Tim Rausch
ADP, an annual guest of the Hull College of Business, returned to campus on March 2 as the second company of the spring semester to be featured in the Business Showcase Series.
“Our focus is on our associates. When you take care of your people, they will be more productive, take care of our clients, and financial performance and productivity will be the result of that. It is how we’ve always operated, even during the pandemic,” said Dave Brendza, Division Vice President and General Manager for the OneADP Augusta and OneADP Louisville locations.
One in every six people in the U.S. is paid through ADP, a Fortune 300 business considered the largest provider of human resource and payroll software and services in North America, Europe, Latin America, and the Pacific Rim. The company established operations in Augusta in 2007 and moved into its present complex on Interstate Parkway off Wheeler Road in 2009.
A lot of the leadership of the company was developed from the front-line employees who are engaged with clients on a daily basis, Brendza explained. “You have to come in and learn our business, what makes sense. With that, we also teach you how to lead. We have development opportunities for emerging leaders.”
Student questions centered on the qualities that the company is seeking in college-age job applicants, benefits of continuing education as an employee, and its cloud-based technology.
“ADP is a technology company,” said Eddie Writer, Director of Sales Operations. “ADP is the No. 3 most downloaded app (on smartphones). People don’t really know that because it’s not a game. A lot of our systems are cloud-based because it is the most practical way.”
Writer described his job as helping clients grow and manage transformation. He said that even though ADP is a global company, it has a “family-based” thought process. The average career length of a worker at ADP is 9.5 years.
The Augusta center has 1,600 employees, most of them working in a hybrid arrangement of certain days in the office and others at home. The center has the capacity for another 200 employees.
Max Morgan, Lead Talent Acquisition Business Partner – University Specialist, said the company will soon be opening its application window for fall internships.
ADP participated in a showcase in March 2021 when it was conducted virtually and supports the Women’s Leadership Academy in the Hull College of Business. Business Showcases are held approximately once a month each semester to introduce students to the culture, history, and career opportunities with local businesses.
The final showcase of the semester is Amazon on Thurs., Apr. 14.
