Recruitment goes mobile

We already use mobile phones to talk, text, take pictures and search for information but now applying for a job can be added to the list.

Two young South Wales companies have joined forces to launch a service that will allow job hunters to not only search through vacancies on their mobile but register for those which appeal.

Instead of having to wait until they can access a computer, candidates will be able to apply for a position wherever they are - from sitting in a coffee shop to waiting for a bus.

The launch marks the first birthday of Cardiff-based accountancy recruitment consultants accountancy4u, run by Naeem Amir. Father-of-three Naeem spent 11 years working for national and regional recruitment companies, before deciding to go it alone to improve his work-life balance.

The team behind the mobile technology are Mike Bennett, previously a steelworker for 18 years, and former shipping clerk Robert Gale. Both turned redundancy into an opportunity to retrain for a new career and gained firsts in computing degrees at the University of Wales, Newport, where they met.

They set up Newport-based company Ozum in February 2006, with assistance from the Knowledge Exploitation Fund (KEF) scholarship and the Wales Spinout programme, and specialise in web applications such as e-commerce.

Naeem, 35, believes being able to apply for jobs via a mobile phone is the type of facility people are coming to expect in a society where other services are increasingly on demand.

We used to fit our lives around radio or TV programmes and being somewhere at a certain time he said. Now these have become flexible enough to fit around us. For example, we used to have the Nine OClock news, now there are 24-hour news channels.

He believes the recruitment industry also has to evolve to become more flexible and fit around potential candidates busy lives. Naeem said: People want to apply for jobs instantly. They havent got the time to deal with application forms that take hours to fill.

Throughout the first year of his business which has exceeded cash flow projections - technology has already proved an invaluable tool. He believes the new mobile technology will also aid his search for high-quality job candidates. As a one-man outfit, his company was small enough to be able to incorporate the new technology very quickly.

Father-of-three Mike, 41, formerly a team leader at Llanwern Steelworks, said Ozum is now focussing on mobile applications because they believe it is an emerging technology.

For accountancy4u, they created a mobile version of the existing website, with the address http://m.acc4u.co.uk

Business partner Robert, 28, explained: We stripped the site down to the essential information. We then linked into Naeems database so the jobs will update as the website updates. Job seekers type the address into their mobile or find it using Googles mobile search engine. Presented with a list of vacancies, they can filter this down according to location before viewing the description and salary details.

Robert, a former Pirelli Cables worker, said: They can register their interest by typing in their name, e-mail and phone number, as you would on a website form. The applicant is sent a confirmation e-mail and then contacted by accountancy4u.

The technology has the potential to be extended to allow candidates to attach a CV, uploaded while registering online, to their application. Cheaper access and growing awareness of mobile versions of sites like Google and eBay mean mobile internet use will increase in the next 12 months, predicts Robert.

It is like the internet was in the mid 1990s he said. Only a few people know about it now but its got huge potential. Mobile web has been around for two to three years but has definitely grown within the last year. Within the next few years a lot of people will be using it.

Visit the mobile website at http://m.acc4u.co.uk. Alternatively, visit www.acc4u.co.uk or www.ozum.co.uk for more information.