DETROIT ? Strategic Staffing Solutions Tuesday opened a second floor of operations for its Detroit Development Center at the Penobscot Building. The DDC now occupies the 25th and 26th floors.

The DDC opened in spring 2010 to service its first anchor customer, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (BCBSM), which made the strategic decision to honor its commitment to core cities and keep jobs in Detroit instead of outsourcing services to an offshore location. The center started with 57 IT specialists and, in one year, has expanded to more than 270 professionals servicing five customers.

?What started with a commitment from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan to keep their business in Detroit has developed into a national commitment to creating new, high-tech jobs in the U.S.,? Cynthia Pasky, S3 President and CEO, said in a press release. She was not available for interview. ?We are thrilled to service five customers nationally from the DDC in the Penobscot Building and we have four more customers who will soon be serviced by us in Detroit.?

BCBSM helped drive the growth of the center by exceeding its target participation level in 2010. BCBSM now has 234 active resources dedicated to the DDC, with more than 100 of these people working on-site at the Penobscot Building.

The DDC is the hub for S3?s managed services software BPO, ERP integration, Web and application development and maintenance services. The DDC also houses S3?s Call Center, which offers help desk and customer contact, testing, software development, and desktop support.

Since the DDC opened, S3 has been able to sell its services nationally and has brought on three new customers. In addition to BCBSM, the DDC is servicing a major Michigan-based health care provider. The Call Center, which started with Wayne County as its anchor customer, has added DTE Energy and a major health care insurance provider in Louisiana.

The DDC posted revenues of $10.5 million in 2010 and is on track to hit $26 million in 2011. The DDC also is on track to achieve S3?s commitment to hire 400 IT specialists in four years. The increase in sales is primarily the result BCBSM growing its business with S3 by 147 percent since 2009.

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