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PEO for Nonprofits

HR & PEO Outsourcing for Nonprofits

Good work starts with good people.

As your values-first HR partner, we’ll always put people over profits. No exceptions.

HR that meets nonprofits and ministries where it matters most.

Our clients are values-driven nonprofit organizations who refuse to cut corners when it comes to investing in their people and living on mission.

They find us when they need to simplify the complexities of ministry leadership and church operations. They choose us when they find so much more than the traditional HR solutions stack.


MEET OUR TEAM

Our Values

Everything we do is guided by our values.

Relationships

We build relationships with our clients so we can show up as partners, helping our clients grow themselves, their people, their business, and their impact.

Servant leadership

We aren’t here to be first or to stand in the spotlight. We are here to be servant leaders to the clients we serve, equipping them to succeed – both in work and in mission.

On Mission

We’re here to impact lives – beyond the boundaries of work. That’s why we intentionally partner with values-first business owners who see their own work as mission, too.


THE REAL STORY BEHIND OUR VALUES

Why Servant HR?

It’s a question our founder asked himself back in 2003, too.

After getting his start in Indiana’s first-ever PEO company, Jeff Leffew felt a calling he couldn’t ignore. Pulling out a blue pen and a yellow notebook, he scribbled out a manifesto that would become the foundation for Servant HR – an unapologetic, faith-forward HR company that led with radical transparency, integrity, and an unyielding commitment to servant leadership.

Today, Servant HR has grown into one of Indiana’s leading PEOs, serving small business owners throughout the region with a comprehensive stack of HR solutions, including HR coaching and consulting, risk management, payroll, benefits administration, and retirement.

With a deep bench of expertise available to every client, Servant HR offers counsel for multi-state compliance and runs payroll in 39 states. Our team includes payroll coordinators, benefits administrators, onboarding specialists, a staff accountant, a licensed attorney, and other HR experts who work as a team for every client we serve.

Our shared and collaborative expertise ensures accuracy at every level of our clients’ businesses, but what sets us apart from our competitors in the marketplace is our values-aligned approach.

 


What’s a PEO?


PEO vs. Tech Stack?

Our bold admission?
HR is just the start of what we offer.

When you lead a ministry, you’re not just stewarding dollars – you’re stewarding mission.

When you partner with us, we come alongside you as advisors and invested teammates, helping you grow your people and your profits without compromising your integrity or your convictions.

We specialize in navigating the complex people and compliance challenges ministries like yours faces. 

Things like staff retention in ministry, reduced burnout through structural clarity, board confidence, clear documentation in sensitive situations, and turnover costs and rising employment litigation, to name a few.


SEE OUR SERVICES

Kind Words from Our Customers

“Sometimes, Servant HR’s values lead them to make different decisions that might not make sense to someone with a profit-first mentality, but that’s because they always make decisions in the best interest of the client they’re serving.” 
Director of Operations, Home and Property Group
“Our company owner loves the fact that Servant HR’s morals and worldview align with what we feel as well, and as a family owned company, this is definitely a positive to us.” 
President, Food Manufacturing Company
“We’ve been with Servant HR for a long time, and even as we’ve grown bigger, it would have to get really lopsided before we’d ever consider leaving – because we just know to not take that level of skill and service and responsiveness for granted.”
President, Marketing Agency

Our Team

Meet your full-service HR team.

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Jayne Blazier

staff accountant


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Colleen Cavanaugh

compliance coordinator


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Loren Elms

chief operating officer


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Julie Lo Gatto

hr & benefits advisor


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Tessa Leffew

administrative specialist


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Susan Martin, CPP

administrative coordinator


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Holly Martinez, CPP

payroll tax analyst


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Kris Simmons

hr and small business advisor


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Sarah Shagena

benefits administrator


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Michael Yoder

president and chief executive officer


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Jeff C. Leffew

founder and chairman


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Read Jeff’s Testimony

People over profits.
Right over shortcuts.
Values over compromise.

When you’re ready for a different kind of HR, let’s talk.

START A CONVERSATION

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Jayne Blazier

Staff Accountant

Jayne provides the accounting and bookkeeping functions for Servant HR and its clients. This involves tax filings and required reporting for clients, as well as all general accounting functions for Servant HR. She has deep experience in all of these financial functions with nearly 20 years of experience with such diverse employers as The Personnel Department, Perkins Family Restaurants and Mike’s Carwash. Jayne also has experience in developing centralized accounting and purchasing processes for more efficient financial operations.

She and her husband have two children and four grandchildren. In addition to spending much time with her family, Jayne is very involved in her church. In addition to music and teaching ministries, she also uses her professional skills as the church Bookkeeper/Assistant Treasurer.

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Colleen Cavanaugh

Compliance Coordinator

Colleen finds the most joy in identifying needs and delivering solutions. This passion drives both her professional and personal life and has fueled over 20 years of experience in office and operations management. She excels at problem solving, identifying roadblocks in organizational strategy and processes, and improving functions to better serve others. From her early work as an office manager and paralegal to directing operations for a nonprofit, her diverse experience, analytical mindset, and attention to detail enable her to adapt and succeed in a wide range of roles.

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Loren Elms

Chief Operating Officer

Loren has acquired extensive personnel and managerial experience while serving as a departmental and office manager for over 25 years. He has a diverse background as a “details man,” having had numerous opportunities to develop and utilize his skills in research, computer literacy, training development, management and consultation. Loren enjoys working behind the scenes to facilitate and streamline methods that help others achieve personal and company goals. He became a Certified Payroll Professional in 2011.

Outside the office, Loren enjoys playing the piano and dabbles a bit in composing and arranging. He has taught music classes, published a collection of children’s songs and produced several music recordings. Along with his wife Leah and their three sons, Loren has enjoyed participating in the music program at their local church, where he has also served as a deacon and a Sunday school teacher.

When he has down time, you will likely find Loren in a quiet corner with a cup of coffee and a good book, or enjoying a road trip to visit extended family.

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Julie Lo Gatto

hr & benefits advisor

Julie’s education and real world experience has given her an array of tools for helping business leaders and employees succeed in the ever changing realm of Human Resources. She believes an HR professional must first understand the business in which employees operate, build positive relationships and then work to set persons within that organization up for success. Whether it be providing employment law guidance, benefits administration or helping someone onboard each role is taken on with a serving heart.

Prior to joining Servant HR, Julie worked for Nucor Steel and Indianapolis based Brightpoint Inc. (now Ingram Micro). She holds a BS in Speech Communication from East Tennessee State University and a Masters of Human Resources from the Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina.

Julie’s professional life is complimented by her husband and two young sons Gabriel and Caleb. She values her family time and strives to raise her boys with Christian values. When home, she can be found doing yoga or pilates, cooking up international dishes, or making her family laugh.

Tessa Leffew

Tessa received her B.S in Business Administration from Bob Jones University and was recently hired in 2024, bringing a fresh perspective to our team. Tessa is often the cheerful voice answering the phone and loves to create efficient workflows to improve our methods. Her passion for helping others shines through her active involvement in her church, where she dedicates her time to various ministries. When she’s not working, you’ll likely find her touring coffee shops across the greater Indianapolis area in search of the best iced coffee or traveling to visit her sisters and their families. During the winter months, you can find her loudly cheering for Notre Dame football and Butler basketball. Her friendly personality and genuine enthusiasm for life make her a great addition to our team!

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Susan Martin, CPP

Administrative Coordinator

Susan joined the team with a love of helping people. She has a BS from Wright State University and has spent the last several years helping run her family’s small business and homeschool their children. She provides a variety of assistance in office administration, payroll, and benefits and is probably the friendly voice you hear first on the phone.

Susan and her husband have been married for over 20 years and have 3 children in high school and college. In between work, music lessons, and sports practices, they have a small hobby farm that keeps them busy. In her spare time Susan enjoys cooking, reading, spending time with her family, and helping in their local church. Susan became a Certified Payroll Processor in 2023.

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Holly Martinez, CPP

Payroll Tax Analyst

Holly brings much practical experience to Servant HR. She spent seven years assisting her husband in organizing mission trips into Mexico, providing operational and administrative assistance to up to 100 people per trip. She then spent nine years as an accuracy checker of college math textbooks for one of the largest textbook companies in the United States. Holly is a “numbers person” with much attention to detail – which makes her perfect for this role. Holly became a Certified Payroll Professional in 2019.

Holly and her husband have been married for over thirty years and have four young-adult sons. Family get-togethers and watching football with their boys remain favorite pastimes. After growing up in Florida, Holly has been happy to trade humidity for changing seasons of the Midwest, but she also still enjoys frequent trips to visit family and the beaches. She is an active member of her local church, where she and her husband enjoy opening their home to host weekly small groups.

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Kris Simmons

client Service Specialist

Kris values partnering with clients so they can thrive in what they do best by offering help with what ServantHR does best. He joins the team after having spent a few years in business development and user success roles at a FinTech company. Kris values serving the whole person when working with others. He gets energy from getting to help others get to where they want to go, from employer to employee, and providing strategic thinking that is productive for his teammates and clients.

Kris earned a BS in Public Relations at Ball State University (Chirp, Chirp) where he was transformed through his involvement with Cru, a student-led campus ministry. He dabbles in podcast writing, recording, and editing about an annual basketball tournament he plays in with high school friends. He also spends a fair amount of time reading non-fiction, researching random (and sometimes not-so-random) trivial facts, and staying physically active. Kris commutes from Muncie, IN, where he lives with his wife, Stacy,  and two sons. They’re committed to their community in Muncie until God asks them to go somewhere else.

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Sarah Shagena

benefits administrator

Sarah’s passion is serving others and when employees have questions about their benefits, she eagerly helps them navigate the often-complicated world of insurance. Whether an employee questions a medical procedure cost, needs assistance interpreting a medical claim, or simply requests a new ID card, Sarah’s goal is to provide understanding and answers. Administratively, she also processes insurance enrollments and terminations, guides employees through short- and long-term disability claims, and creates client specific employee benefit guides.

Sarah earned her BA in Music from Anderson University after also receiving an AS in Business Administration from Ivy Tech Community College. She continues to share her love of music by playing piano for her church. When she’s not at the piano, Sarah enjoys listening to true crime podcasts, spending time in her garden, and making memories with her husband and their three boys.

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Michael Yoder

President and Chief Executive Officer

Mike has been involved in the human resource field in one
way or another since 1991. As a management-side employment law attorney at
Baker & Daniels in Indianapolis, Mike developed deep human resource legal
and practical expertise. He also held human resource management positions at
Eli Lilly & Company and the City of Indianapolis before becoming an
entrepreneur, co-founding Dewitt & Lane, a business consulting company.
Mike graduated magna cum laude from Taylor University with a BA in Political
Science and History and obtained his JD cum laude from the Georgetown
University Law Center. Mike is a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR).
He joined Servant HR in 2008 as its Chief Executive Officer.

Mike’s free time is focused on family and ministry within
his church. Mike married his wife, Rebecca, in 1988, and together they invest
in the lives of their two sons, one daughter, one daughter-in-law, and two amazing
grandchildren!

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Jeff C. Leffew

founder and chairman

Jeff graduated from Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, Missouri with a BS degree in Business Management. Jeff also obtained an MBA from Taylor University. He has worked in the human resource field since 1991, starting out as a Personnel Assistant at Silver Dollar City in Branson, Missouri. As the Assistant HR Director at Volume Services in Kansas City, Missouri, his clients included the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals. He arrived in Indiana to work for The Personnel Department, a start-up administrative employer organization.

In 2000, Jeff began his first entrepreneurial venture by co-founding Strategic Partners Consulting in Kansas City, Missouri. Later, he sold this company to his former employer and continued on as the CEO for the next three years. After ten years in the industry serving companies throughout the Midwest, Jeff started Servant HR in the summer of 2003.

Jeff highly values his family time as he stays busy with his marathon-running wife Karen and his four daughters, Gabrielle, Kylee, Annika and Tessa. The girls love piano while mom enjoys making up reasons to have celebrations and decorate for such events as “Last Day of School” and “First Day of Spring”! When they are not staying busy with their many ministry opportunities at church, Jeff earnestly puts forth effort to get his “ladies” to love Notre Dame football and Butler basketball – with limited success.