Bennett Santana, is the owner and president of Business Systems of America, Incorporated, (BSA). In 1985, he earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business from Indiana University in Bloomington, then took a job with Amoco, where he held various positions from mainframe programming to PC support. In 1991, he launched BSA, positioning it as a temporary agency for PC support. In the meantime, Bennett obtained a Master’s Degree in Telecommunications from DePaul University in Chicago. Bennett had met the challenge of demonstrating to Fortune 500 companies that a small firm like BSA could provide top service. The company has continued to grow at the rate of an average of 25% each year.

    Although BSA was launched as a temporary agency with its first client, Electronic Data Systems, the company has grown to become a full-service staffing firm in the technical support area. Today the firm’s impressive client list includes BP Amoco, The Northern Trust Bank, Johnson Controls, Takeda Pharmacuticals, and Uniqema.

    Bennett is a deacon in his church. He also does ongoing community service, through organizing block parties as an avenue for gang intervention within the Chicago Hispanic areas. With his loving wife, Bennett helped found "The Miracle Center", a non-for-profit organization that provides various training in the Arts for the inner-city youth.

    Bennett serves on the board of the Informational Technology Resource Center (ITRC), which supports 300 non-for-profits in the area of computers. As far back as 1991, he founded the non-for-profit, Computer Association for the Contribution to Hispanic Excellence (CACHE) and continues to serve as the organization’s executive director. He also continues to serve on the board of the Chicago Minority Business Development Council (CMBDC), where he has participated on the scholarship committee and corporate awards committee.

    Several groups have recognized Bennett’s hard work, capabilities, and community service. Recent awards include the 1991 YMCA Hispanic Achiever Award for community service to Chicago and in 1993 the CACHE Appreciation Award.

    Bennett has visions and goals for BSA’s expansion. Therefore, he continues to expand his horizons by furthering his education. In 1995, Bennett received a Certificate in Business Administration (CBA) from the Institute of Entrepreneurial Study of the University of Illinois at Chicago, where he developed a five-year strategic plan for BSA. Bennett is also certified as an interviewer by Targeted Selection, a past behavioral-based interview process. He is currently involved in the Gerber Business Development Corporation’s E-Myth Mastery Program, a three-year project that will culminate in the development of a franchise prototype of BSA.