William Russell Kelly

William Russell “Russ” Kelly was a visionary who pioneered the modern staffing industry and created a company that has provided jobs for over 15 million people.

Early on, Russ learned the important of working hard and striving for excellence from his father, who was pioneer in the oil exploration business. Those qualities, together with Russ’s natural inquisitiveness and entrepreneurial spirit, led to his business and community leader.

In October 1946, Russ and the one other employee opened the Russell Kelly Office Service in Detroit, Michigan. The company, a service bureau, provided typing, duplicating, mailing and inventory calculating services to area business. From the beginning, Russ guaranteed his services, believing in quality work and that “a satisfied customer will remain a loyal customer.”

Soon, Russ began to expand his business by “loaning out” his employees to work at customer locations. This ingenious step marked the beginning of the temporary stuffing industry. His unconventional approach to employment caught on quickly, as a growing number of Detroit businesses began asking for a “Kelly Girl”.

In the decades to follow, Russ Kelly’s innovations extended to a broad range of human resource solution. Today, Kelly Services, Inc., is a global, Fortune 500 company providing quality services to a wide range of companies in disciplines such as office services, information technology, engineering, medicine, law, science and finance.

William Russell Kelly will always be remembered for his contribution to society as both an innovative businessman and a generous contributor to many charities. One year before his death in 1998, Workforce Magazine named Russ one of the 25 most influential figures in the American workplace in the 20th century.