'Job ATM' may become vital asset in tight job market
(San Francisco Business Times; 06/12/98)
Unemployment is at an all-time low. Temporary workers are increasingly
popular. Shopping malls attract people like bees to honey. All this has Adecco
thinking big.
The Redwood Shores-based employment firm has come up with Job Shop, a high-
tech, interactive recruitment tool billed as an "ATM for jobs." The kiosks
soon will grace malls and other heavily trafficked public spaces in 33 states.
Adecco, formed in 1996 with the merger of Swiss Adia and Ecco SA of France,
plans to install several Job Shops by the end of the year. Two of the kiosks
have already been tested in Ohio and California with a 6 percent success rate.
"We're the only company doing this right now," said CEO Peter Pfister. "We
believe that this is technology that will really help recruitment." Indeed, job
seekers need only visit the nearest mall to look for work.
Laura Devine, vice president of operations and administration, contends that
there is an urgent need for Job Shop because of decreased unemployment and a
shortage of skilled labor.
"Most of our customers are in a very serious situation, they need us to be
innovative," she said.
Predicting a substantial increase in Adecco's annual revenues, Devine said
that Job Shop will have a strong brand-name awareness impact on both job
seekers and potential customers.
Perhaps the most clever aspect of Job Shop is that it's free.
Applicants simply enter skills, background information and job preferences
on the kiosk's screen and are automatically matched with specific job profiles.
Applicants who qualify for jobs are then invited to meet with Adecco
professionals at the company's nearest branch.
Strictly "Don't call us, we'll call you," Job Shop will not supply
applicants with contact information about the companies which might hire them.
Potential employees must be screened by Adecco first.
Unlike most of the positions these new machines will offer, Job Shop
probably won't be just a temporary thing. In fact, Devine predicts that it will
be everywhere by 2020.
"We're not going to get rid of the ATM," said Devine. "And this is the same
thing. There hasn't been this much innovation in job recruitment in a long
time."
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