Management Team

William Harper, Owner/Chairman of the Board
Bill has owned successful companies including Staff Management Systems a PEO that he started in 1985. Bill was President of Staff Management Systems and instrumental in their financial growth and success. Staff Management was later sold to ADP who renamed the company ADP TotalSource. In addition to PEOs, Bill also owns a large apartment home development and management company and a worldwide leading Nutraceutical company. Bill is also very active in numerous local and state charitable events.

Steve Harper, Owner/President
Steve began his PEO experience in 1985 when he was an owner and Vice President of Staff Management Systems, a PEO. Steve has been involved in the operation and direction of PEOs since the establishment of the industry. Staff Management was purchased by ADP and became ADP TotalSource where Steve continued to oversee and improve the PEO services. Steve brings to PEP years of experience as an owner of a PEO and vast knowledge of marketing and sales operations.

Robert "Bo" Liess, Owner/Executive Vice President
Bo has been involved in the payroll, tax administration and the PEO business since 1981. Bo started as a District Manager with Automatic Data Processing and had a successful career spanning seven years. He left ADP in 1988 to develop a sales force for Staff Management Systems, a pioneer in the employee leasing business. With the development of a trained and experienced sales team, the payroll volume grew from six million to 140 million in eight years, at which time ADP purchased the company. Bo was an Area Vice President with ADP and responsible for sales and operations for north and central Florida and 10,000 work site employees. He resigned in April of 2001 to assist in the development of PEP as an owner and director.

Mark H. Rodefeld, Director of Risk Management
Mark has been involved with safety aspects of business operations since 1992. He has been responsible for the overall risk management, safety program development, employee training, on-site safety inspection and claims management for ADP TotalSource as well as for FCCI Insurance Company. Mark received a bachelor's degree in Occupational Safety from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and is an active member in the Tampa Safety Council.

Gene Cabrera, General Manager
Gene joined PEP in early 2004. Gene brings with him 16 years of experience as a General Manager, Director of Accounting and Controller. Gene's leadership responsibilities began in the early 90s as the controller of Medical Resources International. His leadership responsibilities quickly grew to the role of General Manager where he directed the growth of the company. Gene left Medical Resources International in 1994 when the company sold and took the position of controller with International Learning Systems. Again, Gene was involved in all aspects of the company and helped its growth until it sold in 2000. Gene then went to work with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2000 as controller. After one year with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Gene was promoted to Director of Accounting where he directed the accounting department during the Buccaneer's Super Bowl season in 2002-2003. Gene holds a Bachelor's degree in Accounting from the University of South Florida.

Lea Burkam, Payroll Manager
Lea's first involvement in the PEO industry was in 1988 when she was employed by Staff Management Systems as an Accounting Manager. Her leadership and management skills quickly involved her in all aspects of the company. Lea was named as Client Service Manager for the Florida client base. In 1997, Lea joined a start-up PEO as Vice-President of Operations and continued to be involved in all aspects of the growing business including the establishment of a web-based payroll system. Lea graduated from Mississippi College with a degree in Business Administration and is an active member of the American Payroll Association. Lea joined the PEP family in 2005 as Payroll Manager.

Deborah Clark, Benefits Manager
Deborah has a background with more than 15 years of experience in the PEO business, benefits consulting and managed care. Deborah began her career in benefits as a Client Service Rep for Health Net, a managed care organization, in the Northeast Region and was later promoted to the Director of Client Services in the state of Connecticut. Expanding her career, she went on to pursue a career in benefits consulting with Aon Consulting and Cambridge, both with a national and international presence. At Cambridge, Deborah was the Vice President of Benefits & Retirement plans leading a team of professionals that provided consultative advisement for several Fortune 500 organizations. After moving from the northeast, Deborah worked in expanding management roles for the Benefits & Retirement plans at a Florida based PEO, where she had administrative oversight for more than 8,000 client’s health & welfare plans. Deborah holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management from LaRoche College.