Erin Pfeifer

Age: 26

Family: married to Bruce Pfeifer and mother to their son Emmett, daughter of Eugene and Jerralee Eftink, youngest of 8 children

Employer: PAJCO Inc. dba Rhodes 101 Stops

Position: Director of Human Resources and Administration

Community Involvement: works with SEMO's Human Resources chapter, member of the Government and Public Policy Committee for the Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce, member of Chamber Young Professionals, member of the SEMO Business Group on Health, treasurer and conference chair for Cape Area Personnel Association, member of St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church, member of the Society of Human Resource Professionals, member of the National Association of Convenience Stores

Erin Pfeifer is very aware of her job's consequences.

"My role in HR isn't easy and it isn't about pushing paper and policies nobody cares about," she says. "It is about how do you get the best and brightest people and raise the value of the company."

Inspired by the efforts of those arund her, Pfeifer sincerely enjoys the challenge of being "the caretaker of the largest investment of the company -- our employees."

Often this involves mediating business objectives and the needs and wants of her co-workers. "I aid in bridging the gaps between the individual and the collective, the person and the purpose," she says.