COVER STORY
Meet the Possible
Mission Team! They are
what the company is
made of. Shown from
left to right are Jessica
Alvarez, Sylvia Perez,
Paula, Jason Jarry, and
Arica Monterrey.
Photo by Gwen Juarez
Paula and Bobby also supported his son
through college. They were so proud when
he graduated twelfth in his class at Reagan
High School in the Heights. On top of
that, he was able to get scholarships on his
own. The funny thing is that as Paula continued her higher education after deciding
that getting an Associate’s Degree was not
enough, she began taking classes at the
University of Houston Downtown where
Bobby’s son was also taking classes!
learning about billable hours and what it
took to run a business. In addition, she
started attending a lot of networking
events. As a result, she encountered other minority women through the different
Chambers of Commerce and also began
volunteering for them. She soon discovered that her social skills were also a great
asset. “Actually”, remarked Paula, “I don’t
think you get anywhere without mentors
and without helping others.”
Fascinated with the criminal justice system, Paula worked hard to earn a degree in
Criminal Justice. Accomplishing this was
quite a feat because she did not feel confidant in the areas of mathematics and science. During this time, she participated
with the anti-gang task force, volunteering
and counseling in the juvenile justice system because she had wanted to become a
Probation Officer. She also had thought
about attending law school but talked
herself out of the idea with thoughts many
women struggle with, “I’m already married
and working. Law school is expensive and
I’m too old and not smart enough.” With
remorse, Paula remarked, “I talked myself
out of law school and now I could kick myself for it. It’s still on my bucket list.”
Soon after, Paula met Diva Garza who
became one of her mentors. With great
admiration and appreciation, Paula stated, “Diva leads by example”. Struggling
through many trials, Diva became a
strong business woman who eventually
grew to be a self-made millionaire when
she retired after selling her staffing company to Staffmark Staffing Company.”
Diva was asked to become a consultant to
Staffmark and one of the conditions Diva
gave when she was asked to stay on was
that Paula be hired for the position of National Director for Supplier Diversity. This
positioned Paula to be in line for great success! Staffmark was, and still is, a well-established national company throughout
the United States.
Paula’s desire to work full time led her in
a different direction as she headed towards
the administrative side of public relations
and marketing. Once again returning
to the business world, Paula worked her
way up through several small companies,
It was during this time that Paula became involved with MWBE (Minority
Women Business Enterprise). Most of the
business involving Staffmark entailed vendors who were a part of this organization
that included minorities, women, veter-
8 SMALL BUSINESS TODAY MAGAZINE [ APRIL 2015 ]
ans, and federally certified companies,
etc. “I would go all over the United States
working with their regional offices,” said
Paula. “I was visiting with small businesses
throughout the U.S. and working to establish partnerships between them and Staffmark. Unfortunately, it wasn’t happening
and my reputation was on the line.”
Even though it seemed like a beautiful
opportunity and she was making pretty
good money, Paula thought to herself,
“I’m not doing anything; I’m not accomplishing anything. When I look at these
small businesses, I’m not giving them
anything that they need and I’m wasting
their time.” So Paula said to her husband,
Bobby, “I think I can do this on my own.”
She gave herself six months and told her
parents she was quitting her secure job
at Staffmark to start her own business
which was going to be an expensive and
risky endeavor. In spite of their apprehensions, her entire family gave their
blessings and support.
Even when Paula decided she would
leave the company, her integrity and positive attitude followed her when she gave
her employer notice. To her surprise, he
offered her 30 days with salary to continue
working while starting up her own business! This g ]