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HR services are in demand: Workplace Options grows
Aug 26, 2009 (The News & Observer - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) --
A Raleigh company that provides human-resources benefits to other businesses expects to add 50 employees by the end of this year and another 50 or so next year.
Workplace Options also announced Tuesday that it is doubling the size of its headquarters.
"In a funny way, the recession has been good for our business," said CEO and majority owner Dean Debnam. The company has 290 employees, including 182 in Raleigh. It also has offices in London and Dublin, Ireland.
Workplace Options offers services that address employees' need for a balance between work and their personal lives. Services include workplace wellness programs, backup care for children and elderly parents and financial counseling. The company provides some services directly and does referrals for others.
The recession is pushing companies to shop around for lower-price providers, Debnam said. At the same time, companies are cutting back their human resources staffs and are therefore interested in dealing with fewer providers. Both trends could play to Workplace Options' strengths, because it offers a range of services, and its bundling of services can keep prices down, Debnam said.
"We are winning more than our fair share of the new business that is becoming available," he said.
Workplace Options generated $28 million in revenue last year and expects revenue this year of $32 million to $36 million. Clients include pharma giant Pfizer, the University of Texas and Virgin Atlantic Airlines.
About one-third of the people the company plans to hire would be mental-health professionals, while another third would be legal and financial advisers.
Workplace Options joins other Triangle employers that have announced hiring plans recently, including Salix Pharmaceuticals, Time Warner Cable and ChannelAdvisor.
Workplace Options has signed a lease for a 30,000-square-foot building close to its existing 25,000-square-foot office near Interstate 440 and Capital Boulevard. It expects to move into the second building in December.
Debnam, the majority owner of Workplace Options, has been CEO since 1993. The business was founded in 1982 by his wife, Stephanie Fanjul, a former Raleigh City Council member.
Debnam owns two other local businesses, including Public Policy Polling, which conducts political polls and consumer surveys. He has found a way for Public Policy Polling and Workplace Options to work together, by using the polling business to conduct employee surveys that identify and track trends.
Staff writer Alan Wolf contributed to this story.
david.ranii@newsobserver.com or 919-829-4877
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