Work Local allows users to submit video interview questions along with their job applications. The business has grown quickly since launching in January and is now working with the Greater Halifax Partnership.
Leslie Gallagher, founder and owner of Work Local, says a site like hers is needed.
“I went to Dalhousie and am from Halifax, so when I graduated a lot of my friends left because they couldn’t find a good job, something meaningful or relevant to their education or what they wanted to do,” she said.
Gallagher, an English and creative writing major, wasn’t impressed with the online hiring procedures she experienced as a student and young professional. She felt that many job search websites focused on specific requirements and didn’t allow users to showcase their strongest qualities.
After conducting extensive research into the hiring procedures of small businesses, Gallagher discovered that many companies were frustrated with the hiring process too.
“If employers were able to see (the candidates) or even bring them in for an interview then they would hold on for dear life, but when they first get the resumé in then they are lost in the stack,” said Gallagher.
When clients submit their resumés, cover letters and required documents to a Work Local job posting, the site prompts them to record a three-minute video in response to specific interview questions provided by the employer.
The video allows employers to see if the person would be a good fit for their workplace.
“Finding somebody that their personality meshes really well with the rest of the team is just as important as hard skills, because they can teach you all of those hard skills. You can’t teach anybody to be a great team player or be really patient, or a leader or a risk-taker. It’s those sorts of things that you can’t get across with a resumé,” said Gallagher.
The list of job postings on Work Local ranges from graphic designers to personal trainers and accounting clerks.
Under the arrangement with the Greater Halifax Partnership, Work Local will promote the National Connector program, a free face-to-face referral process that works with recent graduates and young professionals.
Program manager Denise DeLong said each participant is paired with a “local connector who is a leader in their field,” and the two of them have a 30-minute chat. After the initial meeting, participants are then given three other referrals, who in turn give three more referrals.
“This person would, over a span of a few months, meet 12 or 13 people in their industry. This is a tool for building a professional network, and one in three last year got hired in the process,” said DeLong.
Gallagher is one of these experts, or connectors. She stresses the importance of making connections when it comes to navigating the Halifax job market.
“Get engaged in the community outside of the university,” she said.
“If you know the area you’re interested in working in or learning more about, then find somebody that is somehow involved in that area and ask them to go for coffee. That’s it.”
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