JobServe gives managers opportunity to think and act global

When JobServe sent 3 sales people to Australia in 2002 to establish JobServe’s first office outside of its headquarters in Essex, UK, the initial idea was that replicating the business model would translate to immediate success. “JobServe is the unquestioned market leader for IT recruitment in the UK. However for all the similarities, there were vast differences between the UK and Australian markets. JobServe’s expansion into Australia lead to the enhancement of a number of services and the development of new tools, for the benefit of both markets,” notes Kathryn O’Brien, General Manager of JobServe Australia.

Fast forward to 2010, and with 7 offices across 5 countries, JobServe has used the lessons learnt from their first international foray to firmly establish themselves as a global online recruitment solution, providing clients across Europe, North America and Australasia recruitment solutions for their local markets as well as international requisitions. To promote best practice and bonds between the international teams, JobServe introduced an intercompany secondment program for managerial development.

Returning from a two year secondment as National Sales Manager for JobServe Canada, Ms O’Brien can comment first hand on the differences – and similarities – of the Australian and North American recruitment advertising markets. “North America has really embraced mobile recruitment technology – moving beyond just accessing emails from their phones, to seeking out candidate sourcing tools they can access whether they are in the office or between meetings. Also, with the high unemployment rate across many sectors, but an underlying skills shortage for many roles, recruiters are turning to tools that allow them to filter ineligible applicants more easily, and honing in on tools which give access to the elusive ‘passive’ jobseeker.”

With a fresh perspective on the business, Ms O’Brien is taking the helm of JobServe Australia from Darren Wright, who was seconded from the UK head office to manage the Australian business in Ms O’Brien’s absence. “JobServe has returned to its roots in the past year, investing more into our internal R&D team who have pushed out a number of ‘firsts’ this year, including our mobile site for candidates and mobile resume search for recruiters; as well as the Featured Jobs to target passive job seekers. It’s exciting times for our industry and I’m looking forward to immersing myself back into the Australian market and introducing the next generation of recruiting tools.”