The Lee Group
The Lee Group is a privately held Virginia-based staffing and workforce solutions firm founded in 1971, providing temporary staffing, temp-to-hire, direct hire, payroll, RPO, and executive search services across multiple industries in Virginia and nationwide.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1971
- HeadquartersNewport News, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What The Lee Group does
The Lee Group is a privately held staffing and workforce solutions firm founded in 1971 and headquartered in Newport News, Virginia. The company provides temporary staffing, temp-to-hire placement, direct hire recruitment, payroll services, Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO), and executive search (through its wholly-owned subsidiary Lee Group Search). It serves twelve industry verticals including finance and accounting, call center, administrative support, transportation and logistics, industrial and manufacturing, distribution and warehousing, hospitality, sales, and — via Lee Group Search — executive leadership roles in plastics, packaging, manufacturing, logistics, and distribution. Customers are employers based primarily in Virginia (Newport News, Chesapeake, Richmond, and a newer Virginia Beach office), while executive search is conducted nationwide.
The firm's core differentiator is The CORE Assessment®, a proprietary, trademarked behavioral assessment tool provided in partnership with The Resource Company, Inc. The tool profiles candidates and client managers across four 'core energies' (Builder, Merchant, Banker, Innovator) to align candidates with roles and organizational culture. Operations are supported by the Avionte third-party talent management system for job board/applicant tracking. The Lee Group generates revenue through employer-paid staffing and recruiting fees on temporary, temp-to-hire, and direct hire placements, plus payroll services and RPO engagements. Job seeker services are free (a freemium model), while a $50 employee referral program drives bottom-of-funnel candidate sourcing. GTM is consultative and sales-led, with a documented 10-step hiring process anchored by Initial Client Consultation/Client Discovery Meetings.
The company is owner-operated with no disclosed venture or private equity backing, currently in a leadership transition following the March 2025 retirement of longtime co-owners Walt Graham and Eric Kean. Sarah Fulton (President of Staffing) and Wes Ashworth (President of Executive Search) lead the next-generation leadership team across a staff of approximately 11-50 internal employees plus hundreds of deployed associates on client sites. Marketing channels include a 291+ article content library, downloadable hiring workbooks as lead magnets, and active presence on LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
The Lee Group firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Lee Group
- Legal name
- The Lee Group
- Website
- https://theleegroup.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1971
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- The Lee Group is a privately held Virginia-based staffing and workforce solutions firm founded in 1971, providing temporary staffing, temp-to-hire, direct hire, payroll, RPO, and executive search services across multiple industries in Virginia and nationwide.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Lee Group industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Staffing Services
- NAICS
- Employment Placement Agencies and Executive Search Services (56131), Employment Placement Agencies (561311), Temporary Help Services (561320), Executive Search Services (561312)
- SIC
- Services-Employment Agencies (7361)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Local & Regional Generalist Staffing Agencies (BPACACAH)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- General Permanent Placement (Multi-Industry) (BPACAFAA), C-Suite & Board Search (BPACAAAA), Functional Leadership Search (HR/Finance/Legal/Marketing/Sales/Ops) (BPACAAAB)
Keywords
Where The Lee Group is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Newport News
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
The Lee Group business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Staffing Services: Revenue generated from providing staffing services to employers. Services include temporary staffing, temp-to-hire placement, and direct hire recruitment. Employers pay staffing and recruiting fees while job seeker services are free.
- Payroll Services: The Lee Group handles payroll processing for placed employees, charging employers for this workforce management service.
- Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO): Flexible, a la carte support including targeted job advertising, hourly recruiting support, candidate testing, and on-site representation at job fairs.
- Executive Search: Executive recruitment and headhunting services through Lee Group Search, focusing on placing senior-level executives in Hampton Roads and nationwide.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Free services for job seekers |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
The Lee Group product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Lee Group is a full-service staffing and workforce solutions firm providing temporary staffing, temp-to-hire placement, direct hire recruitment, payroll services, and Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO). Services are anchored by The CORE Assessment®, a proprietary psychological assessment tool that profiles candidates and aligns them with roles and organizational culture. Lee Group Search operates as the executive search sub-brand for senior-level placements nationwide, with specialization in plastics, packaging, manufacturing, logistics, and distribution.
Product overview
The Lee Group is a full-service staffing and workforce solutions firm offering a unified portfolio of staffing services built around its proprietary CORE Assessment® psychological evaluation tool. The core offering includes temporary staffing, temp-to-hire placement, and direct hire recruitment, supported by payroll services and Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) solutions. Lee Group Search serves as the executive search sub-brand for nationwide executive placements. The CORE Assessment® is the foundational differentiator—a proprietary tool used to profile candidates and clients to achieve optimal job fit based on four energy types (Builder, Merchant, Banker, Innovator). Free hiring workbooks serve as lead magnets to attract hiring managers to the platform.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- The CORE Assessment®
- Temporary Staffing
- Temp-to-Hire Placement
- Direct Hire Recruitment
- Payroll Services
- Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO)
- Lee Group Search Executive Search
- Online Referral Program
Quantifiable outcome
- By developing and positioning leaders in roles that naturally suit and fulfill them, organizations see stronger engagement, better performance, and greater return on leadership investments
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use The Lee Group
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments9 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
The Lee Group technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
The Lee Group partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- The Resource Company, Inc.coreThe CORE Assessment® is provided in partnership with The Resource Company, Inc. and is protected by U.S. and international copyright laws. This partnership enables The Lee Group to offer their proprietary CORE assessment tool for leadership and team development.
- EOS WorldwideminorThe Lee Group runs on the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS), a set of tools and processes used to help organizations achieve their vision. They display the 'We Run on EOS' badge on their website.
- Generation USAcoreThe Lee Group partners with Generation USA to offer free manufacturing training programs. This workforce development initiative helps prepare candidates for manufacturing careers while addressing skills gaps in the industrial sector.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights6 records
The Lee Group competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- AtWork Group: Multi-office regional staffing franchise providing temporary, temp-to-hire, and direct hire placements across office, industrial, and professional services. Closely comparable in scale, vertical mix, and franchise-style regional growth model.
- Kforce Inc. Professional staffing and search firm specializing in technology, finance, and accounting. Comparable through its combination of direct hire, temp staffing, and executive search services within professional verticals similar to several Lee Group segments.
- Robert Half International: Operates staffing and executive search across professional and finance verticals. Most directly comparable to The Lee Group because of its combined staffing + executive search model, including a dedicated executive search practice (Robert Half Executive Search).
- Beacon Hill Staffing Group: Regional staffing and search firm with dedicated divisions across professional, life sciences, technology, and HR. Closely comparable to The Lee Group's specialized subsidiaries model (e.g., Lee Group Search) and multi-segment regional positioning.
- Express Employment Professionals: Franchise-based staffing firm offering temporary, temp-to-hire, and direct hire across multiple industries including industrial, administrative, and professional services. Closely matches The Lee Group's multi-vertical generalist staffing model and consultative sales approach.
- Insight Global: Large staffing and professional services firm placing candidates across IT, finance, accounting, engineering, and administrative roles. Comparable to The Lee Group for its broad vertical mix and emphasis on long-term client relationships.
- PrideStaff: Multi-branch staffing firm offering temporary, temp-to-hire, and direct hire across administrative, industrial, and professional verticals. Comparable to The Lee Group for its mid-sized multi-office regional structure and generalist positioning.
Broad incumbents
- Adecco: Global staffing leader offering temporary staffing, permanent placement, and RPO across industrial, office, and professional categories. Directly overlaps with The Lee Group's generalist staffing services but at vastly larger scale.
- Randstad: One of the world's largest staffing and HR services firms with broad portfolio including temporary staffing, permanent placement, RPO, and executive search (Randstad Executive Search). Comparable across the full Lee Group service stack.
- Kelly Services: Global staffing and workforce solutions provider across industrial, professional, and educational segments. Wider portfolio than The Lee Group but overlapping across core staffing, temp-to-hire, and direct hire services.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
The Lee Group social profiles
Digital presenceThe Lee Group financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Lee Group leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles17 records
The Lee Group subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
The Lee Group funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Lee Group M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Lee Group
What does The Lee Group do?
The Lee Group is a full-service staffing and workforce solutions firm providing temporary staffing, temp-to-hire placement, direct hire recruitment, payroll services, and Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO). Services are anchored by The CORE Assessment®, a proprietary psychological assessment tool that profiles candidates and aligns them with roles and organizational culture. Lee Group Search operates as the executive search sub-brand for senior-level placements nationwide, with specialization in plastics, packaging, manufacturing, logistics, and distribution.
Is The Lee Group a public or private company?
The Lee Group is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was The Lee Group founded?
The Lee Group was founded in 1971. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is The Lee Group based?
The Lee Group is headquartered in Newport News, United States, in the North America region.
How does The Lee Group make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Staffing Services are the primary driver. The others are payroll Services, recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) and executive Search.
Who are The Lee Group's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are AtWork Group, Kforce Inc., Robert Half International, Beacon Hill Staffing Group, Express Employment Professionals, Insight Global and PrideStaff. Broad incumbents are Adecco, Randstad and Kelly Services.
Does The Lee Group have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Lee Group.
What industry is The Lee Group in?
The Lee Group's product category is Staffing Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPACACAH, Local & Regional Generalist Staffing Agencies, with a secondary code of BPACAFAA, General Permanent Placement (Multi-Industry). Its NAICS code is 56131 and its SIC code is 7361.