William Olsten; Pioneer of Temporary Help Industry

William Olsten, 72, founder of a temporary help firm that later became the third-largest in the burgeoning industry. His Olsten Corp. was opened in a small shop in 1950 at a time of increasing demand for women for office work. As the company grew, so did the need for temporary help, and an industry was born. The company later broadened to include categories such as technical personnel, sales, professional services, skilled and unskilled labor, data and word processing and staff leasing. Olsten is based in Westbury, N.Y. It has more than 700 offices throughout North America and revenue of about $1 billion a year. On Nov. 3 in New York City of what his company described as natural causes.