(Before I get started: Apologies for not posting at lunchtime today. Over the weekend I’ve received several e-mails about the crime problem in Memphis, and I spent so long trying to figure out how to respond that I ended up not posting anything. My response to the crime e-mails will be posted later tonight or tomorrow morning.)
Last week I ran across one of the most interesting job-search sites I’ve ever seen. It’s called Climber and it describes itself as being like “dating for jobs.”
(Click the banner to visit Climber’s site)
Here’s how it works: You, the job hunter, go to their site and fill out a profile in which you assess different aspects of yourself, your career life, and your ideal work environment. This is called your Career Fingerprint. Companies join the site and fill out a profile of their own, providing an accurate assessment of their corporate culture. This is called their Corporate DNA. Climber then matches individuals and companies who have compatible Career Fingerprints and Corporate DNA. Companies can then contact those individuals and request more information about them and/or an interview.
It’s said to be “like dating for jobs” because this is similar to how dating sites like eHarmony work: People fill out profiles, computers analyze the profiles for compatibility, and then offer compatible people the option of meeting.
The profiles are completely anonymous – your name is not revealed to any companies through Climber until you choose to give them that information. Also, it’s free for individuals to fill out a Career Fingerprint and see which companies they match.
Unlike most job-hunting sites, Climber positions its services toward “passive job-hunters” – people who are already employed and aren’t actively searching for work. It’s more for people looking to find a BETTER job than it is for people looking to find A job. It’s always been my opinion that everyone should passively job hunt (this is why I encourage people to keep a current resume online and make sure Google has spidered it). That’s how you see quantum leaps in your income in your income and job satisfaction in just a few short years, instead of settling for the rat race and 3% raises. I’ll have more to say about this in a couple of weeks.
Really cool idea… the founders of Climber thought way outside the box on this one. I like it.