As a former Project Manager for a job board, I feel as though I have some insight into the job board vertical and the behind-the-scenes technical operations that make it so convenient. With a background in Psychology I also understand the importance of the intellectual side of the recruitment process. I must admit, when I was first starting out in the job board space, I was captivated by the [commonly used] technology and its “intellectual” ability to deliver “the perfect job” to both candidates and recruiters, making the hiring process so easy and painless for both parties.
The sales pitches that some of these companies have come up with, using fluffed up language and throwing in technological terms to sound superior to the competition, are pretty convincing. However, life experience has taught me that if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is. In my history of working in the job board space I soon realized that I kept on getting the same song and dance from every well-known platform provider and job board site out there and the job matches provided by this technology were far from superior. They were mediocre at best.
Every job board, and there are thousands of them, claim to have the best algorithm or state of the art matching system, but in reality they just don't. Actually, they are truly all the same and primarily function on keyword search. Any hiring manager knows that finding the perfect candidate for any role is a very complex and manual process that includes identifying and sourcing potential hires, and screening and testing for a number of qualities:
1. Skills - can they do the job?
2. Aptitude - do they want to do the job? (often an assessment)
3. Compatibility - do they fit into the organizational culture?
4. Personality - will they fit in with their coworkers?
5. Drive - are they willing and able to take on the challenge?
Anyone can tell you that there are many factors that go into the application decisions that a candidate makes when looking for the ideal position. We have all been candidates at some point asking: Does the job match compensation expectations? Does the job offer a sense of value, learning, and responsibility that is appealing? Is the position in the right location? Does the job offer significant value? Are you qualified and legally eligible to work in the desired position?
To paint a prettier picture…I have all the skills, aptitude, and fit to be a check-out clerk at the WalMart in Kansas, yet I am not legally eligible to work full time in the US and we have a significant gap in pay expectations.
The majority of job boards currently only match for skills which, in reality, is only one dimension of a successful hire, and matching for skills alone is where the majority of the job boards have invested -Monster with Trovix, LinkedIn with Bright, CareerBuilder with Textkernel. A few job boards, all unsuccessful (Jobfox, to name one), have tried to add more of a detailed assessment into the application process, but generally the industry sees this as friction and a hindrance to the application process for candidates. Maybe that is why all job boards seem to be using similar technology with similar functions?
Current job boards haven’t proven to be more beneficial than typical newspaper ads from back in the day when the World Wide Web wasn’t a necessity in the business world. When you think about it, newspaper ads targeted a specific geographic locale and people had no choice but to be active job seekers because they physically had to go into the business to submit a resume to the hiring manager and expose themselves as a real candidate. Many of the problems we experience today through job boards just didn’t exist back then - only real jobs were advertised, and only serious and real candidates applied, in person. Now with the global accessibility of the www, we have access to more positions (some real and some fake, might I add), and all job boards do are help us to filter through millions of job ads available on the internet as they apply to individual descriptive wants and needs, but they don’t necessarily accurately match to a candidate's true qualifications and skills...let alone personality and corporate culture ideals. But, let me be clear, the problems with job boards isn’t entirely caused by shoddy technology over promising and under delivering results.
The reality is, in this day and age, job seekers just don't invest enough time in the job evaluation process when identifying what their ideal career path and job should be. You could say that the internet has made jobs and candidates virtually expendable and replaceable, or at least has given candidates and employers that idea by making job opportunities and candidates so excessively available where they may not be relevant. Even when fully employed, using career development tools and succession planning systems, they rarely invest in developing and exploring career opportunities that result in a higher quality of work and work-life balance. And at the same time, too many recruiters and companies are overly focused on skills and in getting warm bodies in seats - again, as if they are disposable. Between these two factors, the majority of matches focus on skills and availability, not on long-term goals or cultural fit. In the North American market, jobs and people are predominately looked at as expendable and easily replaceable, but could this be because of the flawed recruiting and hiring process?
Imagine a system where a candidate was given the opportunity to truly assess what they want to be, what they want to do, and what they are exceptionally good at, all while being able to identify companies that clearly fit their long-term career goals? This is where eHarmony, more specifically their job board product, Elevated Careers, comes in.
eHarmony operates a very well established matching system for long-term relationships that has resulted in hundreds of thousands of marriages and in millions of dates. Part of the eHarmony process is a very detailed profile and assessment of yourself where you distinguish what you're looking for in an ideal, life-long partner. Translate that into a search for the perfect career; If job seekers take the same amount of time in assessing their career, the possibility of a detailed matching system could offer significant value provided that the recruiting company is also willing to do the same. What was interesting about the eHarmony model, is that when long-term matches (a.k.a. marriages) are made, they are significantly more successful with a very low percentage divorce rate at 4%, as opposed to other traditional matching systems and the industry average over 35%.
Now, I know you may be thinking it’s absolutely ridiculous for a company that specializes in dating to now operate a job board, and yes it is ridiculous because these are very different industries, one that falls in the personal sphere of an individual's life and the other in the professional sphere. But, there are some similarities between finding a spouse and finding a job. I mean, once you have completed the interviews and signed the employee contract, it’s basically the equivalent of going through the dating process and marrying your partner; plus, you spend more hours of your life at your job than doing anything else, so you kind of do “marry” your job...Why wouldn’t you take the time to find the perfect position at the most ideal company for you?
So as a self-proclaimed job board Sherlock, I naturally did some investigating into the mysterious new job board that is Elevated Careers. I signed up onsite and began the process. Much to my expectations, registering as a job seeker was as easy as 1-2-3; That is: 1) enter your name, 2) enter your email, and 3) create a password. Once I was logged into my account, I was given the option to upload a photo - keyword: option. I have heard some controversy over this option, more specifically that Elevated Careers doesn’t validate that your photo is really you, let alone that you upload a picture of an actual person. This feature was simply added as an option to help increase your chances of getting to the next stage of your application process. I uploaded a real picture, just because I wanted to take this “investigation” seriously, as any job candidate should, and I moved on.
Next I was given the option to upload my resume and provided with instructions on how to upload it using my LinkedIn Account or I could just skip the upload process but would be required to enter my skills manually. For interactive purposes, I chose to link my LinkedIn Account (pun intended) and it worked seamlessly. I simply confirmed all the information, and by confirm I mean I quickly skimmed through the information to ensure it was correct. Of course it was, and I continued to the surveys.
I immediately received a notification on the screen that no jobs have been matched yet and was prompted to continue the job search process by first completing three surveys. I actually liked that I received this notification because on most other job boards, this is where the keyword search takes over. Job seekers are bombarded with hundreds of jobs that are a “perfect match” simply because your most recent job was Store Manager of a retail chain, for example,l. These new job postings only match the word Manager when in reality they don’t apply to specific wants and needs of both the job seeker and employer. So far, these surveys are a blessing in disguise (I know how much people hate surveys).
The first section of the survey is called The Basics where it asks many typical questions regarding current employment and area of residence, and some controversial personal questions such as birthdate, gender, and relationship status. I can see how many people may be put-off by having to answer questions like this, but the site blatantly states that this information will not be shared with employers and is used to demonstrate EEOC Compliance. More information can be found in the FAQs section, so I went with it trusting the disclosure notification and answered honestly.
On a side note and in my personal opinion, I think it can be beneficial that Elevated Careers is collecting this data. I can envision it being used to accurately depict company demographics for improved matching services. Think of it this way...as a 37 year old married female looking for a marketing job, would you be comfortable working for a company with no more than 49 employees whose workforce is 80% males between the ages of 24-32? Well, that would depend on your personality and what you look for in terms of corporate culture, now wouldn’t it? Elevated careers may eventually be able to use these demographics, provided by us as individuals, to help improve their own analytics as they pertain to companies as opposed to candidates.
I completed 3 surveys in less than 30 minutes, without one single “slow down speedy” message that I’ve heard so much about. I simply read the question and provided my answer. It’s safe to say that these surveys ask appropriate questions to thoroughly collect information about you as it pertains to culture, personality, and compatibility as they relate to your interpretation of an ideal career. Upon completion, I was taken to my applicable job matches, currently provided by SimplyHired, where I was able to see a list view and overall compatibility score for each position, view the compatibility profile as it pertains to a specific company, or view a specific job description.
I now think of the surveys as a form of quality control for Elevated Careers. Yes, almost everyone hates completing surveys but hey, if you’re serious about finding a job - a real career oriented, long term job- you’re going to take the time to fill out this survey. Truthfully, as a job seeker, I wouldn’t mind taking 30 minutes out of my job hunt process if I can get insight into the companies that have job positions which match my skills. With the matches I received, I was able to read the job description and review the compatibility report to weigh the pros and cons of applying for a position and working at a specific company.
On the flip side of the job seekers’ side are the employers, who also benefit from the surveys. Hiring managers are provided with a deeper level of insight of applicant data, with which they can do things like maintain or change important aspects of their business. For example, current company culture can be changed or maintained based on applicant compatibility. If a company wants to change their corporate culture, they can better pin-point qualifying candidates that have a different corporate cultural value than what is current, and they can continue to hire new employees based on those analytics.
As Elevated Careers rolls out the job platform and enters into a new industry, they may have a number of significant challenges ahead of them. It will be challenging to provide a premium service and get both sides of the career “dating” process, job seekers and hiring managers, aligned. What is promising is that they have done this before in another industry and have proven to be truly committed to building a relationship company, eHarmony, that helps individuals sustain long-term relationships. Now they are helping job seekers in hiring companies build a sustainable workforce with Elevated Careers.
This is the first time I've ever talked to the CEO of a job board who was genuinely committed to finding the perfect match, not only between a candidate and a job position, but between a candidate, a job position, and a company. Generally, we spend over 35% of our life at work. Wouldn't it be wonderful if everyone could have a job they were passionate about, enjoyed every day, and felt valued. I understand that it’s unheard of to only have one job your entire life, unlike a marriage, but how great would life be if each job we held in our lifetime was applicable to our skill set, aptitude, culture, passion, and goals? What if we were able to grow and learn through each stage of our professional lives in a meaningful job? So even if the elevated career platform can only impact a small percent of the total workforce, it could have a significant impact on millions of people's lives and I am excited to see how this product impacts the talent acquisition industry.
