Our Story
Over the past 55 years, we’ve grown into a leader in staffing and human resources. From the beginning, our mission has always been to make business simple for Hawaii’s employers and jobseekers.
1969
In 1969, Bill Guss opened Labor Services Inc. to provide a flexible on-demand workforce to O‘ahu warehouses, trucking companies, contractors and naval shipyards. From his office across the street at Waikīkī Beach, he would raise a blue flag to signal to the surfers on dawn patrol that there was work available that day. Each day, people would report to be assigned to a variety of O‘ahu businesses for a day’s work.
The Seventies
Through the 1970s, we saw a lot of growth and expansion for our company. Large companies outside of Hawai‘i were finding it difficult to provide payroll and HR support to their Hawai‘i-based employees. That’s where we came in. Labor Services pioneered the outsourcing of payroll and employment administration in Hawai‘i.
The Eighties
The eighties were an exciting time for our business. Kerry Kopp joined Bill and Bill’s son Barron in 1980. At the time, Labor Services was a small business employing only five people, but even back then, we looked to the future and soon developed our own software to handle weekly payroll and invoicing, becoming one of the first companies in Hawai‘i to do so. We expanded services to include clerical and accounting personnel, and opened additional offices on the neighbor islands. As our clients grew, so did their business needs.
That inspired the establishment of Hawai‘i’s first professional employer organization, Employee Management Corporation. EMC provided administration and support services to allow Hawai‘i businesses to do what they do best – finding new customers and serving the ones they have.
The Nineties
The nineties was a time to simplify. We brought all of our business entities together under one umbrella, and became ALTRES – ALTernative RESources for business.
In 1995, our founder, leader, and friend Bill Guss passed away. Bill was a true Depression-era child, and nothing went to waste. Two days before he died, he handed Barron a scrap of paper. It was an envelope on which he was developing our future marketing plans.
The note read:
“Business is the engine of society. Making business simple is our goal.”
To this day, ALTRES continues to use these words as a guiding compass for all that we do.
The 2000’s
In the 2000s, we innovated and imagined new ways to make business simple. Our family of companies expanded to include ALTRES Medical, which supports Hawai‘i’s hospitals and medical facilities with nurses and health care professionals. And ALTRES Tech, which became a proven resource for supplying people to IT and engineering companies.
Continuing in the spirit of innovation, we re-envisioned our HR service offerings to become the first in the nation to provide multiple tiers of services. This led to the creation of simplicityHR.
The 2010s
Throughout this evolution, we knew we had to find new efficiencies in working and communicating with clients. Hence, the development of HR Symphony. Today, HR Symphony is our award-winning, world-class human resources information system developed right here in Hawai‘i, for Hawai‘i. You may find it interesting to know that ALTRES has evolved to become one of the largest technology companies in the state.
While we’ve been recognized many times for our commitment to excellence and innovation, none of this would have been possible without the support from the people and businesses of Hawai‘i. Because of this, it has always been important for us to give back to the community in any way. In 2018, the ALTRES Foundation was established to provide resources that can make people’s lives better and their communities thrive.
The 2020s
We’ve come a long way since 1969, and wouldn’t be where we are today if it weren’t for our people. We have over 200 employees that are open to new ideas, excited to collaborate, and exude positive energy that is definitely contagious.
Being trailblazers requires passion, and that’s what we do here at ALTRES. We put passion to work.