Paul Hawkinson entered the personnel consulting industry in the late 1950’s and began publishing for the industry in the 1970s. During his tenure as a practitioner, he personally billed over $5 million in both contingency and retainer assignments. He formed the Kimberly Organization and purchased The Fordyce Letter in 1980.

Under his guidance, TFL became the monthly source of information for almost half of the nation’s search, placement firms, as well as practitioners in over three dozen countries. Since then, he has either started or purchased other firms serving the information needs of the search and placement field making The Kimberly Organization the largest provider of industry-specific information in the country.

His background in search, placement, and personnel management led to the development of the RAP SESSION series, a consultant-oriented program which has become the most widely-used program of its type. He has consulted with or spoken before most of the major franchises, associations, and networks. Frequently quoted in the nation’s business press, he has been a major influence in professionalizing the industry and upgrading its image among the hiring community.

He is the author of Closing On Objections, the industry’s best selling handbook, selected by Management Recruiters International for its certification program, and has co-authored The Placement Strategy Handbook and Placement Management.