Founded in 2019, East Bay HR Professionals started as a result of an unmet business need for small businesses and entrepreneurs. We are a minority owned and operated business centrally located in Oakland supporting private businesses, non-profits, and public agencies in the greater Bay Area and throughout California. Many of our initial clients were business owners struggling with the administrative aspects of running a business and keeping up with all the internal processes needed to manage, pay, recruit and retain employees. They began relying on our company for back-office administrative support and personnel management, and since then we have expanded our operations to support businesses and organizations of all sizes and job sectors on a variety of human resources, risk management, and business operational needs.
Neville Vania
Founder
Neville Vania is a Bay Area native who grew up in the East Bay. He attended San Diego State University and graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Public Administration. He then attended Cal State Hayward (now CSU East Bay), and earned a Master Degree in Public Administration with a focus on Organizational Change. He then started his HR career in the public sector, where he spent 12+ years managing human resources, which included labor relations and risk management, within various public agencies. During that time he also served on various boards leading and overseeing self-insurance pools. Following his work with government agencies he transitioned to working with non-profit organizations and private businesses for several years before launching East Bay HR Professionals.
When he is not working Neville is spending his time with his two young children and his beautiful wife Christine, an accomplished play therapist (MFT) who works with children and is always pushing Neville to be a more attuned and self aware human. He loves to golf, snowboard and be active. He is also passionate about food and loves cooking for his family and friends.
John Costello
Human Resource Analyst
John is a California native and was born and raised in the (SF) East Bay. Two years ago, he moved along with his wife and two children to Austin, Texas where he enjoys working on lowering his golf handicap. He attended San Diego State University where he was part of the first class in the nation to earn their degrees in Integrated Marketing Communications. Being a seasoned professional with a background in sales and account management he has developed his skills managing major service accounts such as Amazon, CBRE, and Genentech. Working in a service environment has enabled John to utilize his excellent interpersonal and active listening skills to understand his clients and their unique needs and deliver impactful results. Clients ranging from small family owned businesses to large global corporations have enjoyed John's effervescent energy and attitude. Continuing to support our clients and their thriving businesses as an HR Analyst is a perfect fit for John and his people for passion. John is passionate about working on his personal mental growth and development, scuba diving, and an ongoing endeavor to shoot a hole in one. You can support John in his endeavor by donating to his page at poorgolferz.com
Allison Shoemaker
Human Resource Analyst
A Bay Area native, Allison attended California Polytechnic University of San Luis Obispo in 2014. After graduating in 2018 with her Bachelor of Science degree in Biological Sciences, emphasizing in anatomy and physiology, Allison continued her undergraduate work as a research technician with a local microbiological engineering firm, classifying and mutating strains of algae with the goal of producing carbon-neutral biological-based fuels. With the completion of the research project in 2020, Allison moved back to the Bay Area and joined the East Bay HR Professionals team as a Human Resources Assistant.
Since then, Allison quickly has progressed to Human Resources Analyst with EBHRP and has been tasked with handling discrete client needs such as payroll and benefits administration, hiring and onboarding, and personnel documentation, in addition to ambiguous projects such as process flow analysis, and development of custom procedures and solutions to streamline personnel management. Allison is known as the team’s problem solver for unique client challenges. She works closely with clients on a variety of matters that often expand beyond the traditional human resources functions, including management training and development, financial analysis projects, and strategic planning.
Allison is creative at heart and pursues all forms of art in her free time, from experimenting with traditional mediums and fiber arts to making music. As a recent Seattle transplant, Allison is taking all of the clear days she has exploring the PNW.
Susanne Shahrodizadh
Recruiter
Susanne Shahrodizadh is an Oakland, Ca native with a passion for employee engagement and impact. She attended Mills College and obtained a BS in Psychology, and an MBA in Human Resources Management and Services from National American University. Her human resources specialties lie in talent recruiting, onboarding and employee experience, with over 10 years of experience in recruiting and administrative management roles.
Susanne finds the most impactful difference she is able to make in people’s lives as the most rewarding part of the work she does. A majority of her work focuses on recruitment efforts, including sourcing and outreach. She is a highly adept and engaging interviewer, and problem solver. In addition to her recruitment work, Susanne provides additional administrative support and conducts special projects as needed for clients.
In her free time she loves traveling. She also would call herself a bit of a foodie, and is always looking for the hot new restaurant in the Bay.