Diana Wright *

As a nurse in the 1980s, Diana Wright always found herself in charge of managing the nurses’ schedules.

“I was really good at it,” she said. “And scheduling is not something everybody can do, so I wound up doing most of the scheduling every place I worked.”

She then decided she could do the job full time and returned to school for an MBA degree. In 1996, Wright opened The Right Solutions in Tontitown and started scheduling nurses for one-day shifts at local hospitals.

The business took off, and now the company handles housing and travel arrangements for nurses in all 50 states. The Right Solutions also arranges the lodging and travel details for other licensed medical personnel, except for doctors and pharmacists.

Wright said the company’s revenue was in the $25 million range for 2008, which was up 3.2 percent from 2007, beating the industry average increase of 2 percent. Also in 2008, the company had its best fourth quarter ever.

In 2005, The Right Solutions became the sixth health care-staffing company to become certified by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospitals.

Wright, who was also a finalist for Arkansas Business Executive of the Year a year ago, said one of the reasons her company has done so well is that she’s “fiscally conservative.” The company does not currently have any debt.

She also credits the employees for the company’s success. The firm has 71 employees in the Tontitown headquarters and about 350 health care workers in the field.

“Everybody is equal,” she said.

Wright also said she has a close relationship with her staff. The close ties showed when the employees offered to take a pay cut if needed. Wright didn’t take them up on the offer.

Still, because hospitals are cutting back, 2009 may be the first year in the company’s history that revenue will be flat, she said.