The contract includes educating and mentoring DMV employees, making sure they have the skills needed to execute and navigate a complete testing cycle, from beginning to end.

The company will provide mentoring on developing testable requirements, automated test scripting and defect management. The contract includes training employees on the output of HP Performance Center and QA Inspect as well as the fundamentals of process and system analysis.

The contract includes developing a training guide for the system test and providing written instructions and mentoring on migrating test plans and test scripts from HP Quality Center to HP ALM along with all labs and modules used.

The DMV project will take several hundred hours to complete.

M Corp has completed more than 60 projects for the State of California.

“I was just too nervous to make the move at the time,” recalls Maria, who was in project management with Franklin Templeton Investments in Rancho Cordova for 12 years before joining M Corp. “I vacillated for a couple of years.”

But her friend Carrie Czajkowski – an M Corp employee and sister of partner Chuck Czajkowski – continued to recruit her and finally swayed Maria.

“I’m glad Carrie convinced me to come over,” says Maria, whose hesitation as a wife, mother and homeowner is understandable. But as a project manager at Franklin Templeton, she had hit the glass ceiling unless she wanted to enter management. “I figured it was time for a change.”

Her first project for M Corp was as a solo contractor for the state Department of Mental Health Services.

“In some ways it’s been the most rewarding project; I did it on my own,” says Maria, who admits to being nervous taking on the project. “I felt very exposed. I was trying to figure out where I fit in, with M Corp and Mental Health Services.”

Maria definitely fits in with M Corp. She enjoys the always-changing challenges and tackling projects, sometimes multiple projects at the same time.

Currently, Maria has three projects – First 5 California, the Department of Motor Vehicles and the Controller’s Office – after completing a 2 ½-year project with the Employment Development Department. She also has handled a feed and fertilizer inspection project for the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

As M Corp has grown, so too has its policies. Maria was the first employee to use M Corp’s paid family leave.

“We knew we wanted another child, so we looked at adoption,” says Maria, who has  been married to her husband, Dave, for 13 years. The couple have an 11-year-old son, Kyle. “When we were accepted as a match, everything happened very quickly.”

Last May, Maria and her family adopted Abby, a 2-year-old from the Bay Area. Maria stayed at home with Abby for three months, and then returned part-time to M Corp and the EDD project.

“I wanted to have bonding time with her,” says Maria. “I was so blessed to have an employer that understood and was so supportive. They were in our corner every step of the way.”

Abby turned 3 in April, and many of Maria’s coworkers ask about her.

“They’re family people,” Maria says of the three partners – Alex Castro, Hung Lee and Chuck – and her coworkers. “They are very excited for me.”

And Maria is very excited about her position at M Corp.

“The people are awesome,” Maria says of her colleagues. “Everybody rallies around each other.”

Building the camaraderie and the team approach starts with the partners – and finding good workers.

“They’re always so measured about things … the company grows cautiously,” she says, adding she has brought a couple of employees to the company, a common recruiting tool at M Corp. “We find good, quality people. It speaks volumes when somebody says you’re really good.”

And Mallett is “really good.”

In his new position, Sinclair oversees the help desk Monday through Friday. He establishes new user accounts, handles customers calls, emails and faxes regarding software questions for a system created for First 5 California.

Sinclair also handles other duties as needed at M Corp, including serving as a technical editor/writer on contract proposals and software testing for some projects.

Sinclair, most recently operational manager and webmaster for Windsor Propeller Company, has extensive management, software and web development experience. He has also worked for AMDOCS, DST Innovis and CableData.

Sinclair, who has a B.A. in art from California State University Sacramento, has numerous technical skills, from Adobe and Dreamweaver software to Microsoft Office Applications and SQL.

Think of her as an analytical – and athletic – road warrior.

“I’m always happy to try new things,” says Sharon, a state support consultant for the Department of Social Services. The soon-to-launch case management and payroll system (CMIPS II) project will connect the 58 counties with the state.

“I’ve been with big companies and small companies,” says Sharon, the company’s ninth employee hired. “I’ve actually known Chuck for years … and have worked with Hung (Lee) and some other employees before. I’ve seen M Corp grow and watched what Chuck, Alex and Hung have done. “
Sharon joined M Corp in January 2008, and started on the Department of Social Services project a few months later.

Sure, building a company from nine employees to more than 40 in four years is impressive, but Sharon also likes how M Corp has maintained that small business approach.

“We were so tiny, you felt like you were the entire company,” says Sharon, who joined M Corp from NexLevel IT in Sacramento. “Now, we’re a growing company, but it still has that small company vibe.”

For example, the annual holiday party and the monthly luncheon with employees get high marks from Sharon and many other workers.

“It’s nice because we work all over and we get to see each other; it keeps you connected,” says Sharon, who is on the road half the time, meeting with her six counties – San Bernardino to Sutter – and their roles with the state project.

She also appreciates how she can call or email the partners when needed, and the company’s philanthropic efforts.

“They make a point to get involved,” says Sharon, adding the company has supported an annual bike rally in recent years to raise funds for diabetes.

Bike riding, from casual strolls to competing in triathlons, is a favorite activity for Sharon, who lives in East Sacramento and commutes to her state office in Natomas. She also enjoys cookinges, dining at local restaurants and running, and has completed three marathons.

“It takes a while to find your way,” admits Sharon. But her current job is a great fit. “I’m naturally kind of analytical.”She’s an avid traveler, from weekend getaways to much-longer vacations, including a trip to Thailand several years ago. And Sharon has trained an assisted-livingassistance dog, which helps a woman with Multiple Sclerosis in Florida. But her busy schedule and frequent road trips to visit her clients make training another dog unlikely, at least anytime soon.

“Each county has its own personality. It’s like I have six mini projects,” says Sharon, who enjoys working with fellow consultants and state employees. “I’ve developed a lot of relationships. I’ve been very fortunate.”

Before joining the tech services world about a decade ago, Sharon worked in human resources, government relations and public relations. Jobs she enjoyed, but were not necessarily her passion.

“It takes a while to find your way,” admits Sharon, who earned a communications degree from Sacramento State University. But her current job is a great fit. “I’m naturally kind of analytical.”

It’s a hard-to-find skill that has made Sharon – and M Corp – successful.

“I’ve always found easier ways to do things,” she says. “And there’s a lot more I can learn. I’m far from finished.”

M Corp played a major role in the project, because we know food safety is important to you — and us. Please watch the video and learn how the program works.

But her road to college took a different path than many of her fellow students and friends – and M Corp and the Guardian Scholars program at Sacramento State University have helped her in recent months.

“I was at cheer practice when I got the call,” says Thuy, then a 16-year-old junior at Florin High School in Sacramento.

The “call” confirmed what Thuy (pronounced “Twee”) already knew — her mother lacked many parenting skills to take care of her children. Social workers were at the family’s house and “took everyone away,” she says. Six of her brothers and sisters were removed from their Sacramento home.

Her oldest brother Michael, a former Marine and DISH Network employee, assumed responsibility and became the guardian of six children, including Thuy, when he was 21. (A younger brother, Austin, was adopted.)

“I’ve been cooking, cleaning every day for a long time,” says the 22-year-old Thuy, the second-oldest in the family’s Elk Grove home.

Thuy adds that her younger brothers and sisters know how to deal with many of the household chores, such as laundry and some meals, and are very responsible. But she admits that she has more chores and family responsibilities than many other college students.

“It sounds like a lot, but it’s really not that bad,” says Thuy, who has 10 siblings. “I have a weekly schedule for doing things … I like being busy.”

Indeed, Thuy balances family, a full-time course load as a junior majoring in psychology at Sacramento State University and two part-time jobs – 16 hours per week on the help desk at M Corp and weekends at Kohl’s department store in Elk Grove.

And her fellow M Corp employees and supervisors enjoy Thuy, from her attitude to her dedication.

“She is always eager to help out other team members, learn new things and assume more responsibilities,” says partner Hung Lee. “Her teammates love working with her because she is responsible, dependable, a quick learner and upbeat.”

Guardian Scholars director Joy Salvetti applauds Thuy’s commitment to her education – and M Corp for participating in the program and hiring Thuy.

“For our transfer students, it’s really key to finding an employer,” says Salvetti, who started Guardian Scholars with 15 students in 2006 and now has 61 this semester. “Many of these students have been let down by their parents, their relatives. Many of them have had no childhood.”

Guardian Scholars offers a one-stop shop for former foster youth, from assisting with housing to tuition and books. They also match students with a mentor.

“There’s a lot of navigation that goes on at a college campus,” says Salvetti, who is always seeking funds for the nonprofit program, which relies solely on grants and donations. “It gives students guidance, and not just academically, but soft skills. We want them to be as ready as possible.”

Thuy, who was in a similar Enrich Scholars Program at Cosumnes River College before transferring toSacramentoStatethis semester, says Guardian Scholars and M Corp have been a big help.

“If you’re not motivated, you won’t go to school,” Thuy says during a two-hour break between her morning and afternoon classes on a recent Friday. “You have to be hungry.”

Her motivation for completing college and commitment to helping others stems from her past.

“I never got help, nobody ever paid attention to me,” says Thuy, who wants to be a high school counselor. “I don’t want to ignore the kids who need help.”

M Corp leadership continues to invest in the future success of M Corp!

The Comprehensive Approaches to Raising Education Standards Plus (CARES Plus) Program is a matching-fund program with First 5 county commissions. It is designed to increase the quality of early learning programs for children ages 0 to 5 and their families by supporting the education and preparation of an effective, well-compensated, and diverse early learning workforce. The “Plus” represents an enhancement of earlier CARES components, such as a strong focus on outcomes and accountability, an expansion of the Early Learning Workforce Registry database, and expansion of Higher Education Quality Pathway Partnerships.

The M Corp solution for the Practice, Research & Outcomes 0-Five (PRO0F) resolves the challenge of collecting complete and reliable evaluation data from the County Commission on programs serving California’s children ages 0-5. The new PRO0F system will support the following functions:

• State Signature program management, case management and annual reporting,
• County program management, case management and annual reporting, and
• Funding application workflow and expenditure tracking.