“Hire the person, not the resume!” That’s the message Plano-based Executive Recruiter Kimberly Shapiro has for hiring managers who have a tough time filling positions in the post-COVID era.  Shapiro is CEO and co-founder of Shapiro Search Partners and thrives on finding the needle in the haystack, so to speak. 

As employers fight to find qualified candidates for hard-to-fill jobs, Shapiro encourages companies to reduce stringent requirements and start thinking outside the box.

What does that mean? Shapiro says in the past, most companies required candidates to have a college degree, but now even some big corporations are loosening that requirement to fill open positions. “If you remove the degree requirement, you can now consider a whole batch of resumes that previously were excluded from consideration,” Shapiro explains.  

Another option hiring managers can consider is to look for people who want to switch careers or candidates who may have a criminal background. Companies that give a second-chance to non-violent can receive a $2600 Federal Work Opportunity Tax Credit for each hire.

For candidates who don’t fill all of the so-called boxes, Shapiro encourages employers to conduct personality assessments to level the playing field. She says tests like the Culture Index Report are designed to help employers match personality types with specific jobs.

Shapiro says when she can’t find the perfect person to fill a role in her office, she hires someone based on their potential, and then she can train that person and give them the tools they need to succeed.

In today’s hiring environment, Shapiro wants employers to remember what’s on a resume should only be a guide. As baby boomers continue to exit the job market, Shapiro says it’s getting harder to fill critical roles with top talent, and she believes it'll only get worse over the next five years.  She says hiring managers need to keep an open mind or they will be left with many open jobs.

You can reach Kimberly through her website at http://www.shapirosp.com/.