Outside the Box: To find scarce workers, don’t be scared to hire those with criminal records

One of the most commonly held – and provably false – beliefs among employers is that past behavior is a reliable indicator or predictor of future behavior. This narrow viewpoint proves to be one of the biggest hurdles for formerly incarcerated individuals who are looking to make gainful employment part of their fresh start.

Real-world data tells a far less intimidating story: 82% of surveyed managers said that the value that justice-involved people brought to their organization was just as high or even higher than that of…