Mother & Daughter Share an Entrepreneurial Spirit | Express Employment Professionals

By ISRAEL SANCHEZ | Photos by JENNIFER GOETZ

Ramirez is the owner at Express Employment Professionals in Topeka and Emporia.

“I didn’t know that this was going to be what I would grow up to be, a franchise owner of a staffing agency, but it is the path that I took, and it’s been wonderful for me and my family,” said Ramirez.

She’s been in the staffing industry for over two decades and she is passionate about helping others. Ramirez had the opportunity with Express to buy the office that she was working in.

“I started with them in 2003 and the plan was to buy it five years later. I bought it in 2008, right according to plan,” said Ramirez. “Unfortunately, in 2009 we had a recession, so it was the worst time ever to buy a business. But I figured that if we could make it through, we would be okay. And then four years later I opened a second location.”

Ramirez just purchased another territory and will be opening a 3rd location very soon.

Diana Ramirez, who owns three Express Employment Professionals franchises, is shown here with son Jordan Barron who works with her at the staffing agency.

In addition to the growth that Ramirez has created, she is also proud of the fact that she’s now helping a third generation find employment.

“When I joined Express, I was sold on their mission and their vision. It’s simple. It’s to help as many people as possible to find good employment. The other piece of that is that I get to touch other people’s lives. We have helped so many people and that’s what keeps me going. That’s what makes me get up every morning. We’re not only helping the individual, but also their family,” said Ramirez.

Her two sons have worked for the staffing agency as well. Ryan worked for the business for eight years and is still in staffing vendor management. Jordan currently works for the company.

“My kids were very young when I started in the staffing industry. They knew that my job was to find employment for people. Numerous times I would be at the grocery store with my young children when my oldest son would ask everyone, ‘do you need a job?’ That was quite embarrassing. But they would always hear me talking to customers and clients,” said Ramirez.

While Barron never worked for the staffing agency, she did work at several temporary jobs when she was younger and lived at home. Sometimes it was because she wanted to try out a career field, and other times it was because someone didn’t show up and her mom recruited her or her brothers.

“My rules were simple,” Ramirez began. “If you played sports or were involved at school you got a pass, but you just can’t just sit around doing nothing. You had to work. I think part of Jessica’s work ethic comes from that, which I got from my parents.”

Continue to Mother & Daughter Share An Entrepreneurial Spirit | J.B. Boxing