In Memoriam: Jim Bell, Sr.

James “Jim” Bell, Sr., founder of Abel HR and longtime NAPEO member, passed away on July 15.

After high school he proudly served his country as a petty officer second class in the United States Navy. Following his service, Jim earned his bachelor’s degree from Rider University. He would go on to work at several corporations, including Johnson & Johnson, General Dynamics and Utz Quality Foods before opening his own company.

In 1992, Jim had an idea for a business that would help employers better support their people: a PEO. He founded Abel HR and grew the business into a thriving and successful PEO in New Jersey.

Through his entrepreneurship and leadership, he contributed not only to the success of his own company but also supported the growth and success of the entire PEO industry. He was an active and involved member of NAPEO. His experience and perspective strengthened those who had the privilege of knowing him.

Andy Lubash, former NAPEO chair and CEO of PrestigePEO, remembers Bell as a friend and mentor. He reflects:

As the founder of Abel HR, Jim, Sr. didn’t just help start a business. He helped shape an industry. In the early days of the PEO world, when the model was still new and unproven to many, Jim, Sr. was among those who believed in it, fought for it and built the credibility that so many companies now stand on. He became a leader not because he sought the title, but because people trusted him — his word, his judgment, his integrity. That kind of leadership isn’t handed out. It’s earned.

But for all he built professionally, those who knew him best will remember something simpler: that he was, first and always, a father and a friend. The kind of man whose door was open, whose advice was honest and whose loyalty never wavered. He measured success not by what he accumulated, but by the people he lifted along the way — employees who became family, clients who became friends and a family who was, without question, the center of his life.

The PEO industry lost one of its true founders. But those of us who were lucky enough to call him father, friend or mentor lost something far greater — a steady hand, a generous heart and a man whose example we’ll spend the rest of our lives trying to live up to.

For all his professional accomplishments, Jim’s greatest joy was his family. Roger Hays, president of Passio HR remembers Bell first and foremost as a family man:

Jim Bell, Sr. was one of the pioneers in our industry and his steady involvement and leadership during the early years of the PEO business, and NAPEO, helped to create the very foundation for everything that has come since.  But more than that, I will remember him for his love of his family.  He was a great family man; he loved his sons dearly, and his legacy will continue on though those three men as well as his grandchildren.  He will be deeply missed by so many of us in this industry.

Jim leaves behind a legacy of service and entrepreneurship. He will be greatly missed.