Six iPhone Applications for Recruiters

[Jackie Teal]

I saw this article on ERE this morning and had to pass it along to
you. One important application that is missing is the iFind
application from Jobscience. A fully functional sourcing tool you can
run from your iPhone.

http://www.ere.net/author/carmenhudson/

I have not always been a cell phone technology enthusiast. Until my
last phone — the world’s smallest brick — refused to charge. This sent
me sauntering into the AT&T store, determined to keep my existing pre-
historic calling plan. When it comes to cell phones, I am pretty
cheap. I root for the vigilant “Rollover Minutes Mom.”

“I never use data services,” I haughtily told the salesperson.

And then it happened. I palmed (pardon the expression) an iPhone.
Sheepishly, I upgraded my plan. I am a convert — to unlimited
everything! The iPhone makes handheld technology fun and accessible.
(I still get a kick out of the level application. I fire it up to
randomly to test the lopsidedness of tables. I also play mobile
Scrabble. Hours of geeky fun!)

In addition to entertainment value, the iPhone also provides
opportunities for recruiters to improve productivity. Joel Cheesman
and Michael Marlatt have written extensively about the coming mobile
revolution. Joel, who has launched a mobile recruiting marketing
agency, outlines why recruiters should be paying attention to mobile
technology in an excellent whitepaper.

Most of the recruiting/job-related iPhone applications were developed
for jobseekers. Here are a few apps that will help recruiters save
time, allow greater mobility, or improve communication with networks
and contacts. You may very well have some favorites to add; please
include them in the comments.
Tweetie ($2.99). Do you keep your network informed via Twitter?
Tweetie makes communicating via Twitter easy and fast. Tweetie
provides all of the functionality of the twitter.com website, such as
saved searches, inline web browsing, and the ability to manage
followers. In addition, Tweetie supports navigation between multiple
Twitter accounts, easy retweeting, automatic URL shortening, and
uploading Twitpic pictures. I find Tweetie easy to use when tweeting
from conferences. There are other, free, Twitter-for-iPhone apps, such
as Twitterific, but I find that the additional features of Tweetie
make it worth the small investment.

SearchOnTheGo ($9.99). SOTG is the first iPhone app written especially
for recruiters by recruiters! SOTG turns your keywords into a full-
blown Boolean search string. SOTG automatically generates search
strings for resume searches, blog searches, PDF and Excel file
formats, and more. SOTG will also execute web profile searches and
public LinkedIn profile searches. After executing the search on the
iPhone, users can save the search, email the search, or review results
real time. Pretty nifty, especially if you dislike writing Boolean
strings. Currently, SOTG returns only Google results. I would love to
see other search engines included in future versions.

LinkedIn (free). Can’t live without LinkedIn? Then make sure you
download the iPhone companion. The mobile version provides basic
LinkedIn functionality — search, status updates, invites and more —
for recruiters on the go. When meeting someone in person, try linking
in instantly, instead of exchanging business cards. I am especially
impressed with the Address Book Integration, which uploads contact
info to the iPhone in one click. Unfortunately, there is no ability to
receive or manage LinkedIn Groups information.

AgileMobile ($9.99). It was not until I joined Yahoo! that I became a
big fan of instant messaging. Used properly, IM can improve the speed
and quality of communication. Phone calls and emails are best for
initial outreach, but nothing beats IM for quick confirmations and
clarifications. AgileMobile is an all-in-one instant messaging service
for mobile phones. Agile allows instant chat-on-the-go with MSN,
Yahoo!, AIM, ICQ, and GoogleTalk. This kind of agnostic service is
great for recruiters, who can communicate with candidates or
colleagues regardless of IM service provider. AgileMobile also enables
voice chat and media sharing.

Interview Pro (1.99). Technically, Interview Pro is an application
developed for jobseekers. And a pretty clever one at that. This app
provides a list of “50 of the most common behavioral interview
questions.” Each question is accompanied by an answer that helps
candidates navigate the interviewer’s intent and expectations. The
questions are divided into categories such as “Team Dynamics,”
“Planning,” and “Success Factors.” The interview questions are not all
“behavioral” and the app does not come with instructions for the
interviewer (such as how and when to drill down to get complete
answers). With a few modifications, however, an application like this
could be very useful to recruiters and hiring managers. Imagine if
your hiring managers were able to download a custom interview guide.
Never fear: the makers of Search on the Go tell me that they are
working on just such an app.

beamMe (free or $1.99 for subscription updates). Finally, I can feel
comfortable leaving the house without business cards! beamMe allows
users to exchange vCards by inputting an email address, mobile phone
#, or @Twitter id. The recipient is directed to a secure website,
where he or she can download a vCard (including a photo or logo, and
links to URL or Twitter id). Genius! The only downside is the
subscription scheme; so far the free version works well for me. I’m
not sure I want to be billed $2/month to continue to receive product
upgrades.

There you have it. The future is here!

[Ted Elliott]

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