Manatee firm sold, execs to remain with company

MANATEE COUNTY — Tampa-based CoAdvantage Corp., one of the largest Professional Employer Organizations in the country, has acquired Progressive Employer Management Co., another PEO.

Terms of the deal weren't disclosed.

The merger of the two companies will expand CoAdvantage's coverage area, according to a statement. The combined companies will serve more than 4,000 clients and 85,000 worksite employees with a range of human resource outsourcing products and services, the release adds. A portfolio company of Morgan Stanley Private Equity, CoAdvantage has offices throughout Florida and Texas, as well as Colorado, New York and New Jersey. Progressive Employer Management Co., known as PEMCO, is based out of an office in Manatee County.

"PEMCO is a large, growing, and skillfully managed Professional Employer Organization that has experienced rapid transformation into one of the country's quality providers," says CoAdvantage President and CEO President Mike Maseda in the statement.

PEMCO CEO Clint Burgess and CFO Peter Grabowski will remain with the company, as COO and CFO, respectively. Burgess was the general manager and executive vice president at CoAdvantage for 13 years prior to joining Progressive in 2014.

Founded in 1999, PEMCO serves about 33,000 worksite employees with locations across Florida, as well as Dallas.