LAKELAND, Fla. — A Lakeland-based business, Help(her), is being recognized for creating a platform that helps women find employment.
Stay-at-home mom Carrie Rodgers recently became an empty nester and needed something to keep her busy.
“Being an empty nester was not something I was looking forward to, but I knew I didn’t want to go back to a full-time job or even a part-time job that required me getting up at 8 a.m.,” Rodgers said.
Thanks to Help(her), Rodgers was hired as an office manager for a Lakeland entertainment company. She handles the scheduling and booking of DJs for events, and the flexibility of the job is exactly what she was looking for.
“I work 15 to 20 hours, and I love it. I tell everybody I never thought at my age that I would find my dream job, but I love it,” Rodgers said.
Through the Help(her) app and website, employers can hire qualified women at an hourly rate. Helpers accomplish a multitude of tasks, from data entry to event planning.
“You can go into our app and you can request your date, time and task, that you need help with and then be connected with a helper,” said Teresa O’Brien, Founder of Help(her).
O’Brien started Help(her) in 2020 after noticing small businesses were in need of workers but couldn’t afford a full-time employee.
The platform connects a network of more than 80 women to flexible job opportunities, including stay at home moms, empty nesters and single mothers.
“I was a stay at home mom and I wanted to use my skills, but at my availability. I thought there has to be other women like me that can do this,” O’Brien said.
The Lakeland Chamber of Commerce recently recognized Help(her) as small business of the month.
It comes as Lakeland was named the number one city for women to work in America, based on a study by the company Checkr.
“We started actually reaching out even more to empty nesters and single women needing extra income. So it’s a great collective group of women that we’ve been able to help,” O’Brien said.
