As the CEO & President of APR Consulting, Inc.(APR), a staffing and workforce solutions provider, Linda Stone is proudly celebrating APR’s 30 years of success.
Linda learned early in life that good education is the key to success. After receiving her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and teaching for 2 years before immigrating to the United States, Linda settled in Los Angeles, working for a small company as an Accounts Receivable Clerk. Within six months she moved to a more challenging position as a Computer Operator Trainee for a large phone company and soon promoted to IT Manager. Her passion for computers and vision of the future of Information Technology, led Linda to take numerous courses and certifications in computer programming and systems analysis.
In 1976, Linda opened her own business. As an independent contractor, she offered IT consulting and staffing services to aerospace and utility companies. In 1980, over the course of a few large client engagements, Linda expanded her business, incorporated, and APR Consulting, Inc. (APR) was born.
With APR’s excellent track record of on-time and under-budget service delivery, the business expanded its service offerings. Today, APR Consulting is a nationally recognized organization with 7 offices nationwide, an average growth rate of 25% yearly and $75 million in annual revenue.
Among numerous awards APR has won include the NMSDC 2009 Class IV Regional Supplier of the Year; the SCMBDC Class III and IV Supplier of the Year in 2007 and 2009; the Northrop Grumman Gold Supplier Award for six consecutive years and World Class Team Supplier in 2009; and in 2010 the Supplier Diversity Award from SCE. As winner of scholarships at UCLA, Tuck School of Business, Claremont Graduate School, Pepperdine University, and Kellogg at Northwestern University, Linda continued to strengthen her business acumen.
In recognition of her spirit, vision, community contributions, and success, Linda received numerous awards from a variety of business organizations including the Pioneering Woman Award from NAWBO; and being inaugurated into the NAWBO-OC & LA Halls of Fame.
As a strong advocate for the business community Linda co-founded and served as two-time President of Asian Business Association of Orange County (ABA-OC), the Board of Directors and Advisory Board of Filipino American Chamber of Commerce, Orange County, and the ABA-Los Angeles Board of Directors. As two-term chair of the Minority Business Enterprise Input Committee, Linda sat on the Board of Directors of SCMBDC. Linda is also the President of two healthcare services firms that provide healthcare and nursing personnel for hospitals and healthcare organizations across the country. She serves as a management consultant for small minority-owned businesses including a start-up finance and accounting outsourcing company and SBA certified 8(a) firms.
A portion of APR’s profits goes to the Feed the Children and Scholarship Program of MLQHS Foundation, and APR also supports the Young Offenders Rehabilitation Program in Bacolod and Dasmarinas, Philippines.