Job Search Engine Guide

Are Job Boards in Denial?

   

Several weeks ago, during the 2007 Top Sites for Job Search competition, an executive with one of the medalists sent me a message:

   

“Timing sucks. We are launching major search relevance enhancements on Thursday this week.”

   

Delaying the testing until this competitor could release their ‘improved search’ wouldn’t have been fair to the other contestants.  Instead, I committed to retesting the ‘improved search’ at the conclusion of the competition and posting an update if it appeared the results would have changed.

   

As it turned out, the ‘major search relevance enhancements’ were more akin to The Emperor’s New Clothes.

   

Consider the following example – a search for:

   

¾      ‘insurance sales’ jobs;

¾      within 'x' miles of city ‘y’;

¾      posted within 7 days; and,

¾      sorted by relevance. 

   

The 'new and improved search' returned 156 ‘matching’ jobs.  Sounds pretty good until reality intrudes.

   

Only 31% of the ads (49 of 156) focus on insurance in some way … not very good.  The search engine doesn’t seem to discern a difference between selling insurance and receiving insurance benefits.

   

Worse, most of these 49 are not at the top of the list.  They’re spread throughout the list of 156 results; and the average rank for the 49 insurance related ads is 78.1 … right on the average rank for the full 156.

   

Furthermore, the 49 insurance-related ads include positions that are unrelated to ‘insurance sales’, including:

   

Compensation Managers (3)                   (deal with comp. and ins. issues)

Attorneys (2)                                         (dealing with insurance issues)

Customer Service Reps  (2)                    (for an insurance company)         

HR Managers (2)                                    (deal with insurance issues)

Employee Benefits Assistant (1)             (deal with insurance issues)

Management Development Spec. (1)        (for financial firm)

Office Assistant (1)                                (for insurance agency)

Patient Account Reps (1)                        (for a hospital)

VP, Research and Development (1)         (for an insurance company)

AVP, Business Process (1)                    (for an insurance company)

AVP, Procurement (1)                            (for an insurance company)

Quality Assurance Manager (1)               (for an insurance company)

   

So, eliminating these non-sales positions leaves us with 32 insurance-sales-related positions … roughly a 21% accuracy rate. 

   

Surely these 32 positions have an average rank above the list midpoint?  Just barely … the average of 75.2 is just a hair better than the overall average of 78.5. 

   

Of course, not all of the 32 insurance-sales-related ads are equally relevant.  Some are for personal financial advisors; positions that focus more on investment planning/sales than on insurance sales.  Still others are support positions for the insurance sales process.

   

But eleven ads do fall within the ‘Insurance Sales Agents’ occupation … highly relevant matches for my search.  The average rank?  77.2 … argh!   Two are in the top-ten results, but then there are no more until a single ad appears at position 72.  For reference, here are the ads along with their rank in the search results:

   

1     Mortgage Life and Disability Insurance Sales with

2     Mortgage Life and Disability Insurance Sales with

72   Agency Producer Full Time

91   Insurance Sales Agent

92   Insurance Sales Agent

93   Insurance Sales Agent

95   Sales Representative/Sales Management - Insurance

96   Sales Representative/Sales Management - Insurance

97   Sales Representative/Sales Management - Insurance

98   Sales Representative/Sales Management - Insurance

112 Sales and Management Positions / Health Insurance

   

All in all, pretty dismal.  Delivering relevant search results isn’t rocket science; but it can’t be done with standard keyword search of unstructured data.

   

It is however possible to more than double the accuracy of current search technology.  To do so requires accurate interpretation of user search intent, and then combining this knowledge with occupationally categorized data.

   

As for the problem of intent, try searching www.onetsocautocoder.com for insurance sales.  The occupations deemed the best fit:

   

41-3021.00   Insurance Sales Agents  81

41-1012.00   First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Non-Retail Sales Workers  59

13-2053.00   Insurance Underwriters  46

11-2022.00   Sales Managers  42

41-3031.02   Sales Agents, Financial Services  38

41-3031.01   Sales Agents, Securities and Commodities  34

   

If job ads are categorized using the same occupational taxonomy, then preference can be given to ads accordingly … a process that can range from the simple to the exotic, with the more advanced algorithms returning the most accurate results.    

   

So is search relevance important to jobseekers and employers?  I think so; but one thing seems clear … there is a scarcity of highly relevant search results in the labor exchange, and wherever there’s scarcity, there’s opportunity.

   

JobCentral Rolls Out Next-Generation Job Search

   

With few exceptions (e.g. Just-Posted and Itzbig), search technology has remained essentially unchanged for the past ten years – we still enter a few keywords, we still hope employers are using the same words, and we still sift through volumes of marginally related results – or worse, we stare at some variant of the message ‘no jobs match your search criteria.’ 

   

The problem is simply this – keyword-based search is a poor proxy for intention-based search. 

   

Intention-based search differs dramatically in that each search has two equally important components:

   

¾      First, search terms/phrases entered by the user are interpreted by the system to identify the intent or theme of the search; and,

   

¾      Then, content matching the intent or theme is displayed … it doesn’t matter if the original search terms are included in the ad text, so long as the ad falls within users’ intent.

   

The image at right illustrates the following example of intention-based search from JobCentral’s new search engine:

   

First, I select the ‘Occupation Title’ search option.

   

Second, I enter words that describe the type of position I’m seeking … note that I’ve chosen to use ‘medical lab tech’, but I could have entered skills or duties.

   

Third, the system interprets my search terms and offers five occupational themes for me to choose from … in this case I’ve chosen ‘Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technicians’.  As a side note, this is a standard ONET occupation for which significant labor market information exists, including employment growth projections and possible employers … more on this in a follow-up post.

   

Fourth, the JobCentral system then returns ads within this occupational area.  In fact, no keywords were used to generate this list once I selected the occupational category.  Cool!

   

A scan of the results looks pretty good, but not perfect … yet.  This first release of JobCentral’s new search engine is just beginning to leverage their structured data; so accuracy should improve as the engine is refined and additional metadata elements are incorporated. 

   

I think the same can be said regarding the interface … it’s a bit complicated, and I noticed a few quirks. For example, between steps three and four I had to manually remove my search terms from the keyword box to search for all ads within the occupational category.

   

No matter … JobCentral’s new intention-based search is a big step towards the goal of a more intuitive search process that returns highly relevant search results.  Kudos JobCentral!

   

   

Note:  JobCentral uses O*NET-SOC AutoCoder software from R.M. Wilson Consulting, Inc. to assign occupational metadata. 

   

Monster Beta Job Search – Improved but Flawed

   

Monster no longer dominates the U.S. online recruitment market – Career Builder has passed them in revenue, job postings and traffic – but Monster has deep pockets and a dedicated R&D team.   So don’t underestimate the power of a wounded Monster.

   

Innovation is a surefire way to disrupt the status quo; so if Monster can leverage their R&D spending to jump ahead of competitors in the areas of search relevance and user productivity, then perhaps they can reestablish their dominance.

   

Enter the much-improved Monster Beta Job Search.

   

The user interface is clean and flexible, plus it scores well on the use of standard usability principles. Definitely first class.

   

The addition of filters on the left mimics other sites, but it is still a helpful addition. And Monster becomes one of the few sites to offer a filter by occupational category – a key to improved relevance and productivity.

   

Weaknesses remain however:

   

1)       The occupational categories used by Monster are non-standard, poorly defined, and overlapping.  In the example above, there are separate categories for information technology and computers, software – aren’t computers and software part of information technology?  I have no idea what distinguishes one category from the other.  And if I’m confused during the search process, was the employer any less confused when assigning a category?  When will a job site turn to the combination of a proven occupational taxonomy and expert code assignment?

   

2)       Keyword search manipulation is not transparent.  Monster deserves props for going an extra step to help job seekers – when a search string finds no results using the default ‘AND’ operator, Monster reruns the search using the ‘OR’ operator.  They just don’t tell you when they’ve done this.  So in the example above, I’m seeing an ‘Accounts Receivable Clerk’ as the most relevant result for my ‘Ajax Software Guru’ search.  Definitely confusing.

   

3)       Coverage is limited to ads placed on Monster – somewhere under 1 million ads, and probably closer to 500,000. Monster doesn’t publish this metric because it would be hard to reconcile with their advertising claim of providing “access to the largest database of jobs”. So even if Monster does develop the best search engine, they’ll still only be offering access to 20% or less of the online job ads. 

   

An improved search experience is always welcome; and even with the current flaws, Monster’s new beta job search is improved. What I see so far won’t be enough to change their market fundamentals though – they’ll continue to see declining market share for as long as they charge premium prices for less than premium results.    

   

Who Cares About O*NET

   

Most folks have never heard of O*NET. 

   

Of those who have, some view O*NET as a government thing …funded by the U.S. Department of Labor … with little day-to-day value. 

   

So, there were times when I doubted that a single major commercial job board would adopt O*NET. 

   

That was before I met Bill Warren and the team at Job Central.  They care about O*NET, and they’ve built it in to their new National Labor Exchange.  Their members care too. 

   

Don’t believe me?  The following associations have endorsed the O*NET initiative and have encouraged their members to contribute information to the O*NET program.

   

Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences

Accrediting Council for Continuing Education and Training

African American Women's Clergy Association

Air Conditioning Contractors of America

Aircraft Electronics Association

Allied Pilots Association

America's Health Insurance Plans

American Academy of Actuaries

American Academy of Environmental Engineers

American Academy of Orthotists and Prosthetists

American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

American Academy of Physician Assistants

American Apparel and Footwear Association

American Association for Active Lifestyles and Fitness

American Association for Adult and Continuing Education

American Association for Health Education

American Association for Homecare

American Association for Leisure and Recreation

American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy

American Association for Medical Transcription

American Association for Respiratory Care

American Association for Vocational Instructional Materials

American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy

American Association of Community Colleges

American Association of Cosmetology Schools

American Association of Early Childhood Educators

American Association of Engineering Societies

American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators

American Association of Museums

American Association of Psychiatric Technicians

American Association of State Colleges and Universities

American Association of Zoo Keepers

American Bar Association

American Business Conference

American Chemical Society

American College of Cardiology

American Composites Manufacturers Association

American Congress on Surveying and Mapping

American Correctional Association

American Council for Construction Education

American Council of Life Insurers

American Counseling Association

American Culinary Federation

American Dental Assistants Association

American Design Drafting Association

American Education Finance Association

American Electronics Association

American Federation for Medical Research

American Federation of Home Health Agencies

American Federation of School Administrators

American Federation of Teachers

American Financial Services Association

American Fisheries Society

American Forest and Paper Association

American Foundry Society

American Geological Institute

American Health Information Management Association

American Historical Association

American Home Furnishings Alliance

American Hotel and Lodging Association

American Industrial Hygiene Association

American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics

American Institute of Building Design

American Institute of Chemists

American Institute of Constructors

American Institute of Engineers

American Institute of Floral Designers

American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers

American Insurance Association

American Jail Association

American Library Association

American Loggers Council

American Management Association

American Meat Institute

American Mental Health Counselors Association

American Moving and Storage Association American Optometric Association

American Pharmacists Association

American Physical Therapy Association

American Physiological Society

American Planning Association

American Probation and Parole Association

American Prosthodontic Society

American Psychological Association

American Public Gas Association

American Public Human Services Association

American Purchasing Society

American Rehabilitation Counseling Association

American Rental Association

American Road and Transportation Builders Association

American School Counselor Association

American School Health Association

American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science

American Society for Engineering Education

American Society for Engineering Management

American Society for Microbiology

American Society for Quality

American Society for Training and Development

American Society of Agronomy

American Society of Association Executives

American Society of Certified Engineering Technicians

American Society of Interior Designers

American Society of Law Enforcement Trainers

American Society of Professional Estimators

American Society of Radiologic Technologists

American Society of Sanitary Engineering

American Society of Travel Agents

American Sociological Association

American Subcontractors Association

American Therapeutic Recreation Association

American Watchmakers-Clockmakers Institute

American Water Works Association

American Zoo and Aquarium Association

Animal Behavior Society

Appraisal Institute

Appraisers Association of America

Architectural Engineering Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers

Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals

Associated Builders and Contractors

Associated General Contractors of America

Associated Locksmiths of America

Associated Specialty Contractors

Association for Career and Technical Education

Association for Career and Technical Education Research

Association for Childhood Education International

Association for Commuter Transportation

Association for Continuing Higher Education

Association for Financial Professionals

Association for Library and Information Science Education

Association for Library Collections and Technical Services

Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology

Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering

Association of Business Support Services International

Association of Consulting Foresters of America

Association of Credit and Collection Professionals

Association of Energy Engineers

Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors

Association of Equipment Management Professionals

Association of Information Technology Professionals

Association of Management Consulting Firms

Association of Master of Business Administration Executives

Association of Minority Health Professions Schools

Association of Oncology Social Work

Association of Sales and Marketing Companies

Association of School Business Officials International

Association of Schools of Allied Health Professions

Association of Surgical Technologists

Association of the Wall and Ceiling Industry

Association of Women in the Metal Industries

Association of Women Soil Scientists

Automotive Maintenance and Repair Association

   

Belt Association

Biomedical Engineering Society

Biotechnology Industry Organization

Blow-in-Blanket Contractors Association

Bread Bakers Guild of America

Brotherhood of Shoe and Allied Craftsmen

Business Marketing Association

Business Professionals of America

   

California Fashion Association

Ceilings and Interior Systems Construction Association

Center for Book Arts

Ceramic Tile Institute of America

Chamber of Shipping of America

Chartered Property Casualty Underwriters Society

Commercial Vehicle Training Association

Community Transportation Association of America

CompTIA

Construction Management Association of America

Consumer Electronics Association

Contact Lens Manufacturers Association

Council for American Private Education

Council of Fashion Designers of America

Council of Industrial Boiler Owners

Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals

Crane Certification Association of America

Crop Science Society of America

Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association Dangerous Goods Advisory Council

   

Deck Industry Association

Dietary Managers Association

Drug and Alcohol Testing Industry Association

   

Edison Welding Institute

Editorial Freelancers Association

Electronics Technicians Association International

Employee Benefit Research Institute

Energy Council of the Northeast

   

Fabricators and Manufacturers Association, International

Federal Resource Center for Special Education

Federation of Tax Administrators

Flexographic Technical Association

Floor Covering Installation Contractors Association

Foodservice Consultants Society International

Forest Resources Association

Forging Industry Association

   

Gases and Welding Distributors Association

Graphic Artists Guild

Graphic Arts Technical Foundation and Affiliates

Group Underwriters Association of America

   

Healthcare Distribution Management Association

Home Care Aide Association of America

Home Healthcare Nurses Association

Hospice Association of America

Hospitality Business Alliance

   

IEEE Aerospace and Electronic Systems Society

IEEE Computer Society

IEEE Engineering Management Society

Independent Automotive Damage Appraisers Association

Industrial Designers Society of America

Information Systems Audit and Control Association

Information Technology Association of America

Inland Marine Underwriters Association

Institute for Certification of Computing Professionals

Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences

Institute for Supply Management

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

Institute of Environmental Sciences and Technology

Institute of Industrial Engineers

Institute of Management Accountants

Institute of Management Consultants USA

Institute of Packaging Professionals

Insurance Information Institute

International Association for Computer Information Systems

International Association of Administration Professionals

International Association of Arson Investigators

International Association of Asian Studies

International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators

International Association of Fire Chiefs

International Association of Foundation Drilling International Association of Workforce Professionals

International Disk Drive Equipment and Materials Association

International Economic Development Council

International Executive Housekeeping Association

International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers

International Fire Marshals Association

International Interior Design Association

International Maintenance Institute

International Masonry Institute

International Plant Propagators' Society

International Public Management Association for Human Resources

International Society of Logistics

International Ticketing Association

International Union of Bakers and Bakers-Confectioners

International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers

International Union of Painters and Allied Trades

International Union of Police Associations

International Warehouse Logistics Association

Ironworker Management Progressive Action Cooperative Trust

Irrigation Association

   

Jewelers of America

Jewelry Information Center

   

Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association

   

Machinery Dealers National Association

Manufactured Housing Institute

Marine Technology Society

Marketing Research Association

Mason Contractors Association of America

Material Handling Equipment Distributors Association

Metals Service Center Institute

Metropolitan Burglar and Fire Alarm Association

Minerals, Metals, and Materials Society

Modular Building Institute

   

NALS

National Academy of Opticianry

National Academy of Sciences

National Alliance of Business

National Association for Business Economics

National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education

National Association for Girls and Women in Sport

National Association for Home Care and Hospice

National Association for Practical Nurse Education and Service

National Association for Printing Leadership

National Association for Sport and Physical Education

National Association of African American Studies

National Association of Child Care Professionals

National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies

National Association of Construction Boilermaker Employees

National Association of Counties

National Association of County Surveyors

National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians

National Association of Environmental Professionals

National Association of Executive Secretaries and Administrative Assistants

National Association of Geoscience Teachers

National Association of Health Underwriters

National Association of Hispanic and Latino Studies

National Association of Independent Insurance Adjusters

National Association of Independent Publishers

National Association of Legal Assistants

National Association of Manufacturers

National Association of Native American Studies

National Association of Professional Employer Organizations

National Association of Sales and Marketing Agencies

National Association of School Psychologists

National Association of Service Managers

National Association of Social Workers

National Association of State Directors of Career Technical Education Consortium

National Athletic Trainers' Association

National Bicycle Dealers Association

National Blacksmiths and Weldors Association

National Burglar and Fire Alarm Association

National Business Education Association

National Career Development Association

National Center for Manufacturing Sciences

National Cleaners Association National Concrete Masonry Association

National Cosmetology Association

National Council for Advanced Manufacturing

National Council of Agricultural Employers

National Council of Teachers of English

National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

National Criminal Justice Association

National Dance Association

National Dental Assistants Association

National Dental Association

National Earth Science Teachers Association

National Elevator Industry

National Employment Counseling Association

National Environmental Health Association

National Farmers Union

National Federation of Licensed Practical Nurses

National Freight Transportation Association

National Funeral Directors Association

National Glass Association

National Hardwood Lumber Association

National High School Association

National Human Resources Association

National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence

National Institute for Literacy

National Institute for Metalworking Skills

National Jewelers Association

National Judges Association

National League of Postmasters of the United States

National Management Association

National Maritime Education and Training Association

National Paralegal Association

National Propane Gas Association

National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association

National Registry of Environmental Professionals

National Rehabilitation Counseling Association

National Retail Federation

National Roofing Contractors Association

National Science and Technology Education Partnership

National Society of Professional Surveyors

National Stone, Sand and Gravel Association

National Terrazzo and Mosaic Association

National Therapeutic Recreation Society

National Tile Contractors Association

National Tooling and Machining Association

National Tour Association

National Utility Contractors Association

National Wheel and Rim Association

Network and System Professionals Association

Network Professional Association

New York Academy of Sciences

   

Outdoor Power Equipment Aftermarket Association

Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association

   

Packaging and Label Gravure Association

Painting and Decorating Contractors of America

Pedorthic Footwear Association

Plastic and Metal Products Manufacturers Association

Pleaters, Stitchers and Embroiders Association

Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors National Association

Precision Machined Products Association

Precision Metalforming Association

Precision Metalforming Association Educational Foundation

Printing Industries of America and Affiliates

Professional Association of Custom Clothiers

Professional Caddie Association

Professional Landcare Network

Professional Managers Association

Property Casualty Insurers Association of America

   

Refractory Ceramic Fibers Coalition

Refrigeration Service Engineers Society

Retailer's Bakery Association

Risk Management Association

   

Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine

Society for Foodservice Management

Society for Protective Coatings

Society for Technical Communication

Society of Allied Weight Engineers

Society of American Archivists

Society of American Florists Society of American Foresters

Society of Computer Professionals

Society of Fire Protection Engineers

Society of Manufacturing Engineers

Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers

Society of Petroleum Engineers

Society of Professional Benefit Administrators

Soil Science Society of America

Specialty Graphic Imaging Association

Structural Insulated Panel Association

   

Telecommunications Industry Association

Tooling and Manufacturing Association

Transportation Intermediaries Association

Tree Care Industry Association

Tube and Pipe Association International

Tubular Piping Association

   

United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America

United Council on Welfare Fraud

United Professional Sales Association

United States Tour Operators Association

   

Water Environment Federation

Western Dredging Association

Wildlife Disease Association

Wood Flooring Manufacturers Association

Wood Moulding and Millwork Producers Association

World International Nail and Beauty Association

World Leisure and Recreation Association

   

Do Standard Occupation Codes Work?

   

“I do not think ‘standard’ codes work.”  That’s Jon’s response to my Targeting Your Job Search post.

   

Jon goes on to say:

   

“There are way too may job titles to cover all the opportunities on the internet.  In addition jobs vary greatly based on each company.  For example:  Do you think a project manager for Coke needs the same skill set as a project manager for Amazon.com?  There are simply too many variations out there to try to "box" jobs in.”

   

Good feedback Jon. 

   

I have to disagree with you though, because many standard coding systems do work.  Zip codes work for mail delivery.  Clothing size codes work pretty well … at least better than if stores had racks and racks of clothes with no size codes.  And libraries are organized using standard codes … it’s much easier to find the book I’m looking for when the books are in order by code.

   

Still, most standard coding systems used for jobs fail for six reasons:

   

1)       Too few codes – in It’s Alive! … Windows Live Expo Jobs I complained about the limitation of their 34 standard codes.  Thirty-four categories do not provide enough precision to be useful.

   

2)       Too many codes – paradoxically, having too many codes is no better than having too few codes.  That’s why In Tagging Jobs for Search I disagreed with Charlene Li on the value of user-generated tags.

   

3)       Poorly defined codes – it’s not enough to have a list of code titles.  To be useful, each code should be defined and provide a list of commonly included job titles.  Better yet, the definitions should list excluded codes.  For example, look at the ONET definition for wholesale and retail buyers, except farm products.

   

4)       Overlapping codes – if a job site lists the standard codes ‘manager’ and ‘sales’, and you have to choose one, which one is correct for a ‘sales manager’ job?  To succeed, standard codes cannot overlap.  That’s why ONET provides many different codes for sales-related jobs, as illustrated in the image at right.

   

5)       Untrained users – standard coding systems are like foreign languages.  Not surprising then that infrequent users aren’t fluent.  So asking untrained users to assign standard codes results in unacceptable error rates.

   

6)       Apathy – adding accurate occupation codes to jobs costs money; so as long as users remain satisfied with the limitations of current keyword-focused job search engines, there is little motivation for adoption.

   

With all of the above problems, I can see why Jon doesn’t believe in standard job codes.  But by combining a well-researched occupational taxonomy (e.g. ONET) with an accurate automated coding system (e.g. O*NET-SOC AutoCoder) the problems are eliminated, and standard codes do work for grouping related jobs.

   

So, what does this mean for Jon’s project manager jobs at Coke and Amazon?  First, we’re left to guess about the specifics of these two example jobs – is the job at Amazon for a software engineering project or a product warehousing project?  Is the job at Coke an R&D project for a new flavor of Coke, or a cost reduction project? 

   

Since project managers must have the skills associated with the type of projects they manage, ONET does not group all project managers together.  Without more detail, O*NET-SOC AutoCoder offers several management occupations as possibilities.

   

In the end, no coding solution solves every problem (e.g. library books can still be hard to find); but accurately structured data provides a better starting point than a pile of unstructured data. 

   

Advanced Job Search for the Other 95%

   

In Job-Search Secrets For Hunting on the Web, Kay Luo, director of marketing at SimplyHired, provides insights on overcoming some of the limitations of electronic job search: 

   

§         “Fewer than 5% of visitors to SimplyHired.com take advantage of the site's ‘advanced job search’ tool.”

   

§         “The option, found on most job boards, lets users combine and exclude terms to get more targeted results, she says.”

   

§         “For instance, if you're looking for a nursing job, you can retrieve ads showing the words "nurse" or "RN." At the same time, you can eliminate words such as "nonprofit" or "night shift" to avoid ads with those terms.”

   

§         “Job hunters may be unaware of such advanced search tools or assume they're complicated, Ms. Luo says. But they can be helpful, especially on "aggregator" sites like SimplyHired, that post job ads culled from all over the Web, she says.”

   

§         “Some site visitors abandon searches early in the process, overwhelmed by too much information. By narrowing the types of ads you want, you should get fewer but better results, she explains.”

   

Advanced search is better than basic search … for those willing and able to learn the tricks of word inclusion, exclusion and alternate forms.  But even then, it is far weaker than searching within an occupational category … see Targeting Your Job Search for an explanation.

   

And what about the other 95% of the population?  Until the job boards hear from you that the current state of ‘search’ is unacceptable, you can expect more of the same … easy for them – hard for you.

   

Targeting Your Job Search

   

Damon Billan, Community Marketing Manager for SimplyHired, has a nice post on targeting your job search.   Number one on Damon’s list of pointers:  Define what type of job you're looking for (job title, occupation). 

   

Exactly right!  Why then is it impossible? 

   

Today, not a single job board/site makes it practical to search by job title or occupation.  Take SimplyHired as an example…

   

Let’s say I want to find all jobs in Omaha for an executive secretary … as of today there are 10.

   

But some companies call executive secretaries by the title administrative assistant.  Unless I search for this phrase too, I miss at least 190 jobs (200 minus the ten already returned, if the ten job ads include both titles).

   

What about the executive assistant jobs?  There are 61 jobs with this title.  Do they overlap the 200, or the 10?

   

And what about the job ads using abbreviations … there are 15 using the abbreviation admin instead of administrative.  SimplyHired treats abbreviations, plus all partial word strings and plurals, as unique words.

   

Bottom line, it is totally impractical to search for a job using a job title.   That’s why the 24^th most frequent search on Jobster last week was (executive OR secretary OR administrative OR assistant).  Try the same search on SimplyHired for Omaha and the result is 1,551 matching jobs … most of which are way off the mark.

   

Now, if the jobs on SimplyHired were accurately coded by occupation, then things really would be simple.  We’d be able to enter the executive assistant search string, and the system would identify the proper occupation.  Then we’d see all of the appropriate jobs, no matter what words or strings used by employers.

   

Properly implemented, occupational search would eliminate the games we now have to play with keyword search strings.  I could do without the games.  I’d rather see more time spent connecting with employers.

   

How about you?  Would you like to see an effective, really simple, occupational job search?   

   

Job Central Adding Structure to Job Ads

   

On page 16 of the JobCentral National Labor Exchange presentation you’ll find a graphic illustrating that jobs will be indexed daily and O*NET-coded for distribution to States.

   

The image at right is a slightly modified version (for visual clarity).  It shows that States will have a rare advantage in this new National Labor Exchange – they’ll be receiving job ads with detailed occupational structure.

   

Assigning O*NET codes to jobs was an expensive proposition until R.M. Wilson Consulting, Inc. developed an accurate automated process.

   

Yes, O*NET coding software has enjoyed limited availability for several years; but none have delivered 90+% accuracy (to my knowledge) – until now.

   

So what’s the big deal?

   

The point of classifying jobs is to make it easier for the right candidates to find the right jobs.

   

Recall that the top search on Jobster is for the single word ‘sales’.  The result, as is the case on almost all job sites, is a long unstructured list of jobs – a sales clerk job is just as likely to be followed by a sales manager job, as it is to be followed by a telemarketing job.  Without structure, search uses a bag-of-words approach without context.

   

In contrast, look at the detailed occupation codes provided by O*NET for sales jobs. 

   

If job ads are classified using this structure, then when a jobseeker searches for ‘sales’, they can be presented with the list of choices to help them refine their search.

   

As an example of the power of this approach, let’s assume that a jobseeker is looking for a position as a non-technical manufacturer’s sales rep. 

   

This individual doesn’t want to miss any of the relevant opportunities, so the initial search is for the word ‘sales.’  Predictably, this generates a flood of poorly targeted ads. 

   

But, if the occupational subcategories within sales are presented as a refinement option, then the jobseeker can choose ‘Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical’ to see a precisely targeted list of ads that have not been artificially constrained by the choice of search keywords.  The results are really stunning.

   

If you’d like to learn more, contact JobCentral, drop me a note, or check out my O*NET-SOC AutoCoder blog.

   

Automated Job Tagging in Action

   

In Reducing Job Tag Spam … for Profit I said, “…the price incentive to place verbose ads covering multiple positions is offset by lower fit scores and thus lower placement in search results.  This substantially lowers the ROI of non-specific ads, and encourages advertisers to place focused ads for best results.”   Here are a few examples to illustrate:

   

The image at right (click the image for a larger view) shows a hypothetical ad for five jobs at a new furniture store:

   

- Furniture Delivery Driver

- Furniture Stock Clerk

- Furniture AP, AR, Payroll Clerk

- Furniture Salesperson

- Assistant Store Manager

   

The advertiser expects that as long as the proper keywords are included, the ad will show up in all the appropriate jobseeker searches.  Problem is, this unfocused approach results in the ad appearing for unintended searches too (e.g. Payroll Manager, Delivery Manager, Driver Manager, Salesperson Assistant, etc.) – at least that’s what would happen without automatic tag assignment. 

   

As you can see in the first image, the unfocused nature of the ad results in a best-fit occupation tag of ‘Not Classified’, with a secondary tag of First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Transportation and Material-Moving Machine and Vehicle Operators with a ‘fit score’ of only 50 (on a 100 point scale).  These tags and scores would place this ad very low in any set of search results – the same effect seen for ads with tag spam – and the opposite effect desired by the advertiser.

   

The solution is to place focused ads for each job.  The ad at right, for the Furniture Delivery Driver position, yields a primary occupation tag of:  Truck Drivers, Light or Delivery Services, with a score of 90.  This is excellent, and ensures this job ad will place highly in job searches for delivery drivers.

   

Breaking out the Furniture Salesperson opening into a separate ad results in a primary occupational tag of:  Retail Salespersons, with a score of 93.   Again, excellent.

   

The results are similar for the remaining three positions when placed as individual ads. 

   

So, by automatically assigning occupational tags to each ad, job boards ‘encourage’ advertisers to write focused ads, generating additional business for the job boards, better candidates for advertisers, and more relevant search results for jobseekers.  A win-win-win.   

   

Reducing Job Tag Spam … for Profit

   

In CareerBuilder Suffering from Tag Spam I posited, “…almost everyone is losing.”  Yet, there are very good reasons why job advertisers use tag spam; and equally compelling reasons why job boards haven’t solved the problem.  The solution, available today, turns this ‘problem’ into a moneymaker for job boards – and in the process, almost everyone wins.

 

First, the ‘drivers’ behind tag spam:

   

1)       Imprecision of electronic ‘search’ motivates some advertisers to use tag spam to increase the odds that their ads will be seen by appropriate jobseekers;

   

2)       Pricing for electronic job ads makes it cost efficient to place verbose ads, covering multiple positions or containing tag spam, as opposed to placing multiple targeted ads;

   

3)       Hard-to-fill positions benefit from the increased exposure resulting from tag spam;

   

4)       Job boards don’t want to interfere in the creative use of ad space; plus,

   

5)       Traditional methods for policing spam remain prohibitively expensive for large job boards and job verticals.

   

   

The solution – automated occupational tag assignment – addresses all of the above drivers, benefits almost everyone, and generates additional revenue for job boards.  Here’s how:

   

First, when occupational tags are accurately assigned to each job ad, search changes from less structured to more structured – a search of structured data is substantially more precise.

   

Second, when occupational tags are automatically assigned, job boards don’t have to impose restrictions on tag spam that might interfere in the creative use of ad space.  In fact, system-assigned occupational tags can be displayed at the time of ad placement, allowing advertisers to refine their content prior to placement to ensure they receive the desired occupational tags.

   

Third, each occupational tag is provided with a ‘fit’ score, indicating how precisely an ad fits within the occupational category – this is key to eliminating the benefits of tag spam.  The broader the ad, the lower the occupational fit scores.  And lower scores lead to lower placement in the search results.  Thus, tag spamming becomes counter productive for advertisers.

   

Finally, the price incentive to place verbose ads covering multiple positions is offset by lower fit scores and thus lower placement in search results.  This substantially lowers the ROI of non-specific ads, and encourages advertisers to place focused ads for best results.  Thus, by eliminating the advantages of tag spam and broad ads, job boards are rewarded with increased ad volume.

   

Sure, there will be winners and losers – but the gains far outweigh the losses. 

   

Best of all, the occupational coding software is available today, delivers 90+% accuracy in a fully automated environment (nearly 100% in an interactive environment), and costs a penny, or less, per ad.  Seems like a no-brainer to me.  How about you?