About Us

Our Story

PeopleSERVE, Inc is a technology recruitment firm servicing the Boston market since 1999. As a result of the Management Buyout in 2018, PeopleSERVE has returned to its roots as a privately held provider. Headquartered in Boston, with satellite operations along the East Coast, our staff averages over 10 years of industry experience.

Meet the Team

Erik Schwartz

President

Biography

Erik is an industry veteran, committed to creating a mutual benefit for PeopleSERVE’s employees, consultants, and client partners.

In 2003, he started his professional career with a boutique staffing firm that expanded globally, eventually entering the public markets.

Erik held a variety of roles within its subsidiaries; starting as an entry level contributor and later transitioning into sales, operational, and executive management.

With an emphasis on delivering customer solutions, he was responsible for client acquisition/retention as the organization scaled core business revenues 4x from 2007-2014, before transitioning to executive management.

He led the Management Buyout of PeopleSERVE, Inc., in June of 2018, with the goal of leveraging Technology and Data Analytics to better understand the modern talent landscape.

His core competencies include post-acquisition integration, establishing specialty service offerings, and designing talent engagement/workforce solutions.

Leading from the front, Erik manages our ecosystem as a collaborative learning environment, committed to meeting the expectations of a people-centric modern workplace, and he envisions PeopleSERVE as a “lifestyle business” for all its employees.

Erik considers himself a mentor first, and an entrepreneur second, while operating in the business of Staffing.

He holds a BA from Ithaca College and maintains numerous memberships in Technology, Staffing and Philanthropic organizations.

He is a fitness enthusiast, golfer, reader, a passionate learner, and you can find him relaxing on his boat in Charlestown during the summer.

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Brianna Marin

Manager, Human Resources & Workforce Intelligence

Biography

Brianna joined PeopleSERVE upon graduation from Northeastern University. Having not worked in staffing prior, she brings new perspectives and experiences to the office. Her roles have always required her to wear many hats, as she does in her position here at PeopleSERVE.

Brianna grew up in Boston and currently lives in Norwood with her husband and two kids. In her free time (does that exist for moms?), you can find her cooking or playing outside with her little ones. In the summertime, odds are better you'll find her on the beach in North Truro!

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Shannon Collins

Director of Recruiting Operations

Biography

Shannon graduated from Bryant University with a degree in Business Administration. Early in her career, she spent nearly 8 years working in marketing before transitioning to the staffing industry. Shannon joins PeopleSERVE as a seasoned recruiter, having spent the last 9 years focused entirely on IT staffing with both large and small agencies.

A native New Englander, Shannon grew up in Southern New Hampshire and currently resides in Melrose, Massachusetts with her husband and three sons. When she isn't busy shuffling her boys to and from rinks and various sports fields, she enjoys a glass of wine with friends and family. Shannon loves the beach and is always counting down the days to her next trip to Wellfleet, Cape Cod.

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Karen Watson

Engagement Manager

Biography

As Engagement Manager, Karen will be charged with establishing a Talent Acquisition platform that will support PeopleSERVE’S growth while maintaining a consistent vision of our cultural future-state, and that PeopleSERVE is deliberate in respecting our organization’s core value system as we grow.

Karen began her career in Talent Acquisition while working at the world’s 2nd largest Technology staffing firm for 8 years where she ranked as the #1 Corporate Recruiter. Karen has helped build teams for small to mid size organizations, most recently playing a role in helping to build Boston’s #1 Fasting Growing Private Company.

Karen and her husband Russ live in Bellingham, MA along with their 10-year-old son and labradoodle Dusty. Karen enjoys coaching her son’s soccer team, listening to true crime podcasts and is always looking for inspiration for her next home improvement project.

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Brendan Farrand

VP of Business Development

Biography

Brendan grew up locally in Westford, MA and attended Assumption College in Worcester, graduating in 2008. After a few years working as a defense contractor, Brendan decided to make a career change, finding his way to the IT staffing and services space. Over the next 12 years, Brendan worked in various roles acquiring in-depth experience and knowledge that he is bringing to PeopleSERVE.

Brendan’s technology journey has touched almost all aspects of the business, beginning in recruiting and eventually moving into a client-facing role. He has worked extensively with mid-market and national clients managing and building sales teams for both.

At PeopleSERVE, Brendan will be leveraging his experience to develop account strategies and help expand our current customer base.

Brendan considers himself a technologist and enjoys the changing landscape of our business. With the ever-increasing demands of the Technology consulting business, Brendan works hard to keep up with the current trends and shifts in the market to successfully advise his clients.

Brendan lives in South Boston with his wife Bianca and son Harry. He enjoys golfing, snowboarding, and all Boston sports teams. He spends his summers on the beach in Gloucester, MA, and winters on the slopes of Loon Mountain.

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Management Value System

“We will practice servant leadership and perpetuate a culture of success and positive/verifiable outcomes for our internal and external stakeholders. We will practice diligence in promoting a culture of curiosity and innovation. We will cultivate a value system that rewards these key principles…100% or NOT AT ALL!”

Shayna Shirazi

Account Executive

Biography

Shayna comes to PeopleSERVE with 15+ years in hospitality and customer service. She has staffed and developed her own teams and was responsible for the placement, management, and training of all staff. Shayna is well known for her unique service techniques and the development of industry training programs.

Shayna is excited to bring her extensive customer service skills to PeopleSERVE and to help build long term mutually beneficial relationships.

Shayna lives in Watertown with her son and dog Tessie. When she is not working or volunteering at school you can find her outside playing baseball with her son!

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Meghan Weaver

Senior Technical Recruiter

Biography

Meghan comes to PeopleSERVE with 10 years of experience in
IT contract staffing, mostly on the agency side with both local New England and national staffing teams. As a multi-year recipient of the President’s Club designation and a lifelong athlete, Meghan is a fervent subscriber to the belief 100% or nothing at all.

Meghan takes a consultative approach in her recruiting and is enthusiastic to join PeopleSERVE as transparency and integrity are just part of her day-to-day.

Meghan earned her Bachelor’s in Mass Communication from University of Delaware where she was a 4 year NCAA Division 1 Cross Country athlete and also completed an MA in Integrated Marketing Communications from Emerson College. She is a Maryland native who enjoys running around Boston (2x Boston and NYC Marathon qualifier) in her spare time as well as traveling with family and friends.

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Ashlee Williams

Senior Technical Recruiter

Biography

Ashlee graduated from Roger Williams University with a degree in Business Management and started her career with staffing right out of college. Over the course of 8 years, she was heavily focused on recruitment, achieved President’s Club status, managed two teams, and developed client relationships for top revenue-producing clients. She has pivoted her career into the IT staffing space coming aboard with PeopleSERVE as a Senior Recruiter.

Ashlee resides in Stafford Springs, CT with her boyfriend and two dogs. Together, they love to go camping, hiking, and seizing the opportunity for adventure whenever possible. She is a big football fan (let’s go Pats!), enjoys hanging out with friends at breweries and visiting her family in South Carolina and Florida. She has also taken up golf and is always down to walk for 9 holes after work during the summer. Ashlee is passionately competitive both in and out of work and if there is a challenge, she’s always up for it!

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Ryann Curran

Technical Recruiter

Biography

Ryann, a graduate of The University of TN in Knoxville, started her career in the hospitality and retail space, working for high-end retailers such as Neiman Marcus and Tiffany’s.

Ryann began her career in IT and Engineering staffing in 2019, focusing primarily on business and client development. With a passion for building relationships and putting others at the forefront of everything she does, Ryann works as a Technical Recruiter at PeopleSERVE.

Ryann lives in Southern NH with her husband, daughter, and pup Zico. Together, they spend a lot of time on the soccer field and in dance studios, but they also love their time with family and friends outdoors, skiing in the White Mountains, or boating on Lake Winnipesauke.

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Natalie Abraham

Technical Recruiter

Biography

Natalie graduated from The University of Western Ontario with a degree in Social Science. Natalie continued her education with a post-graduate degree in Advertising in the Media from Humber College.

Natalie started her career as a media buyer and planner for many years, serving the needs of clients such as Heinz, Ocean Spray, Goodyear Tire, Pfizer, Eli Lilly, and Universal Films. With a passion for sales, Natalie worked for many years selling print advertising and Google search engine optimization and marketing.

By combining her love of sales and people, Natalie transitioned into the staffing space in 2020 as a recruiter within the skilled construction space. With a solid background in recruiting, Natalie is working as a Technical Recruiter on PeopleSERVE’s delivery team.

Natalie resides in Framingham, MA with her husband and two children but is originally from Toronto, Ontario. Natalie enjoys spending her time at all of her children’s various sports and activities as well as snowboarding, waterskiing/wakeboarding, playing softball and recently taking up golf.

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Melina Alessi

Executive Admin and Sales Support Consultant

Biography

Melina, a graduate of The State University of New York at Buffalo, joined PeopleSERVE as an Executive Administrative Assistant and Sales Support Consultant. Melina began her career as a small business manager in the health and wellness industry. After more than a decade in the service of entrepreneurs, she brings a wealth of experience and an undeniable passion for putting people at the center of everything she does.

A native Buffalonian, Melina said goodbye to New York winters and is a happy resident of South Florida. Living in West Palm Beach, FL with her husband Adam and their three children, they spend every spare minute outdoors and on the water. Melina loves volunteering at her children’s schools, cooking with her big Italian family, a good Starbucks latte, and walks with her miniature schnauzer, Coconut.

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Jennifer Ventolino

Recruitment Operations Specialist

Biography

Jennifer has an extensive background in IT Staffing back-office support working at the one of the largest IT staffing companies in the world. She is well versed in all critical back-office support functions including payroll for 250+ consultants, collections, invoicing and timecard processing.

Jennifer is passionate about delivering a high level of customer service and can always be found with a smile on her face, eager to take on her next project.

Jennifer is raising 2 boys; ages 14 and 4 and can be found in the stands of their football games cheering them on. When she is not watching her kids play sports, she is most likely entertaining a houseful of their teammates.

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Solutions Team Values

“We will consistently challenge the status quo, through the leveraging of technology and data analysis, to address complex business challenges while driving a people-centric business model.”

Compete and win your talent engagement through the leveraging of real time market analytics.

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Dedicated to understanding your goals and interests, and introducing you to the right opportunities.

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About Us

Our Story

Meet the Team

Erik Schwartz

Brianna Marin

Shannon Collins

Karen Watson

Brendan Farrand

Shayna Shirazi

Meghan Weaver

Ashlee Williams

Ryann Curran

Natalie Abraham

Melina Alessi

Jennifer Ventolino

Compete and win your talent engagement through the leveraging of real time market analytics.

Dedicated to understanding your goals and interests, and introducing you to the right opportunities.

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