4 best ways you can use Big Data in your job hunt

Human Resource | Sectors   |   
Published February 5, 2014   |   
Arnie Fertig

Job hunters beware: Social recruiting is the next big wave to influence the hiring process.

Shon Burton, founder of HiringSolved, says his company has analyzed and created profiles of up to 100 million people by scouring their unblocked online activities on Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, Pandora and many more social media sites. This is all done, he explains, to answer three key questions in real time: Who are you? What do you do? And, how do I contact you?

Burton’s company isn’t alone. “What we do is build a digital résumé on every Twitter user. We know everything about every Twitter user – their skills, their experience, where they’ve worked, what they do in their spare time, their hobbies and more,” says Joe Budzienski, CEO of Gozaik.

Goziak and HiringSolved are in the first wave of companies to mine big data to engage both sides of the hiring desk. While their platforms and algorithms differ, both enable employers to target and follow potential employees, often years before they are ready to enter the workforce. Moreover, each has its own appeal to job hunters at the same time.

While this trend of real-time social recruiting hasn’t yet made its way down the whole corporate ladder, that time is coming and you should prepare.

Gozaik presents enhanced information about tens of thousands of jobs that companies advertise on Twitter every day directly to a well-qualified person’s Twitter feed, even if they aren’t looking for a position. “This isn’t just a ‘search a job social job board,’ but rather a full engagement technology to allow employers engage with job seekers and job seekers to engage with employers,” Budzienski says.

Read More