In 1996, three college friends started a company from a spare room of a house in Charlotte, North Carolina. Within three months, they had hired one recruiter, added one phone and placed their first two consultants. Twenty-five years, 21 locations, 5,000 employees, 350-plus clients and four acquisitions later, ettain group is now the 12th-largest IT staffing company in the US. Having joined the company in 2018, I don’t claim credit, but I can tell you with certainty what got us here and what will continue to drive our success.

People and Partnerships Worth Investing In

Whether we have five or 5,000, we value each of our employees and know building a great relationship with them is of absolute importance. As we continue to grow, we continue to look for people who fit the job description and our corporate culture. Then, from day one, we empower these employees to be leaders, and we invest in their professional growth as far as they want to take it. The investment we make in our employees fuels the dedication they have to serve our customers — establishing themselves as a trusted resource for the client.

We align ourselves with clients who value the solutions and experience we provide; clients who understand the value of the ettain group and are committed to our success. This approach enables us to focus on giving our very best to each existing and new customer and has been a driving force behind our geographic expansion. In several instances, we’ve opened an office based on client needs — relocating employees to new offices, hiring staff, and growing the market. This benefits our local communities by providing more opportunities for job seekers and expanding our philanthropic efforts. Our client and talent base notice these investments in people, and for 10 consecutive years, we’ve earned the industry’s Best of Staffing Diamond Award, a designation held by less than 1% in our industry.

Process With Purpose

Companies need to secure in-demand talent before their competitors have a chance. We help our clients do so through our hiring process, which reduces the time-to-hire and offers clients a competitive edge. We intentionally follow the same process when we seek internal employees, enabling us to hire the best of the best fast.

Year after year, our trademarked selection process successfully enables us to fill positions 24 days faster than the industry average. How? It makes sure that no one’s time is wasted – not the candidate’s, not the client’s, not ours. We intentionally gain the client’s commitment to the process before we get started.

Innovation, Adaptability and Resiliency

2020 brought its challenges, but we were prepared for the most part because of all the things mentioned above and our focus on researching and employing innovative technologies, adapting to the changing staffing and economic environments, and maintaining resiliency through times of uncertainty.

We partnered with our clients to reimagine solutions in a remote world and to enable them to hire talent for critical projects quickly. We rolled our sleeves up and assisted our clients in the shift to a more remote-enabled selection process and workforce in a way that will continue to drive efficiencies for years to come.

Our founders set the groundwork for us 25 years ago and challenged us to never forget what it takes to be and stay great. In the words of our founding CEO, Jeff Harris: “We did not create this business to be a staffing company. We created this business to be a great company.” I have observed first-hand what a great company is since I joined ettain group, and I’m blown away by the culture and the professionalism, dedication and true grit that our employees exhibit each day.