Meetseeker Group Pty Ltd – 378 Crown Street Wollongong NSW 2500
All Correspondence:- PO Box 1625, Wollongong NSW 2500
Telephone: (02) 42682869
Facsimile: (02) 42262268
Web Site: www.meetseeker.com.au
ABN: 98 803 278 809
Submission to GenerationOne
on the
Skills and Training for a Career draft policy.
September 2011
Submission to GenerationOne on the Skills and Training for a Career draft policy
Meetseeker Group Pty Ltd, 2011
Introduction
Meetseeker Group Pty Ltd commends GenerationOne and the Australian Employment Covenant for making a concrete difference, incorporating best practice, cultural understanding amongst employers, and creating solid training and education pathways for Indigenous Australians, leading to real jobs with employers, committed, to creating positive change. Further, I congratulate both organizations on the work that has not only gone into developing the solid foundations with so many employers but also the development of the Skills and Training for a Career draft policy.
Meetseeker Group Pty Ltd is committed to linking Indigenous Australians to organisations whose charter and ethos incorporates the belief of changing people’s lives for the better.
We believe there are several marginalised groups in Australia that could benefit from our services, including Indigenous Australians. By giving all people an opportunity to re-enter the workforce, employers will indeed be making a profound difference, and not just at the level of the individual. Improving the quality of life for jobseekers and their families will in turn have a positive impact on entire communities.
Meetseeker provides employers and individuals seeking employment, technology based recruitment services with innovative, effective and efficient processes. As a company valuing integrity and honesty, we are committed to facilitating a recruitment process which assists jobseekers into employment in the most motivating, inspiring and supportive ways.
With www.meetseeker.com.au employers have access to a database of skilled and competent jobseekers, who have taken the time and effort to create a video profile which highlights their abilities, desires and passion for employment. The videos illustrate their personalities, communication skills and passion for work. With both a resume and a video profile featured on the jobseeker’s profile page, a potential employer can get to know candidates prior to face to face interviews.
Our philosophy and core values are based on the premise that everyone has the potential to contribute to communities, and that every individual deserves the right of being given ‘a fair go.’ We provide a fair and equitable platform to showcase talent, skills, innate abilities, personality and more importantly a passion and desire for employment. For businesses, we facilitate a recruitment process which re-defines practices of the past whilst ensuring quality, based on employer choice.
We continually promote, encourage and highlight jobseeker’s abilities, competencies and potential. Further, we assist to re-define personal boundaries enabling jobseekers to be given the opportunity to contribute and engage in the workplace.
Meetseeker is at all times committed to corporate social responsibility and corporate citizenship.
Submission to GenerationOne on the Skills and Training for a Career draft policy
Meetseeker Group Pty Ltd, 2011
How will Meetseeker video profiles assist Indigenous candidates into employment?
The Issues
· Spreading the Talent Pool of Job Ready Indigenous jobseekers, willing to relocate, so they become visible to prospective employers in larger regional locations and major cities.
· Building confidence, communication skills and re-awakening self-belief.
· Solving the problem associated with lack of experience.
· Providing the best pitch to an employer, when, in most instances, Indigenous candidates in remote communities have no experience with face to face interviews.
Spreading the Talent Pool.
For Indigenous Australians who are work and Job Ready, and reside in remote and smaller regional communities, Meetseeker will fast track introductions between them and prospective employers, no matter where the location. When a client’s video is uploaded onto www.meetseeker.com.au a unique URL is created which contains the jobseekers public video profile page. If a candidate is willing to relocate, an email containing the link can be sent to any prospective employer who can then view the candidate’s profile to determine if they would like to meet the candidate face to face, or in fact make an offer of employment. Arrangements are then made between the candidates Employment Provider and the Employer to meet or assist in relocating the candidate. Alternatively, employers can register on Meetseeker for *free, to conduct searches for Indigenous candidates.
* www.meetseeker.com.au is completely free to employers. There are no recruitment fees or registration fees.
CASE STUDY
Recently, a jobseeker with a Job Service Australia Provider located in Perth, had his video profile uploaded onto the Meetseeker site. The candidate expressed his desire to relocate back to Darwin. A link containing the jobseeker’s resume profile and video was emailed to an employer in Darwin. The candidate was offered a position on the same day and the Job Service Australia Provider arranged relocation within the next few days.
Changing mindsets, building confidence, communication skills and re-awakening self-belief!
Evidence indicates that large numbers of Indigenous clients suffer from low self-esteem and are naturally shy. The process of producing jobseeker videos can be a daunting process for all jobseekers. However, the Meetseeker experience has proven to be advantageous in lifting self-esteem, overcoming shyness and re-awakening self-belief.
Most people are afraid of getting in front of a camera or public speaking, but it is a fear that most need to overcome, as, in the employment arena interviews are a fact of life. A portrayal of lack of confidence at a face to face interview may jeopardise any chance of employment. Meetseeker helps to alleviate the anxiety of getting in front of the camera
Submission to GenerationOne on the Skills and Training for a Career draft policy
Meetseeker Group Pty Ltd, 2011
by providing a safe, caring, and motivating opportunity. Meetseeker prepares the candidates for real interviews. The production of Meetseeker video profiles also provides opportunities for jobseekers to; create ‘clarity’ about themselves, be reminded of their strengths, and be enlightened about the transferable skills and innate talents they posses.
For most jobseekers, the responsibility of creating ‘clarity’ rests with motivational trainers employed with Employment Providers and Job Service Australia Providers. Once ‘clarity’ is achieved, a distinct improvement in self confidence, communication skills and self-esteem is clearly visible. It has been noted that once put through training, and after initial video rehearsals, 80% of candidates become more confident about presenting their skills to potential employers via a video. In fact, most candidates, initially reluctant about producing videos, become determined to produce the perfect video profile.
CASE STUDY
A trial with Meetseeker, currently being undertaken with Mission Australia Employment Solutions on the NSW coast is achieving outstanding results for Indigenous and non-Indigenous jobseekers. Mission Australia Employment Solutions, understanding the importance and need for jobseeker self ‘clarity,’ process groups of jobseekers in a training program specifically designed with an end result of placing candidates onto video. This program has been successful in building self-esteem and breaking the cycle of lack of confidence and associated shyness. Candidates learn more about themselves as they prepare for video production. It is the resultant ‘clarity’ that not only builds self-esteem, but also prepares candidates to be confident at face to face interviews. In particular, the program has been very successful in assisting Indigenous clients and return to work Parents. To learn more about the program, simply go to www.missionaustralia.com.au and type Meetseeker into the search field. There you will find three media stories on the trial.
Lack of experience.
While most employers prefer to hire candidates with experience, it is also accepted that some do not, as they provide in-house training. One hundred percent positive feedback from employers to date indicates that employers are more impressed with the communication and presentation aspects of the candidate on video rather than the skills highlighted on the resume profile. This anecdotal evidence suggests that, if a candidate can communicate their passion and desire for employment to a prospective employer, then they stand a greater chance of a face to face interview, regardless of the extent of their experience.
If Indigenous clients have undertaken trade training or pre-vocational training, the anecdotal evidence suggests an even higher probability of gaining employment, especially if they convey their personality via the video. Passion and commitment, communication skills and a desire for employment and a better way of life as conveyed on video, are strong supports towards their employment and may result in more employers hiring on the basis which they practiced decades ago - when employers took the time to mentor, support and train!
Submission to GenerationOne on the Skills and Training for a Career draft policy
Meetseeker Group Pty Ltd, 2011
CASE STUDY
Media coverage - South Coast Register, 8 August 2011Mission Australia Employment Solutions at Nowra has achieved a first, placing a jobseeker through a video.
Mission Australia recently launched its visual resume program Meetseeker, and Shoalhaven Excavations operations manager Kris Peters was one of the first prospective employers to look at the program. Mr Peters gave up his time to attend the new program's launch day on June 23 in which he got to meet some of Mission Australia's jobseekers, and also give his feedback on the program.
After regularly turning to Mission Australia for help finding new staff, Mr Peters used Meetseeker to hire Lino.
"Despite Lino having no previous demolition experience I really liked his enthusiasm and the way he presented himself on Meetseeker, that's what really sold me in the end," Mr Peters said.
Mission Australia Shoalhaven business manager David Rawson said the response from the business community had been overwhelming, with several local businesses "really taking this new technology on board as the way of the future for recruiting new staff".
Above image: MA sales representative at Nowra, Arnie Schunmann, is on hand as jobseeker Lino is welcomed to his first day of work by Kris Peters from Shoalhaven Excavations
Story originally published in the South Coast Register.
Simply cut and paste the link below into your browser to view full story and images.
http://www.missionaustralia.com.au/news/3475-video-links-workers-with-employment
Meetseeker Videos – the greatest Pitch!
A written resume alone can never talk, nor can it get across an individual’s personality and desire. It is for this reason that employers are taking to Meetseeker. For Indigenous jobseekers, Meetseeker represents an opportunity to create the greatest employment pitch. Meetseeker is about being real, being honest and telling a story. For most it is a story of wanting to change circumstance for the better, while for others it represents an opportunity to be heard and seen so that their voice will earn them a chance at employment. Particularly for those who have little or no experience at interview, it is an opportunity for rehearsal. A rehearsal that might just land the role!
Links to more information
For Job Service Australia Providers: Copy and paste the following link into your browser
http://content.yudu.com/Library/A1o9e3/Meetseeker/resources/index.htm
WEBSITE: www.meetseeker.com.au
Meetseeker Group Pty Ltd looks forward to working with GenerationOne and the Australian Employment Covenant in promoting the use of video profiling for Indigenous Australians.
If you have any queries regarding this submission please contact Gavin Carboni on
02 42682869
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