By Jeanette Prenger

      ECCO Select’s first million dollars came five years after we launched. I started the business off slowly in 1995 as an independent consultant, and began executing a business plan created for a simple business model.

      I refined and enhanced my simple business model for project-based services by purchasing a direct hire agency in 1998. The companies that this agency had agreements with allowed me to diversify my client base. This led to my ability to diversify my services and make my first $1 million in 2000. There are a lot of companies similar to mine, but I knew we were doing things right by constantly looking at where the biggest needs were and sincerely trying to help those who partnered with us.

The Millionth – A Milestone
      We never officially celebrated ECCO’s first million. Over the years we’ve had parties with our staff, consultants and clients celebrating the company’s many achievements. Each year we’ve been honored with industry awards and we take time to celebrate with the people who have worked so hard to make our company successful.

How We Succeeded
      By quickly impressing the management at Trans World Airlines (TWA) with an innate ability to match the right candidate with the right project time and time again, and providing consultants of exemplary quality, ECCO became a trusted source for staffing. As ECCO’s reputation for quality grew, corporations such as Aquila, Sprint, H&R Block and others, soon became the foundation of our client base.

      The Y2K business challenge provided ECCO Select with a high volume of requests for information technology professionals. We formulated a strategic plan with a realistic view of what the market would demand after the Y2K rush ended, allowing ECCO to continue on a growth pattern while other information consulting service companies floundered due to lack of demand. Building trust and reliability with our clients was paramount in ECCO’s early success.

Development and Diversity
      Recently, we expanded our office space to accommodate a growing number of recruiters and sales staff. Each individual staffer is responsible for a particular area of expertise, which has provided us an opportunity to develop and diversify candidate offerings.

      Hiring a business development manager with knowledge, experience and contacts is sure to expand ECCO’s revenue streams within the public sector (i.e., federal, state and local governments). A direct result of this has been our opening a Washington, D.C. office in the past couple of years. We are excited about expansion within this market and look forward to the challenge of developing relationships and generating more business across the United States.

Jeanette Pregner is founder and president of ECCO Select. You can reach her at or (816) 960-3800.