Here's a scientific way to land a job

dubai - Bloovo.com aims to bridge the gap in the online social recruitment domain

In the not too distant future, machines are expected to take over many human tasks, thus reducing the size of the jobs in circulation but at the same time creating new ones that are not yet there.

"The role of machines and systems will be greater as we move forward and thus we wanted to create something that is algorithmic, which would not only survive in the technological disruption era, but be the best choice when it comes to recruitment," said Ahmad Khamis, co-founder and CEO of Bloovo.com.

The innovative algorithmic platform started its operations in January 2016 with a vision to change the way online recruitment is done. "We believed in our vision of becoming the most innovative online recruitment platform globally and to revolutionise the online recruitment methodologies," he said.

Bloovo.com was established to bridge the gap in the online social recruitment domain and provide better and more affordable services to employers and jobseekers. It has also partnered with HR consultants to provide advice to jobseekers through career coaching and counselling conducted via interactive video streaming.

The portal is based on algorithms that match the right candidates to the right jobs through a scientific matching percentage that gives both employers and candidates insights about the fit. The features include scientific matching percentages, probabilities of success, applicant analysis, candidates' 30-second pitching videos, insightful dashboards for both employers and jobseekers in addition to a smart recruitment monitoring software for employers.

"We have a rich features pipeline of even more innovative tools that are currently being developed and that are based on predictive analytics. We will continue to innovate and introduce new features that help in mitigating the job mismatch hitch," said Khamis.

Recruitment dynamics are changing vastly. Earlier there were two main types of recruitment: online and offline. It was not until recently that some consolidation started happening when the offline recruiter Randstad acquired the online job platform Monster.com.

"In our region, there are a lot of classical online recruitment platforms that have strong market presence; however, we wanted to change the way online recruitment is carried out. Adopting data science in the recruitment play was our theme; we wanted to make both employers and jobseekers informed by data about their chances of finding the right match, thus ensuring efficiency and reduction in searching costs."

The size of the online recruitment market is estimated at $23 billion in 2016, which is expected to increase to $47 billion by 2024, said Khamis.

And how has been Bloovo.com's journey so far?

"Before any business can expand, it needs to validate the product it offers and whether it is accepted in the market. When we started, it was very challenging to convince companies to register and use the platform simply because it was a new brand with no track record in the market. However, when employers started listening to us and checking the website, they felt the differentiation straight away and realised that we are not another classical job board that is added to the online recruitment congested market," said Khamis. Bloovo.com now has a team of 16 professionals and serves clients in the GCC from its Dubai office. It has rapidly grown its base of employers from 260 in 2016 to more than 1,850 as of May 2017.

Bloovo.com aims to accelerate the company's growth across the Mena region over the next 18 months, then internationally, and is eying investors from Asia, Europe and the United States to capture the huge potential of their growing business, said Khamis.

"We plan to be in Saudi Arabia and India in 2018, which will give us more reach. Rolling over our model in other countries requires proper preparation to achieve the success," he said.

Earlier in June, Bloovo.com raised $3 million in funding from different types of investors - investment professionals, tech geeks, family offices and venture capital firms. Some of the investors who came in are Noble Partners, which led this round, ProCapita from Kuwait, Mohamad Moosa Abdulrahman Investment Office from Oman, Al Serkal and Al Shafar from the UAE, in addition to others from the GCC.

Ammar Al Khushashi, managing partner at Noble Partners, said: "We are so impressed with Bloovo.com's growth and are happy to be investors in this round. The team at Bloovo.com is very energetic and experienced and we are confident that Bloovo.com will be another regional success story."

Khamis said the GCC startup ecosystem is improving dramatically with several supportive initiatives from the governments as well as the private sector.

"Foreign ownership, international access and improved education level of entrepreneurs from the GCC are all factors helping them excel and create excellent innovations. The cross-border acquisitions happening in the GCC from some international players are also adding to the maturity of the startup environment," he added.

And where does the CEO see his company in the next ten years?

Khamis said: "We see Bloovo.com as an international company with great acceptance from employers and jobseekers with more innovative tech-enabled features."

- arif@khaleejtimes.com