Job board use declining in U.S.; start-ups shifting focus
Joan Johnson
Posting a resume online and using an Internet job board might seem like the high-tech wave of the future for employers and job seekers, but not everyone appears to be enamored with surfing the old standbys and competitors are pushing the next generation evolution.
Recruiting experts at CareerXroads said companies make — at best — less than 2 percent of their external hires through traditional online job boards. And a 2003 Corporate Executive Board report shows that only 9.5 percent of new hires said they first learned about the opening from a job board.
However, Weddle’s LLC said that 69 percent of job seekers found the Internet very helpful in the job search. And the research, publishing, consulting and training firm reports that 34 percent of job seekers found their last job on an Internet job board and that 69.7 percent expect to find their next job on an Internet job board.
While CareerBuilder and Monster lead the nation in job listings, new services are offering unique ways to approach a job search.
After CareerBuilder was purchased by Tribune and Knight Ridder, founder Rob McGovern launched Jobfox, a Web site that brands professionals rather than job listings.
McGovern said that only desperate job seekers are still using online boards.
Jobfox is sort of a combination of eHarmony and MySpace, said spokesman Barry Lawrence. Job seekers complete an online survey that ranks their skills and the site matches the person with openings that require those skills.
Aaron Matos, a former human resource professional, founded Jobing.com to help organizations recruit faster and smarter. He said job boards are more popular than ever.
But according to the Web site, Jobing.com is not simply a job board. It’s also a forum to connect and build relationships through videos, employer branding, blogs and community workshops.
Matos said the site has almost 5,000 employer videos and that “job seekers like them because they can learn more.”
ColoradoSpringsFreelancers.com takes a different approach.
The site helps independent professionals find freelance work, small business support and strategic partnerships. Under the umbrella of TheFreelanceNation.com, it’s a network of 119 freelance job boards across the United States and Canada.
“We launched TheFreelanceNation.com to be the alternative to all other job boards,” said CEO/founder Jay Lohmann.
April Peterson, assistant director of career services at Regis University, said people are frustrated with the old-guard sites and that job boards aren’t the first option that employers consider when needing to fill a position.
“The first thing employers do when they are hiring is meet with staff and say ‘who do you know who would be good for this position,'” she said. “Statistically you are more likely to get a job through networking. A good 70 percent of jobs are found by meeting with someone formally or informally.”
Peterson said job boards seem to be the place that employers post positions that are the hardest to fill.
“It’s not cheap to put something on CareerBuilder,” she said.
According to CareerBuilder.com, an employer can post one job for 30 days for $419 or between 18 and 24 jobs for $270 each.
Jobing.com is free to job seekers, but employers pay between $250 and $2,000 a month, Matos said.
Jobfox is free for job candidates, but employers pay subscription fees, based on the size of the company, Lawrence said.
Copyright 2007 Dolan Media Newswires
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.
