Web 3.0 and Yahoo! HotJobs

We have already discussed an overview of the online job industry and have reviewed CareerBuilder and Monster. Here, we take a look at Yahoo! HotJobs’ from the Web 3.0 perspective.

HotJobs, originally, a job search engine, was founded in 1996. Yahoo! acquired HotJobs in 2002. Yahoo! The site has 20 million registered users and contains more than 14 million resumes in its database. Yahoo! HotJobs won the Webby award in the People’s Choice category in 2005.

Context
As in the other sites, Hotjobs separates out the Contexts for Job Seekers and Employers, but disregards the Recruiters.
Below that, under Job Search, Hotjobs does a nice job with Industry specific categorization.

Content
Yahoo! HotJobs allows its users to search for jobs, post resume, read career advice, etc. The site has a host of tools to help both job seekers, emploeyrs and recruiters.

Job seekers can save up to 10 resumes with a free account in Yahoo! HotJobs. The site takes care to maintain professional resumes with bold, bullets, and proper formatting, unlike Monster where formatting is disrupted with the resume being pasted in the database.

Like CareerBuilder, the site shows a salary graph with growth curves. Salary Wizard powered by Salary.com helps job seekers calculate salary with full details on base salary, median amount, bonus and benefits.

The site also features useful articles on networking or interview preparation for job seekers. Yahoo! HotJobs also provides pre-screening, letter templates, notes and resume sharing features for recruiters to find the right candidate.

I like the Career Tools as it allows users to network, calculate salary and find out ways to negotiate salary. Assessments, education, credit reports, education center, etc. are other good career tools. I also like the “View Top Searches on HotJobs” as it provides information on the most searched jobs. The site has also incorporated Yahoo! Answers very well.

Diversity recruitment, which is a Spanish web guide for international Yahoo! HotJobs users, is an interesting feature. It has a fairly good potential. It could use more language options and specialized recruitment for multi-cultural candidates, as in Monster.

However, the site has missed out on listing company contact information, which means job seekers cannot contact them and would have to wait for a feedback through Yahoo! HotJobs. Perhaps intentional, assuming employers get bombarded by applicants!

I also didn’t see any motivational content on the site, which leaves a wide open set of opportunities. [See my Role Model Interviews.]

Community
Yahoo! HotJobs scores well above CareerBuilder and Monster in terms of community features. You are free to access communities by job categories or industry. The site, empowered by Yahoo! Answers, allows users to share views, post questions or articles, seek advice, rate or comment on a post on the message board. Yahoo! HotJobs also allows users to chat online. Still no LinkedIn style professional networking, however. (Looks like, one of the big 3 ought to buy LinkedIn!)

Commerce
Commerce in Yahoo! HotJobs is mainly through career related services like resume or cover letter writing by experts. The site also holds HotJobs Career Expo job fairs and offers recruiting software, recruitment training, a B2B desktop application program, AgencyExchange, to connect hiring managers and recruiters (cool idea).

Yahoo! HotJobs has partnered with international recruitment agencies in 28 countries across the world, including StepStone, CV Online, CareerJunction, etc. There is a tremendous opportunity to harness these relationships to conduct online or physical events that offer opportunities for select recruiters to meet select candidates in their respective industry / geography /function in a personalized setting.

Vertical Search
Yahoo! HotJobs allows both job seekers and employers to search jobs by keywords, location, job category, experience level, salary or posting date. The advanced search options help you filter your search results into metros or smaller areas. But I don’t see a lot of integration of Benefit programs, amenities around the job site (dry-cleaning, restaurants, gym), nuances that display a touch of imagination, rather than the vanilla offerings.

Personalization
Personalization allows users to posts resumes, save searched jobs, get e-mail alerts for job offers and career advices. The site allows users to apply directly to the job postings and keep track of the companies applied to. Registered members also receive customized newsletters containing tips on salary negotiation, resume building, interview preparation, etc. The HotBlock feature helps users set privacy settings to mask salaries or current employer names.

The glaring lack, again, is in the imagination of these product managers. They don’t seem to be able to come up with much beyond some basic functions, making the site rather boring and dry. Also, think career management, not just job search!

Business Model
Yahoo! HotJobs earns money mainly through subscription fees, career related services and ad revenue. The ad rates vary from $52 to $57 for 25-30 days of ad posting.

Web 3.0 Rating: Context: B, Content: B+, Community: B+, Commerce: B, Vertical Search: A-, Personalization: B+; Overall Rating: B+