Dollar Growth for the year across all Spherion locations nationally. We also earned the President’s award in 2022, one of the fastest franchisees to achieve such status. 

We continue to expand our footprint throughout five counties in and around the Triangle (Wake, Durham, Johnston, Orange, and Franklin). 

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The road has seen many detours over the last few years. The COVID pandemic impacted how we started and continues to have lingering effects on the job market in general. With an increased demand for remote work, a low unemployment rate, and a high demand for skilled/trade labor, we made the decision to pivot our strategy toward general staffing, focusing on biotechnology, distribution, and manufacturing. This shift was unchartered waters for us as business owners, but our why and passion for what we do did not waver, which I believe is contributory to the success we’ve had. 

The cost of living and stress on our economy has also contributed to the challenge. We’ve seen many employers struggle with turnover due to higher salary demands. We offer salary insights to employers at no charge to help them remain competitive in their market when it comes to attracting and retaining workers. 

The other hurdle was building our internal team. Today, we are able to accommodate a flexible, hybrid working environment, but the business does not allow for a fully remote atmosphere, which proved to be challenging in the beginning when everyone was told to remain at home. Happy to say we’re over the hurdle and are fully staffed with a phenomenal team of like-minded folks who share our passion. 

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next, you can tell us a bit more about your business.
We love what we do! That is first and foremost what sets us apart from all the rest, this is not just a job, it’s a true passion. 

We are invested in our community and give back as much as we can. Over the last 4 years, we’ve contributed to organizations including A Seat at the Table, Durham Rescue Mission, and Dress for Success, to name a few. Giving back comes in many forms, including our time. We’ve planted trees, washed dishes, given talks, and awarded non-profits monetarily as well. Spherion nationally awards deserving recipients each year under the ‘Sandy Mazur Scholarship program, which is currently running and actively accepting applications. If that isn’t enough, you will often find us dropping off cold drinks and treats to our employees, celebrating their successes, and giving away cash and prizes in our annual Spherion Sweepstakes. 

We’ve heard from several employers in the area how much they appreciate our local presence; we call it our ‘superpower’! 

We truly believe in making an ideal match for our candidates and clients. It’s not about filling a job but about filling the right job with the right candidate where both will benefit long term. Many of our employees have converted from temporary to full-time permanent status, which is attributable to our approach in ensuring that an ideal match is achieved. 

Our services are an extension of internal human resource teams – when you think about the number of applicants applying to one job, having one team manage the review and selection process, it can be overwhelming. That’s why we’re here! We can relieve the burden for employers with faster response times in getting their positions filled and providing increased retention thus saving employers time and money on recruiting expenses and eliminating the burden of a bad hire. 

Whether you’re looking to augment staff temporarily or build upon your team to prepare for growth, we are here to support a variety of businesses. From light industrial (manufacturing, production, distribution, and warehousing), clerical, biotech, and professional (sales and marketing, IT, accounting, and finance). We have a diverse team with expertise to support a large landscape of industries. 

Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
The staffing industry, comprised of more than 20,000 staffing firms and nearly 17 million staffing employees, contributes over $160 billion to the U.S. economy through temporary and contract staffing, recruiting and permanent placement, outsourcing and outplacement, and human resource consulting. 

Companies depend on staffing employees to get through busy seasons and to support major projects, new clients, and business growth. The flexibility staffing provides gives companies a competitive edge in matching resources and payroll to the needs at hand. More and more, companies are placing an increased premium on more flexible and agile workforces—and staffing plays a vital role in that strategy. 

For employees, staffing offers a number of compelling benefits. At the top of that list is a bridge to permanent jobs—nearly nine out of 10 staffing employees say that temporary or contract work makes them more employable. One-half say it’s a way to get a permanent job. One-third of temporary and contract employees were offered permanent positions by clients where they worked on assignments—two-thirds of those accepted the offers of employment. 

Time has shown that staffing isn’t just good for our economy; it is an essential industry that provides vital flexibility and support to businesses and opportunities and flexibility for employees. And as the economy continues to evolve, with information and connectivity coming to dominate its core, the staffing, recruiting, and workforce solutions industry is prepared to provide the vital support businesses need to grow and prosper. 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.spherion.com/raleigh
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=spherion%20staffing%20raleigh
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/spherion-raleigh/?viewAsMember=true