DirectEmployers Launches Job Search Tech R&D Foundation

Filed under: Hiring & Staffing,Job Search Technology,News,Technology |
DirectEmployers

Taking a bold technological stance in the job search world, the DirectEmployers Association has launched the DirectEmployers Foundation, a 501(c)(3) educational and scientific nonprofit, “dedicated to the rapid development of game-changing open source job search and career marketing tools.”

During the past decade, DirectEmployers Association has created new products to keep its members on the forefront of compliance and recruiting. DirectEmployers Association, based in Indianapolis, is a nonprofit HR consortium of leading global employers that was formed to improve labor market efficiency through the sharing of best practices, research and the development of technology.

bill warren
Bill Warren

With the creation of the foundation, DirectEmployers is moving aggressively into open source technology development at a time when the entire job search and human capital management technology business is consolidating.

“As technology continues to drive change in today’s human resources market, it’s important to remain ahead of the curve,” Bill Warren, DirectEmployers executive director, said in a press release.

According to Rick Wehrle, former Monster.com architect and DirectEmployers’ VP of product development, the solution of moving forward was simple: “The Open Source model is defined by sharing code in a way that benefits everyone involved. By integrating the Open Source model, we are adopting a proven model for driving change and advancing the state of the art.”

When combined with a nonprofit foundation, “open source projects are able to marshal the resources, people and mind share they need to create new standards and break down walls that are holding back progress. In this case, those walls are driving up the cost of making hires and making it incredibly difficult for employers to find talent,” Werhle said in the statement announcing the foundation’s formation.

“It’s 2012. It should cost employers virtually nothing to find an employee, and it should not cost job seekers anything, in terms of time and money to find a job,” Wehrle continued.

According to the DirectEmployers Association, the foundation is comprised of top user experience engineers and developers who share a commitment to open-source technology development.

While still in its early stages, the new technology development foundation has already the release of the created a product: new mobile functionality brought to US.jobs and the .JOBS Career Microsites at the beginning of February.

“Having a development team that understands how to stay on the forefront of technology is instrumental in the success of any business,” Warren said.

During 2012 the foundation will focus on building the technology base for a new generation of career marketing tools, including an API allowing job search and job postings to be added anywhere, development of foreign language support and additional job distribution tools.

The new features will also be engineered to protect job seeker privacy without adding cost to employers in the DirectEmployers member network. The foundation’s research and development is also at work on social media integration, developing a means of incorporating a job seekers’ digital footprint to allow employers sifting through resumes to see a job candidate’s online persona.

List your business in the premium web directory for free This website is listed under Human Resources Directory