Apply and e-reply!

Cleared the exams? Ready to search for that first job? Leading employers are increasingly using the Web's e-recruiting sites - so why not you? The laddoos and pedhas have been distributed and the euphoria of success at the last academic hurdle is rapidly wearing off. It's time to say hello to the harsh new world of too many job seekers, chasing too few jobs.

Even a few years ago, job hunting meant asking the newspaper boy to deliver additional papers everyday, preferably those that are fat with employment opportunities. Then came the tedium of typing applications and recycling them in a dozen creative ways. It was a process that took months. Not any more. Grandfather's quip: ``apply, apply no reply'' is passe. Today the mantra is ``apply, apply, e-reply!''

There is now a plethora of websites aimed at hassle-free job hunting. Some like the Noida-based www.naukri.com are ``desi'' initiatives started in 1997 by 10 young men. The site calls itself ``a floorless employment exchange''. A few weeks ago, it launched special placement cells in Delhi and Mumbai to meet the demand for fresh graduates to man Internet call centres. It will also soon be opening cells in Bangalore, Chennai, Pune and Hyderabad.

Another Delhi based e-recruitment firm is www.jobsahead.com, which claims eight lakh registered users. Interestingly, the IT segment accounts for only a quarter of these. Another first for jobsahead.com is its voice resume facility.

One job site that is strong in the Asia-Pacific region is www.jobstreet.com whose database of job hunters as well as employers extends across Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines and India.

Two other sites worth a look, by job seekers are alltimejobs.com, which has a rich selection of career guidance resources and careerindia.com, which is similarly oriented to help you decide on career options.

The majority of job sites with an India focus are free services- so far. Only a few weeks ago, a handful of e-mail services became fee-mail and some of the e-greetings services are also going the pay way.

Companies like jobsahead and jobstreet have gone beyond being mere clearing house services and are offering `shrink-wrapped' software solutions for employers to help them streamline resumes and applications.

Jobstreet's latest product is ``SiVA version i6.0'', a total e- recruitment solution which was recently declared as one of the best in Asia-Pacific. From creating the advertisement to framing online question banks to shortlisting candidates and summarising qualifications, SiVA does it all.

And yes, it also prints the appointment letter.

Here's hoping it carries your name!

A. VISHNU

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