» More Local Jobs » Search Jobs » Quick Job Post book of lists » Order ... Untangling accounting Lines...

Citing a report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Ms. Morales describes national corporate spending on services of almost $3 trillion annually. Of that, Ms. Morales says, 55 percent is spent on outside services, her specialty.

Axiome helps companies manage and account for such services, including contingent labor and consultants. Since many of these are hired and managed offline, systems are often not in place to document and record details with the accuracy demanded by the federal Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) regulations.

Although Ms. Morales incorporated Axiome in September 2004, it wasn't really launched for another 12 months when a software partnership was announced with Elance Inc., a technology provider of service chain optimization solutions, based in Mountain View.

With Elance's help, Axiome now offers a resource management software tool for procurement and global management for outside services. That tool, Ms. Morales says, can save customers up to 18 percent for spending on contract services.

Axiome is one of several re-sellers of Elance's product, but a spokesman there says Axiome's mission and Ms. Morales' existing business connections on the West Coast set her apart.

"Axiome is one of the early thought leaders in this market, helping to define what is required to optimize systems and processes for compliance and outsourcing," says Chris Cummings, vice president of marketing for Elance.

Competition will come from staffing companies like Pro Staff Inc., ABE Services and WorkforceLogic. Axiome's edge, Ms. Morales maintains, will come from its independence and vendor neutral status.

Transitioning from 23 years in the high tech and staffing industry to her modest entrepreneurial office with a staff of six in South San Jose has been slow and nerve-wracking, Ms. Morales says, marked by months of wondering whether she could do it.

A former colleague, Caren Rakich, who is an account executive with Key Information System's Northern California office, says she was skeptical of Ms. Morales' plans.

"I asked her how will you get funding? What about the economy?" says Ms. Rakich. "But she was so resourceful. She clipped through the action items one at a time, meeting people at the Chamber of Commerce, recruiting members for the board of advisors, raising funds. She took each mountain and knocked it down."

Mark Johnson, a major account manager at Volt Services Group in San Jose, who worked closely with Ms. Morales at the staffing company, calls her a talented problem solver.

"They'd use the terms, 'independent contractor,' 'consultant' and 'service provider' interchangeably," Mr. Johnson explains. Since each term has very different legal and management implications, Ms. Morales found it imperative to relate the importance of clear communication to the client.

So she opened the next meeting in Spanish, with a client who spoke only English, illustrating how important it is for everybody to really understand what their words mean.

Mr. Johnson says, adding that he believes Ms. Morales has a winning business plan because she has created a unique space in which there is not much competition and being a woman will give her a competitive advantage.

Betty Baker, executive director of the Bay Area/Silicon Valley Council of the AeA, (a trade organization, formerly known as the American Electronics Association) echoes this approach. "Ms. Morales has a very good way with business words," she says, "Positioning things so that people look at opportunities from a more creative way."

Ryan Kennedy, CEO of Liberty Benefits Insurance Services and an angel investor in Axiome, says its business plan anticipates a positive cash flow by month 13, and projects between $5 million and $6 million net earnings by year three, and a valuation of $40-45 million.

Mr. Kennedy explains. "This SOX business problem is growing and Nancy's team of expertise gives a unique opportunity for investment in something that offers good returns. I like to invest in things that will help American business compete in the international market place."

"There are a lot of good ideas out there, but we look for people who are excited about what they do," he says. "Nancy has a lot of industry experience, the mindset for doing the right thing and has a longer term view than many entities who manage from one quarter to the next. She knew that executive level management was stretching her skill set, so she brought in an outside CEO. She's good enough to know what she doesn't know."

That CEO, David Evjen, has founded six startups and is a veteran of many others. Ms. Morales says she believes his background dovetails perfectly with Axiome's mission.

As in her fishing expeditions, the world of entrepreneurship is filled with lessons, but Ms. Morales says she is determined that Axiome will not be the one that got away.

This is cache, read story here