The Answer to Job Boards?
A beta release of a new network of web sites is causing a buzz in the job search community. It’s a new URL extension, .jobs. Some have speculated it could wipe out the need for other job boards.
This new extension is backed by a large number of companies, and allows employers to post jobs and job seekers to search for jobs for free. It has a pretty robust search feature allowing you to search by job, region or company. For example:
- A job seeker looking for marketing positions would type in “marketing.jobs” and the site will return results matching that criteria
- To search for jobs in Seattle, simply type “Seattle.jobs” and listings for that geographic area will show up
The .jobs extension is currently working for U.S. cities with 5,000 or more people, but plans include expanding to smaller towns and suburbs as well.
This new domain has some definite pros and cons:
Advantages
- There is no cost to the job seeker
- Employers will have the option of purchasing .jobs domains and customizing them ie. IBM.jobs or Google.jobs
- It can be a quick way to access active job listings for a profession or geographic area
Disadvantages
- The sites don’t offer anything a job seeker can’t find elsewhere. The site simply scrapes employer sites and other job boards and aggregates them to the .jobs extension
- There is no centralized application page. If you wish to apply for a job, you are taken back to the employer page or job board to go through the application process
- Not all positions are accounted for here, as the managing group behind .jobs has to ask each employer before scraping their site
So what does this mean for the job seeker? Job seekers should treat all advertised jobs including those found on this domain, as a small part of their overall strategy. There will be a large number of applicants for any job that appears on this site, making it difficult for your resume to stand-out unless you have a network connection to the company. The new domain is really just a new form of a job board, and should not take the place of a targeted job search and networking. Using these approaches is the most effective way to land a job.
Sites with the .jobs extension could certainly centralize job board postings, and make it easier for job seekers to see on-line postings. A one-stop shop will make it possible for job seekers to spend a limited amount of time on-line, finding and combing websites. So this could be a good development.
On the other hand, I wonder if some employers will prefer to use sites with more limited access, such as LinkedIn and The Ladders, to reduce the number of applicants. Interesting to watch what happens.
Hi Julia,
Thanks so much for commenting. You bring up some very good points! By consolidating all job postings into one place, it could definitely save a job seeker a lot of time. Your theory on employers using premium sites to reduce the number of applications to screen through is a definite possibility. It will indeed be interesting to see how all of this plays out!
Dennis
I’ve had the chance to play with this a bit and it looks like a distinct asset for job seekers. The landing page provides some info that is very encouraging. Navigation is very simple and intuitive. Looks to cover more ground than any of the other aggregators.
As you note in your comments, it’s not going to provide information that can’t be found elsewhere, just make it quicker and easier to access.
Thanks for your comments on how the corporate pages occur and how the .jobs organization will make money, those help developing understanding of what otherwise looks like annomolies.
Steve
http://www.NotesFromTheJobSearchSeattle.blogspot.com
Thanks, Julia and Steve, for your insightful comments.
One problem with job boards (including the new .jobs sites) is getting out-of-date information of job listings. Companies oftentimes don’t have the resources for maintaining and keeping their postings current. Out-of-date information will likely be more prevalent on free sites.
Job seekers should keep this in mind when using all job boards.
-Mei
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