Face to Face - May 2005

Face to Face

Name: Cornelius Eason

Title: President

Company: Priority Staffing USA

Type of Business: Employment services, temporary staffing, executive recruitment

Location: Las Vegas

Years in Nevada: 7

Years with Company: 7

Managing the transformation of a start-up business as it grows, without losing the flexibility and creativity that caused the initial success. As we add more staff, develop structure and procedures, we face the risk of forgetting how to "bob and weave."

Having the opportunity each day to make a difference in the success of our clients’ businesses and the lives of our employees. Our employees do the work that allows our clients’ businesses to succeed, while earning wages that provide for their families.

I have very active daughters ages 5 and 8. My wife and I spend a lot of time encouraging and supporting them.

Focus on results and goal achievement and act with integrity. "It’s not how neat the aisles of the warehouse are; it’s filling the order correctly and satisfying the customer that counts."

We assembled a team of hardworking, dedicated individuals, entered the marketplace and competed successfully.

In general, it’s an employees’ market. The opening of the new Wynn resort has created quite a "churn" that has people moving from one place to another. In response to this, large companies, especially resort properties, are trying to make their work environments as attractive as possible by offering training, upgrading their dining facilities, etc. So far, they are not raising wages.

Name: Bill Heim

Title: Headmaster

Company: Sage Ridge School

Type of Business: Independent, co-educational day school

Location: Reno

Years in Nevada: 7

Years with Company: 3

Getting our message in front of the public: what we do, who we are, how we do what we do, and the quality of our product.

The fact that I can daily make a difference in people’s lives – not only students, but also teachers and parents. We have town meetings every day at the school; I teach classes and act as advisor to the Student Leadership Council, so I am constantly interacting with students and parents, dealing with personal issues as well as educational ones. I still get letters from students I taught 30 years ago, and that’s gratifying.

Reading – my books of choice are about subcontinental Asian history – and traveling.

Lead from the front; don’t ask your employees to do anything you wouldn’t do.

I would like to be known for creating the first successful independent college preparatory school in Northern Nevada.

For several reasons, we are able to help our students achieve their maximum potential, whether they have average skills or are very bright. We recruit teachers from all over the world, and make sure they have a depth and breadth in their subject matter. In addition, we offer personalized attention. Our largest classes are only 16 to 18 students, allowing teachers to give each child the individual attention he or she needs to succeed.