Facebook recently announced that it is launching an app to help users find jobs. The app will include 1.7 million job listings in areas including IT/Software Development, Science/Engineering/Research & Development and Security/Protective Services. Users will be able to search jobs databases by keywords and location.
In addition to that, the app will include job listings from Monster.com, Work4Labs, BranchOut and the DirectEmployers Association. According to Technology Business Research Analyst Ezra Gottheil, “This makes sense for Facebook. They haven’t done anything like this before, but it’s a natural fit for them. People use their network already to find jobs.”
According to a recent survey from the National Association of Colleges and Employers, 50% of employers use Facebook during the hiring process. Employers also use social networking sites to screen the profiles of potential employees, checking posts, pictures and video for information ranging from how much they like to party to what they might have said online about their previous job.
LinkedIn is usually used by users to find a job or business contacts online. Gottheil stated that the network does a solid job of connecting businesses and potential employees, though Facebook’s move into this area will definitely be a challenge. The fact that LinkedIn has such a solid position with job hunters means that it is going to take a lot from Facebook to dethrone it.
“Facebook’s latest move is more of a public service, basically putting a job bank on Facebook where users can see it,” Gottheil added. “LinkedIn is all about jobs. That’s the first place people look, and it’s where they post almost entirely job-related information. Facebook has a long way to go before it begins to impinge on that space.”
This new jobs app is a part of Facebook’s Social Jobs Partnership initiative, which was created back in the fall of 2011 in conjunction with the United States Department of Labor, as well as several other labor organizations.
Source: Computer World – Facebook launches app to help users find jobs
