With smartphone adoption rates on the rise, it seems like it's possible to do almost anything from the comfort of your cellphone -- why should applying for a job be any different? For applicants, it wouldn't be such a hassle, really, if job recruiters would get on board with the idea.
Although a growing number of job seekers use their mobile devices to seek out career opportunities, employers are still behind on implementing mobile recruitment strategies to cater to applicant needs, according to a study published by online recruiting research lab Potentialpark.
For the study, Potentialpark surveyed more than 25,000 job seekers worldwide and analyzed the mobile career presence of nearly 700 top employers in the U.S., Europe and Asia. Mashable spoke with Potentialpark about its findings.
The study found that 26% of job seekers use their mobile devices for career-related purposes (and another 59% could imagine doing so), yet only 13% of employers have a mobile version of their career website.
Survey respondents were most interested in mobile features that would enable them to look for job openings (69%), track the status of their applications (63%), and research companies and career opportunities (47%). Respondents seem to be bullish on apps, too, with 56% saying they’d use a career app, up from 47% last year.
Mobile Recruitment Done Right
Not all employees are lacking on the mobile recruitment front, though. Potentialpark conducted a thorough investigation of the mobile career presences of nearly 700 top employers, finding that some actually had some sweet goods to offer.
Potentialpark’s research identified Orange, PepsiCo and Credit Suisse as the top three organizations with thorough mobile recruitment communications in place. Each of the three organizations have both a mobile career site and a career app, which they have in common with only 10 other companies of the 698 analyzed.
Orange, a French telecommunications company, topped the list of standout mobile recruiters with its mobile career app, which features many of the functions that job seekers expect, including a job search, the ability to share and email jobs, company information and an events calendar.
International beverage company PepsiCo came in right behind Orange for its mobile recruiting efforts. The Pepsi Possibilities app and mobile career site enable users to search job listings, email listings, catch up on PepsiCo’s recruiting feeds on the social web, activate job alerts, and apply via mobile. That's an improvement from 2012 when applicants could not apply from their phones, as mentioned in a Dice interview with PepsiCo recruiter Chris Hoyt (see embedded video above).
Ranking third on the list was financial services group Credit Suisse, with its mobile site and recruiting apps for Apple and Android devices. It appears to be a big jump from Orange and PepsiCo’s highly functional apps, though. The Credit Suisse app focuses on providing users with information about internship training programs, Credit Suisse business areas, employee profiles, career advice, and other recruiting tips. The app -- called “Campus Recruiting” -- is geared toward college students and also features a business trivia game called BizWhiz.
Other top-ten organizations on the mobile talent communications list included Sodexo, Accenture U.S., KPMG, Accenture Germany, Daimler, Shell and Fresenius.
While the study highlighted how far behind employers are with mobile recruiting, it wasn’t the bearer of all bad news. Of all mobile career sites, 71% of them offered a functioning job search, the top expectation among job seekers as
determined by Potentialpark’s survey. So, there seems to be reason for hope.
If you’re in the market for a new job, let us know how you're using mobile for your job search in the comments below.
Mashable Job Board Listings
The Mashable Job Board connects job seekers across the U.S. with unique career opportunities in the digital space. While we publish a wide range of job listings, we have selected a few job opportunities from the past two weeks to help get you started. Happy hunting!
Social Media Director at University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, MI
Talent Management at Center for Creative Leadership in Greensboro, NC
Social Media Manager at StyleCaster in New York City
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