There are many motivations for starting your own company.  The least of which, at times, is creating more flexibility in your schedule.  We're no different and made a commitment to ourselves and each other that we would keep certain times sacred; especially the weekends.  At the same time, if you've ever started your own business you also know that there are times when you will want to work extra to ensure the success of your business; when you first get started, when there are opportunities you can't pass up, etc...

To that end we decided to do a little JobSyntax "business" on Sunday and met up with Peter Altieri.  Pete's the Chief People Officer over at Wetjello.  He has a long history in business development with both corporations and classic start ups.  Wetjello is his latest venture.

It's a pretty interesting concept.  The idea is that businesses can create video snippets of job openings and jobseekers can enhance their resumes by introducing themselves on video.  I really like this idea for employers because it puts a true face on the recruiting process.  Especially if employers use it for personalizing specific job openings.  Imagine that you get to "walk" around the office and meet your potential teammates prior to either applying or interviewing for a job.  This in conjunction with a blog really takes recruiting to the next level.

For jobseekers, the idea is also pretty intriguing.  Jobseekers have a chance to introduce themselves and present more then just a one dimensional resume.  Resumes are great and necessary, but having the chance to personalize your resume and, for recruiters, potentially evaluate someone's skills in advance is truly helpful.  As a recruiter it's always hard to gauge certain skills unless you get the person on the phone or see them in person.  For example, if you are looking for someone with strong communication skills and that is not demonstrated in the video link presented on the resume you can potentially save time and move to the next candidate.

Though it's exciting, there are still some things that I wonder about with this type of service.  Particularly since there is a chance for both employers and jobseekers alike to “hang” themselves through these videos.  I guess that’s a risk that you’re willing to take if you put yourself out there; same as blogging.  Still I have a questions like: Is it generational?  Will younger applicants be more apt to use this then folks who've been in the industry for awhile?  Will companies truly progress to more transparency or will this be an overly polished marketing tool?  Will certain types of jobseekers shy away from using this medium in their job search? 

Regardless, I think that the possibilities are vast in how to use this tool in the next step of both recruiting and job finding. In addition, meeting Pete was excellent!  Knowing someone who has been successful repeatedly in starting up and developing businesses is priceless.  I know we received some tidbits just in the short time with Pete that we'll be thinking about in the coming weeks.

Thanks Pete!

Cheers,

zoë