The service industry isn’t all table waiting and shelf stocking.

The Centre Daily Times asked executives of four Centre County companies that saw greatest growth, in terms of employment, in 2007, to talk about what they see as the challenges and opportunities facing their companies and their industries in 2008:

A low unemployment rate is a nice byproduct of a strong economy, but it can be tough for employers who say they’re having difficulty finding people with the skills to fit the jobs that are available.

Sally Kolesar hopes to find a permanent job — one that pays more than minimum wage and offers more than 20 hours a week of work.

If time is money, as it is in business matters, then it’s no wonder Interstate 99 road signs are painted green.

As always, the list of Centre County’s top 40 employers continues to change to reflect shifts in the county’s businesses and economy. Each year, some employers rise — this year, for example, the addition of 55 employees pushed Minitab from 30th to 24th on the list — while others, faced with difficult economic decisions, mergers or other business changes, drop as their work force shrinks.

PLEASANT GAP — Kelsie Witmer, 17, and Cassie Homan, 18, were among the first students to sign on when the Central Pennsylvania Institute of Science and Technology began offering a dental assistance program this year.

This year’s Business Matters takes a look at the service sector of Centre County’s economy, the sector that provides 89 percent of all the county’s non-farm jobs.

Jim “Smiley” Burket got his start at Penn State washing dishes. Rahul Shrivastav got his as a butler in Goa, India.

FERGUSON TOWNSHIP — For Minitab Inc., headquartered at 1829 Pine Hall Road, being adequate isn’t enough.