Progressive company looks upward

When one private equity firm bought Manatee County-based Progressive Employer Management Co. from another private equity firm late last year, executives promised a deep investment in finding and executing on growth opportunities.

That investment has materialized.

The firm, which handles payroll, workers' compensation, employee benefits and human resource services for a variety of businesses, has hired and promoted multiple executives in 2016 and has also expanded geographically. New executives include Senior Vice President of Sales Scott Gordon, a former executive with HR giant Gevity and TriNet; Vice President of IT John Hale; and Kat Bush, a PEMCO employee since 2002 named vice president of payroll operations. New offices include locations in Jacksonville, Ocala and Coppell, Texas, outside Dallas.