Sponsored
![](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/screenshot_2023-10-04_at_11.19.54_am.png?1696443604)
Plumas Bank
Jag Madare, Vice President
Banks play a crucial role in supporting local economies by helping small businesses expand and thrive. If small businesses are the engines that drive our communities forward, then banks, especially community banks, provide the fuel for those engines. Plumas Bank has spent more than 40 years powering small and medium-sized businesses in the region.
![Ramos Oil in West Sacramento was built on the family values of its founder, the late Bill Ramos, who believed hard work and communicating with customers was essential to success. From left to right, Dillon, Kyle, Kent, Will and Blake Ramos. (Photos by Terence Duffy)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/_mg_9175.png?1696349023)
Pipeline to Success
Family business spotlight: Ramos Oil delivers bulk oil to farms, ranches, construction companies and more
The oil industry doesn’t typically evoke warm-and-fuzzy words like kindness, compassion and unconditional love. That is, unless, you’re speaking of the Ramos Oil Company.
Sponsored
![Pictured [L-R]: Lisa Matteo, Mayra Avila Martin, Karly Moran, Tracy M. Potts, Emanuel Avila Martin, Meghan Pounds, Nicole Olson, Beth Rose, Mary Barber, and Kayla Andry](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/_mac0039-edit.jpg?1696359530)
Legacy Law Group
COMMITTED TO A FRIENDLY ENVIRONMENT AND HIGH-QUALITY SERVICES
Legacy Law Group provides quality legal services in the areas of estate planning, business planning, trust and probate administration, special needs trusts, and limited conservatorships.
Sponsored
![](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/_mg_951000001.jpg?1696358540)
The Johnson Group
SAY GOODBYE TO RECRUITING FIRMS
The Johnson Group (TJG), a national architecture and engineering talent acquisition firm, plays a critical role in the AEC industry, helping firms avoid turning away projects and reducing workload stress on principals and their teams.
Sponsored
![Pictured [L-R]: Daniela Devitt, Vice President Innovation & Workforce Development; Andrea
Fredrickson, Controller; Kim Gusman, President & CEO; Jessica Hawthorne, Senior Vice President](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/screenshot_2023-10-03_at_10.29.09_am.png?1696354160)
CALIFORNIA EMPLOYERS ASSOCIATION
SUPPORTING EMPLOYERS WITH HR COMPLIANCE AND TRAINING SINCE 1937
For over eight decades, the California Employers Association (CEA) has been supporting businesses of all sizes and industries with HR solutions, training and professional development services.
![Gov. Gavin Newsom signs the fast food bill AB1228 in Los Angeles, on Thursday, Sept. 28, 2023. California’s fast food workers will have a minimum wage of $20 per hour next year under a new law. (Shutterstock photo by Ringo Chiu)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/shutterstock_2368126845.png?1696273814)
The Wage of Innocence?
Comstock’s president and publisher reflects on minimum wage and the value of work.
![Melissa Jones is managing partner at Stoel Rives, a firm known for its expertise in renewable energy and natural resources. (Photo by Wes Davis)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/763a4333.png?1695747815)
The Way We Work: Stoel Rives Managing Partner Melissa Jones
A glimpse into the daily life of the law firm managing partner
When you’re the managing partner of a blue chip law firm it’s kind of like being a CEO, but in some ways it’s far more complex. Just ask Melissa Jones, managing partner at Stoel Rives, a firm known for its expertise in renewable energy and natural resources.
![(Shutterstock photo)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/grocery_store_image_f_0.png?1694465689)
Owning the Narrative
How to take initiative and solve problems before they reach your supervisor
There is nothing more rewarding than creating and implementing a plan to fix a broken process — before being asked to do so. It changes everything because the leader is using her creative fuel instead of being told what to do. Instead of being asked to fix a broken process, the leader self-evaluates her operation and addresses broken processes of her own volition.
![(Illustration by Jefferson Miller)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/evil_hr_23_sep_v2.png?1693929864)
Dilemma of the Month: Should WFH or WIO workers get paid more?
I have a weird problem. We have some jobs that can be done
remotely, and some must be done on-site. Several employees who
can work remotely moved during the pandemic, so they couldn’t
come in without moving back. But the problem is that both the WFH
(work from home) and the WIO (work in office) think they deserve
salary increases because of their working conditions.
![(Shutterstock photo)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/0923_dept_letter_shutterstock.png?1693584287)
Successful Entrepreneurs Are Innovative Risk-Takers
Comstock’s president and publisher considers the risks involved in becoming a successful small-business entrepreneur — such as starting a magazine with just $2.50 in your pocket.