WorkFountain: What it is, and how it is a different way to look for work

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WorkFountain is a data-driven web platform that matches talent of all levels to opportunities across all industries, based not only on skills or experience, but job interests, too.  Created by Michigan-based tech company Digerati, the goal of the platform is to reduce hiring bias for candidates, and give employers more streamlined access to the best candidates.

WorkFountain is different from traditional jobs boards in that it does not rely on surface level keyword searches or even resumes. WorkFountain’s matching algorithms instead put Department of Labor data to work in customizable employer and candidate surveys that are specific to each type of job.

Overall, the site enhances the performance and returns of traditional job boards, dynamically scoring and ranking the tens, hundreds, or thousands of applicants their posting receives, in one central location.

For the 30 days of the posting’s life, the platform continuously searches for new candidates to score and rank for consideration. This persistent pre-screening means best-fit candidates are always visible first at any given time.

Instead of sending their resume off into a black hole and never receiving a response, candidates on WorkFountain view immediate feedback on their compatibility with each position considered.

Candidates and employers alike are notified by email or text message when a new match is made, eliminating the need to constantly log in or browse for new activity.

To date, well over 3,000 companies have posted over 20,000 positions nationwide, with close to 100,000 candidates engaged in the job search on the platform each month.  Companies of all sizes use the platform, with 48% of employer users hailing from small and mid-sized businesses (some of the larger companies that use WorkFountain are shown below).

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RealTime Talent is bringing WorkFountain to Minnesota

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Today, RealTime Talent announced its selection of WorkFountain as the platform for a new kind of online labor exchange in Minnesota. Designed by Michigan-based company Digerati, WorkFountain “is a unique scalable platform that engages businesses of all sizes and creates greater efficiency in the labor market. The platform builds pathways for meaningful employment, ultimately creating jobs and strengthening the economy,” says CEO Brian Balasia.

WorkFountain is specifically built with the goal of reducing hiring bias and economic inequalities through blind-correlated matching of candidates to job opportunities. RealTime Talent evaluated 11 online labor exchange platforms, but what sets WorkFountain is the quality of the matches. Organizations that have implemented the technology share that they are seeing faster matches to higher quality candidates. By requiring both job-seekers and employers to complete job-specific surveys, the site goes far beyond resumes or keyword searches to understand subtle differences between candidates, including their preferred work environment, daily tasks, and leadership style.

Small and mid-sized businesses stand to gain from this new approach to hiring. Blind matching candidates based on compatibility means that brand strength doesn’t play as significant of a role in the job-seeker’s search. “As a board member of RealTime Talent, I am really excited to be bringing this innovation to Minnesota,” shared Scott Peterson, representative of the Itasca Project and chair of the RealTime Talent board. “WorkFountain has the potential to bring tremendous efficiencies to match job seekers with employers, as well as harness the power of our diverse workforce. “

The project received funding from the Minnesota Legislature in July 2016 through the leadership of Senator Terri E. Bonoff, chair of the Higher Education and Workforce Development Committee. The Legislature dedicated funding to RealTime Talent to bring a 21st century web-based job and intern-seeking software tool that blind matches the needs of Minnesota’s employers with high school seniors and college students.

“While working on the MN PIPELINE Project, we heard loud and clear from employers that they are struggling to identify and connect with their future workforce” stated Senator Bonoff. “I always knew there had to be a way to harness technology to bring about more meaningful connections between employers and our youth, so we set out to find a solution for them beyond just creating an education and training program and I’m pleased to say today that we found it. WorkFountain is currently doing this connection work with great success in Michigan and Ohio, and I am thrilled that they are coming to Minnesota to unlock so much potential for our employers and students. Thank you to Jess Niebuhr of RealTime Talent and her board for being the engine of workforce solution innovation for our State and making this happen.”

RealTime Talent is working with the support of the Office of Higher Education to implement this pilot. We are seeking regional, education, and industry partners to build, use, and launch this new platform for the benefit of Minnesota employers and job-seekers.

For more information about this pilot project, access to the full report evaluating similar platforms, or inquiries on becoming a partner in this pilot project, please contact Jess Niebuhr at jess@realtimetalentmn.org. More information is available at http://www.realtimetalent.org/ and http://digerati.co/workfountain/.

Read the full press release here:
2016 08 24 RTT WorkFountain Press Release – FINAL

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Job-Market Data Adds Value to College Curriculum Development

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A recent article from The Chronicle of Higher Education highlights the impact of job market data on new program development in Community Colleges around the country.

The article focuses on the Kentucky Community and Technical College system in Floyd County, Kentucky, where the unemployment rate hit 10.5 percent in April 2016. This community college system recently moved to requiring that all new program development be justified by real-time job market data. It’s the granular detail of specific skills, certifications, and employer demand that makes this data valuable for these schools. Similar to the movement happening here in Minnesota, the community college system in Kentucky has also joined with the state’s Education and Workforce Development Cabinet to assist job seekers with finding job opportunities and getting the biggest return on investment for their education. In fact, the experiences echo those of our partner organizations in Minnesota so closely, it affirms the fact that we are in the midst of a nationwide labor force data revolution.

To read the full article “How Community Colleges Use Job-Market Data to Develop New Programs,” visit The Chronicle of Higher Education’s website at the link below.

Article – The Chronicle of Higher Education

RealTime Talent Closes FY 2016 with an Announcement of Funding for an Online Labor Exchange

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Happy anniversary to RealTime Talent! One year ago, we embarked on a journey to bring partners across the state of Minnesota to build the world’s best workforce right here at home.  We started by building our team and providing hundreds of practitioners across the state with access to a robust real-time labor market tool called TalentNeuron Recruit (formerly Wanted Analytics).  We trained over 900 people in this tool and presented to over 1,500 on applications of new data sources in labor market research, planning, and development.

 

RealTime Talent is excited to announce that we are no longer a “one tool wonder.”  While we continue to work to expand the use and accessibility of real-time data by providing licenses, technical assistance and research using TalentNeuron Recruit, we feel very fortunate to be receiving legislative funds to pilot a new online labor exchange.  The goal of this pilot is to explore new technologies that bring efficiency into the job seeking and hiring processes while also impacting disparities.  Strategies include removing common sources of bias in the hiring process, increasing candidate access to information about the skills and certifications desired by employers, and providing employers with a tool that truly matches the most qualified candidates with their job openings. Look for a summary of our evaluation of current tools and technology coming in mid to late August.

 

RealTime Talent is looking for partners in this innovative work to better match candidates with the best opportunities. Our goal is to pilot regionally and / or with industry specific context, as well as with colleges and universities.  Contact Jess Niebuhr to learn more.