Richard Warren

I am Richard Warren and I am an Affirmative Action specialist. For a number of years I was a Human Resources Generalist in Corporate America. I learned a lot and had some great adventures during this period but ultimately decided I wanted to focus on HR and not be distracted by all of the side issues one encounters in Corporate America.

About fifteen years ago I decided to change my career direction and went into HR consulting full time. I started out with two partners, and quickly decided that a consortium was a more comfortable organization structure for me. We formed Optimum HR Systems and have worked together since then with only minor turnover. Optimum is essentially an outsourced HR department, available to our clients on a “demand” basis. Each of us works independently within our own specialty area and reaches out to collaborate with others in the group as client needs dictate.

Since my early days as a consultant, I noticed that my clients mainly called on me for three things: Affirmative Action Plans, Employee Handbooks and coaching them through sticky HR problems. Over the years, I have specialized in these three areas and relied on my Optimum colleagues to augment my work with their skill sets in safety & environment, search, employment law, compensation and employee development.

We are pleased with the steady growth we have experienced and the bonds that have developed within Optimum. We are looking forward to more of the same.

We have established this blog as a resource for our clients and friends. We invite all of you to share our knowledge on current HR issues and best practices. Please feel free to comment and ask questions.