ANSWERING THE CALL:
How Complete Logistical Branched Out to Help with Disaster Relief
The Call
When Spencer Sens received a call out of the blue to help provide disaster relief services for the devastation wrought by Hurricane Helene in North Carolina and Hurricane Milton in Florida, he knew his answer.
Despite having never done this type of staffing, he immediately said yes.
The CEO of Complete Logistical knew that this was an opportunity he had to take to grow his business – and it didn’t hurt that it was for a noble cause. And with a large network of employees and contacts built over almost 15 years in business, he knew he could make it happen. After getting funds up front from Advance Partners to leverage transportation, housing, and food for workers, Complete Logistical was ready to help.
“When a client calls for a project that has to happen tomorrow, our database allows us to dig in quick and get the job done. When I got that call, I said yes, and next thing you know we are up and running. It was a good cause. I’m originally from New Orleans, and I can say that what I saw in North Carolina was worse than Katrina.”
“If you’re focusing on your service and what makes you stand out rather than just focusing on the money, the money just comes.”
Logistically Speaking
Like many staffing owners, Sens did not originally set out to start his own firm. After a year of college where he had, in his words, “a little too much fun”, he left to join the maritime industry. Eventually he worked his way up to VP at a global logistics firm where he covered all the way from the Mexican coast to Miami. But even with his success there, he felt drawn in a different direction.
“I was 38, and I was still itchy. At 40, I quit and started Complete Logistical, which at first was a logistics company managing projects for oil and gas. At one point, a client asked if we could staff ships offshore. We had never done that, but I said yes. And it turned into a second ship to staff.”
After that, Complete Logistical leaned fully into marine and offshore staffing. Since 2010, they have sent people all over the world as well as supplied supply workers to shipyards, and other industrial jobs.
“At first I wondered if there were other boat operators who would need this service. Turned out, everybody did. It was a niche service that I was in a position to help with.”
But it doesn’t stop there. Complete Logistical also has a few traditional staffing contracts with distributors, staffing anything from clerical to warehouse workers, to salespeople, to electricians. And when times call for it - disaster relief services.
Taking Care
From the beginning of Complete Logistical, Sens says that the most important piece to running his business is to put the people first. And to him that means equal parts taking care of employees and taking care of clients. And this mentality has led to success.
“If you’re focusing on your service and what makes you stand out rather than just focusing on the money, the money just comes.”
And whether it’s staffing a ship or sending disaster relief after hurricanes, Sens is clear on his stance on seizing opportunity when it knocks.
“My advice when these kinds of things occur is to not say no. Seize every opportunity you get, because staffing can be a fickle business. Take opportunities when they are there.”
And part of the reason he can say yes to opportunities is his relationship with Advance Partners. Ever since they switched from another firm to AP in 2017, the relationship has been solid.
“Properly managing cash flow as a staffing firm is very important. The folks at Advance really understood our problems with funding and collection. The rates were competitive so I went ahead and gave Advance a try. And I don’t have any plans on leaving.”