Sitel announced Wednesday it is adding 120 temporary positions immediately – 75 of which will be converted to permanent positions in early 2012

The new hires are effective immediately, said Brandy Miller, Sitel’s site director. Sitel is an in-bound customer care center

“We’re so proud to be able to make this announcement,” Miller said. “I don’t think people realize what is really going on out here in terms of employees.

“At the end of last year, we started doing temp work for a couple of different partners, and I’m proud to say, several want to go permanent with us,” she said. “Our newest partner recently came for a visit and was going to start out as a holiday program, but after visiting here and talking with management of the other sites they were looking at, they wanted to stay on permanently.”

The new hires will provide inbound customer service support for a national retail chain client, she said. Candidates with customer service background and general computer/Internet familiarity are preferred.

Last year, the company ended the year with only 200 employees. At last count, the company’s eight business partners now employ 450 people, Miller said.

“With the 120 we’re set to hire over the next three weeks, that puts us at peak around 535,” she said. “Since all of our temp partners are requesting to go permanent, we’ll be looking at maintaining around that 500-person mark. That’s pretty much the biggest we’ve ever been.

“There’s a lot of growth opportunities as well,” she said. “We need coaches, quality analysts, work force coordinators and more. This is definitely the time to get on board here at Sitel. It’s been a busy year for us, and it’s setting up for great 2012.”

Candidates may apply in-person from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, or online in Sitel’s “Careers” section at www.sitel.com.