The Kforce Story: 50 Plus Years of Great People Delivering Great Results

shrewdly drew on the reputation Frank had built, a move with which Frank was apparently happy to oblige. “I’m sure it had something to do with the greater growth of Romac,” Bob Bond observed. Legend has it that Ray’s announcement of his new venture occurred while the two enjoyed a brew at a Boston pub. Combining the first letters of their last names, Ray called the new firm, Romac and Associates of Boston. Ray’s first hires were Bud Lemay and Bob Bond, both former IBM executives. When Jim Tonra, an accountant, joined the firm he added the finance and accounting piece of the equation. Professional ethics was primary to the development of their business. “If you said something, particularly about confidentiality and other private matters,” said Bob, “you meant it. It was very important never to stretch the truth.” Bob’s first placement stands out in his mind, even to this day, and with good cause. “I became acquainted with a man named Ferris Dethless—an unusual name and the only man I’d met with a doctorate,” said Bob. Bob placed Ferris in a job with his biggest client, Zayre’s discount department stores, and happily looked forward to “a tidy $1,000 commission.” On what was to be his first day of work, Ferris telephoned Bob and announced he’d decided to stay in his present position. With his commission out the window, Bob recalls learning a valuable lesson: “Book more than you need because some of it will fall apart before it closes.” He added, “It made me remember Ferris’ name.” Ray Roy, a consummate entrepreneur, turned his attention to new business pursuits leaving the business under the management of a man named Harry Dunn. When Harry left to start up his own business, Bud Lemay and Jim Tonra took the helm and in 1972 recruited Carl Maddaleni, whom Bud knew from their days together at IBM, to take over the Maine and New Hampshire offices. Their annual meetings rotated in different areas between Hartford, Atlanta, Boston, and Philadelphia. The gatherings were mostly business with a bit of golf or tennis mixed in to buffer the intensity of the annual review meetings. In 1976, the team of Jim Tonra and John Zevitas in Boston; Bud Lemay and Bob Bond in Newton, Massachusetts; Carl Maddaleni in Portland; and Albert Dunkel in Providence, Rhode Island, banded together to purchase the business from Ray Roy and renamed it Romac and Associates of Portland, Maine. Bud Lemay, Bob Bond, and Carl Maddaleni all shared a background in sales at IBM. Jim Tonra and John Zevitas came from “Big Eight” accounting firms. Carl described Al Dunkel as “a pure businessman.” By all accounts, the entire Romac team was made of sensible, honest, and hard-working guys. As Carl said, “We all believed that if you just do the job right, things will go well.”

The original Romac seal, dated 1966, used for imprinting official documents.

Carl recalls they did a lot of advertising in those days but admits that the key to the business was building relationships. “At IBM, the sales approach was always to talk to top management,” said Carl. “You had to develop relationships with businesses and that was how you got your job openings. If you listened to people and really got to know the businesses and how they worked, you could make better matches for them.”

13 Kforce’s Roots