Hero Highlight: Pam Stanczewski, CEO, Central Point Partners

Companies and Leaders, Doing Right By Their Customers, Partners, and Employees

Look around. Companies are having to pivot, innovate, and get creative. Some are leading by example. We get inspired by leaders who are willing to take a risk in order to shift their business and protect their employees. Each week at reachXOD, we highlight companies who are going above and beyond to connect to their employees and customers during a time of uncertainty. 

This week’s Hero Highlight is Pam Stanczewski, CEO and Founder of Central Point Partners, a leader in IT Staffing, IT Services, and Technology Solutions Reselling. We hope Pam’s story of courageous risk taking and decision making will inspire you. She is a champion for women-owned businesses and frankly, for small businesses in general. She is an innovative and successful entrepreneur who cares deeply for her employees, whom she considers family. 

Connection and community have never been more important. We’re celebrating companies like Central Point Partners and leaders like Pam Stanczewski who are demonstrating sound decision making, creative thinking, empathy, human connection, and resiliency. Not only do they deserve recognition, but they also provide context to real life business strategies that you and your company can model. 

After 17 years with a national staffing company, Pam and her team were informed that the owners intended to sell. This devastating news lit a fire under Pam, and she began creating a new business out of sheer necessity. The writing was on the wall. The company that Pam and her team had built and had planned to retire from, was no longer an option. Pam needed to think fast. She hustled to start up a new company, and her team decided to follow. Pam took on the responsibility of her team’s salaries--and their future. Out of the ashes, Central Point Partners was born. The new company struggled at first, but the team came together as a family and rebuilt something sustainable from the ground up. If you ask Pam what helps motivate her, she will quote this powerful statement:

A woman of strength knows that it is in the journey where she will become strong.

-Luke Easter

Fast forward eight years later to 2020. The pandemic has taken many small businesses down to their knees--but not Central Point Partners. The transition to enable remote workforces has proven to be a monumental challenge for many companies. However, the Central Point team has worked remotely from day 1, allowing a work/life balance that the employees and leadership agreed was a top priority. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why Central Point Partners has been named to INC Best Workplaces and INC Fastest Growing Companies for 2 years in a row. They are on a roll!

When it was clear it would not be business “as usual” for a long time, Pam knew that she and her team must innovate in order to survive. They quickly shifted so they could expand service offerings to add information security products where they had seen an increase in demand. They are adapting to, and learning about other new products/services to continue to adapt their business to the needs of their clients. Pam and her team are also looking for opportunities to expand into other markets such as healthcare and telecom. They have expanded their executive search model, and in just a few weeks, they are launching a new website. The Central Point Partners team have been busy, to say the least. The pandemic has not slowed them down, but rather has accelerated their plans for growth. 

Another way Central Point has been innovative recently is in a renewed commitment to partnering with their clients to find creative ways to support them through their own pandemic business challenges. They continue seeking unique solutions for their partners as well as for their own business. This is the time to strengthen relationships with your employees, vendors, customers, and other partners. 

Transparent communication is another way that Pam shines as a leader. She shared openly with her employees about the PPP loan status and how it might affect their business decisions. Open, transparent communication is even more important during a crisis. This creates positive corporate culture during the crisis and beyond. 

How employees show up for work each and every day is a key indicator of culture and morale. Pam shared that she feels fortunate to have a team of employees from diverse backgrounds who value one hero trait above all others--trust. They trust one another and have each other’s back. They lift each other up and are a source of encouragement for each other emotionally and professionally.

Leaders need encouragement and support too. Pam has leaned on her advisory team of strong leaders from different backgrounds more than ever in the last few months. What began as a collection of trusted mentors and advisors has transformed into a more formalized advisory group that now meets regularly. They offer support and guidance for Pam as a leader and for the business. 

Pam attributes the success of Central Point Partners to her employee family and to their trusted partners and clients. She also is grateful for the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) community where she champions women in their quest to start new businesses. Pam is also involved in Junior Achievement and helps members fast track new business ideas. She is passionate about encouraging entrepreneurship and expanding career opportunities for military spouses. 

Pam’s words of wisdom for anyone starting a new business or trying to rebuild during the challenges of the pandemic are these: “If you fail and fall, get back up...and go fast!” She recognizes that it’s scary to deal with risk, especially when everyone in your company is relying on you to be calm, cool, and a good leader. She encourages founders and executives to be servant leaders. Looking out for the needs of her team and giving her time, talent and treasure to her community have rewarded her far beyond what she feels she has given.

With a recent acquisition, new website, added service offerings, and strengthened partnerships, Central Point Partners is optimistic about the future. Positivity, perspective, hard word, perseverance and grit--they come from the top down. Pam Stanczewski, we salute you and your Central Point Partners family and the many ways you are bringing heart and innovation to your company and your communities. You are a Hero to watch!

In a time when so many small businesses are struggling to survive, we admire Central Point Partners' commitment to innovative solutions and creative thinking. Take initiative. Be proactive and transparent. Be human. Look for the heroes. Learn from their journeys. 

How has the pandemic forced you and your business to shift? Are you building momentum with innovative ways to survive and thrive? Or are you paralyzed by fear of risk and uncertainty? Are you stalling? We hope these Hero Highlights encourage you and help get you out of any rut or struggle you may have experienced during this unprecedented time in our history. We are rooting for you!

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