ASHTABULA TOWNSHIP — Elite Employment Center, owned and operated by Angela Kendall, is celebrating 15 years of success and expansion.
Kendall opened the business in 2010 in a small, 1,100 square-foot office with one part-time assistant.
“We started in a very saturated staffing market,” Kendall said. “There were probably seven other staffing agencies in town when I opened. Everyone said, ‘you shouldn’t do this, you’re crazy.’ It was a big challenge, especially being one of the first female owners of a staffing company in the area. But I just said, ‘I’m going all-in.’”
Now, Elite Employment Center, located at 3120 Market Place Dr., occupies a 4,400 square-foot office with a full-time team of eight.
The business has earned recognition for its dedication to client service, community involvement and high-quality job placements.
Over the years, Elite Employment has seen a major shift in the staffing industry, with many of the jobs once deemed low-skill or undesirable now being replaced by skilled positions across various sectors.
“When I first opened, we had all these applicants, but not enough jobs,” Kendall said. “There was a stigma that staffing agencies only offered jobs that no one wanted. That is just not the case at all.
“Flash forward to today, we have amazing jobs and it’s balancing out more to where we have more jobs to fit the candidates needs. You can come in entry-level or we have all the way up. We’re placing engineers and supervisors.”
The center has expanded its services beyond traditional temporary staffing, now working with companies exclusively to fill permanent roles. She said company loyalty has been amazing, and her team takes staffing the positions very seriously.
“I’d say 85% of what we do is in local manufacturing,” Kendall said. “I’ve learned so much about the industry, and we have such a strong manufacturing base right here in Ashtabula County.
“It’s amazing once you dig in, what actually gets made here. We’re placing people in jobs that are going to be around for a long time. It’s a great feeling to be a part of that.”
Elite Employment Center is currently staffing more than 40 companies, and offering 200-plus job opening county-wide, according to their website.
She said employees always feel comfortable providing feedback after being hired.
“I think that when you come here, you [don’t] instantly get that feeling of, ‘oh you’re just a number,” Kendall said. “We want to know about you and we want to help you.”
The center introduced Elite transit, which provides transportation to the job.
“We want to make sure we’re breaking down the barriers for them to be successful,” Kendall said. “We pick them up at their door and that’s the biggest difference. They are so grateful.”
In 2019, the company won the Business Excellence Award through Growth Partnership.
“For me, that was always one of those awards that I was chasing,” she said. “I would go to these events and see other staffing companies get them and say, ‘I really want that award some day.’ So for me, that is a highlight.”
Kendall’s journey has been marked by a commitment to giving back to the community that supported her from the beginning.
“I was born and raised here,” she said. “My husband and I built a home in Geneva about 10 years ago and we have four kids. I just wanted to build my business here and I wanted to give back to the community. They’ve been so amazing to me and always supported me from day one.”
In addition to her work with the employment center, Kendall founded the Kendall Foundation, which has raised significant funds for local causes, including a partnership with University Hospitals, raising $57,000 for the Seidman Cancer Center in Conneaut and numerous organizations throughout Ashtabula County.
The foundation recently raised $8,800 for Feed Our Vets Ashtabula.
“I love this community,” she said. “When I started this business, I wanted to make sure we gave back. I never imagined it would grow to this extent, but we’ve been able to make a real difference. It’s been amazing.”
The foundation started as a response to a personal tragedy in 2018 when Kendall had complications after the birth of her daughter.
She needed four units of blood to survive a postpartum hemorrhage, and the experience inspired her to start hosting blood drives with the Red Cross.
The blood drive, hosted at Ashtabula Towne Square, turned into one of the biggest blood drives in the county.
Eventually, the foundation expanded to support a variety of causes, especially during the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We couldn’t do our normal fundraisers, so we started an online fundraising platform on Facebook,” Kendall said. “It took off. We now have almost 7,000 members from across the country.”
Kendall said one of the most rewarding aspects of her work is helping people who might not otherwise have a chance at employment, including those in sober living situations or experiencing homelessness.
“I’ve had some of my clients tell me that some of the best workers they’ve ever had were homeless or in sober living and they’re turning their life around,” she said. “They’re taking it very seriously, the second chance that they’re getting. It’s been really nice that we’re making them productive members of our community.”
Kendall said she is focused on progressing the work that has made the company such a pillar in Ashtabula County, with plans to grow her team.
“I want to continue to be a strong presence in this community in Ashtabula County,” she said. “That has always been our focus, since day one. We want to see the people of Ashtabula County succeed, stay here and be productive.”
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