Robert Schnieders dreamed of
being a school department chairman — until he got fired as an assistant superintendent by a board rebelling
against the superintendent.
As part of his new job, he began asking
employers to describe their desired skills
and discovered that educators and employers use different terms, creating a language
barrier to employers getting the workers
they sought. To close that gap, he founded
Educational Data Systems Inc., which provides unique analysis of a job, connecting
people’s skill sets with specific jobs.
With 24 offices in 14 cities staffed by 340 employees, Schnieders, who serves as
EDSI’s president,
makes sure each
office has the same
décor and uses the
same work processes
to reduce indirect
labor and improve
processes and outcomes. And his business
model allows Schnieders to succeed in any
economy. When the economy is up, clients
view EDSI as a recruiter and trainer; when it’s
down, EDSI is seen as an outplacement specialist and placement agency.
Schnieders understands that his employees play a big part in his success, so he tries
to do for them what he does for clients,
matching their skill sets and interests with
jobs as they become available within his
firm. In addition, he offers a program
allowing quality employees to work part
time while completing a degree, paid for by
EDSI.
Despite his success in the nearly 30 years
since founding EDSI, Schnieders has no
intention of slowing down.
HOW TO REACH: Educational Data Systems Inc., (313) 271-2660 or www.edsincorporated.com