Abstract:
An online employment website and the computer system and software for operating the website are disclosed. The invention relates to a system and method for gathering information from both employers and job applicants, and providing an online database management system that screens the applicants so that an employer is charged for a particular job listing only if an applicant meets specified criteria for that particular job.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application is related to and claims the benefit of prior-filed U.S. Provisional Application for Patent Ser. No. 60/929,368, filed on 25 Jun. 2007, entitled “SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ENGAGING AN ONLINE EMPLOYMENT SERVICE,” which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates to an online employment website and the computer system and software for operating the website. In particular, the invention relates to a system and method for gathering information from employers and job applicants, and screening the applicants so that an employer is charged for a particular job listing only if an applicant meets specified criteria for that particular job. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    The number and variety of goods and services available by computer via the Internet and World Wide Web is vast and growing daily. Furthermore, rapidly expanding access to high-speed broadband service is making shopping, searching and communicating over the Internet the default choice for personal and business use. Indeed, for hundreds of millions of users around the world, Internet use may now be a daily activity. Many goods and services that formerly were marketed through print, television or brick-and-mortar media are now primarily conducted via the Internet. 
         [0004]    In particular, businesses in the information services industry, such as dating, real estate and education, have developed highly successful online presences. Employment services are another prime example. Supplanting the traditional methods of newspaper classified ads, magazine or television ads, or word of mouth, recruiting websites now make available an enormous number of positions, from virtually any geographic area, in real time. Job seekers typically can search job listings and submit résumés online 24/7. 
         [0005]    Examples of popular commercial employment websites include CareerBuilder.com®, Dice.com®, Monster.com®, Yahoo!® HotJobs® and many others. According to the International Association of Employment Web Sites (IAEWS), the trade association for the global online employment services industry, such services are also provided by newspapers; radio and television stations; trade and professional magazines and publications; professional associations and societies; college, university, and trade/technical school alumni organizations; and affinity groups. The IAEWS noted in 2007 that there were more than 40,000 employment sites worldwide that serve job seekers, employers and recruiters. 
         [0006]    While the existing commercial employment websites may provide valuable services to their employer, job seeker and recruiter constituents, nonetheless there are inadequacies in the typical business model for such sites. In particular, when an employer wishes to advertize a job on an online site, the standard payment arrangement is that the employer pays a fixed fee for the posting. Typical costs in 2007 for commercial employment website range from about $299 to about $459 for one job listing. Some websites that recruit from entry-level applicant pools, such as CollegeRecruiter.com, may charge as little as $175 per job listing. For an employer who lists a job and receives no prospective employee matches, however, the investment is for naught. 
         [0007]    The present invention provides a commercial online employment service with an innovative pricing model that both reduces the cost of posting a job listing and also eliminates the risk that an employer pays for a job listing without receiving any applicants for that listing. Instead of charging an up-front fee to an employer for listing a job, as is typical for online employment services, the present invention collects additional information in both the employee and employer databases. That information is used to screen applicants for posted jobs. Employers provide information for several “criteria,” that if satisfied by the applicant, trigger the system to submit the applicant for the posted job, and also trigger a charge to the employer for the job listing. As well, applicants provide information that correlates to the various criteria. For example, the employer may require that an applicant have 7-10 years of work experience. The present invention screens all applicants for the job, matches only those applicants who meet that criterion, i.e., have 7-10 years of work experience (and who also meet any other criteria specified by the employer), submits only those matching applicants to the employer, and then and only then, charges the employer for the job listing. 
         [0008]    The employment criteria that are used by the present invention to screen and match applicants to job may include, but are not limited to, years of experience (termed “experience level” herein), stage in career (termed “career level” herein), education/degree achieved (termed “education level” herein), certification and/or license held (termed “certification and license” herein), and miles from job (termed “proximity” herein). It is contemplated by the present invention that screening criteria may be added to or removed, as employers&#39; needs, conditions and the times change. 
         [0009]    As described above, each criterion comprises a range of values. The employer preferably specifies the level required for a particular job. In another innovation of the present invention, the employer may consult the website to review the statistics on prospective employees, and, if the employer has no matches (i.e., no applicants meet the specified criterion or criteria), then the employer may reduce the level required for the job, in order to attract a wider applicant pool. Similarly, if the employer finds it is receiving far too many qualified applicants, it may raise the level of that or other criteria. 
         [0010]    The present invention also contemplates a sliding scale of fees for matching the employer with qualified applicant. For an applicant closer to entry level (years of experience, career level, educational level, or the like), the fee charged to the employer for the job listing preferably is lower. For a highly skilled position, where the applicant is required to have many years of experience (or a high level of education, such as a Ph.D., or other skill), the fee charged to the employer preferably is higher. This is yet another aspect of the present invention that delivers superior value to the customer (the employer). 
         [0011]    Various online employment systems are known in the art, for example U.S. Pat. No. 5,832,497 to Taylor discloses a system for posting job advertisements that includes a search mechanism and allows applicants to submit résumés and apply for jobs online. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 6,662,194 to Joao discloses a method and apparatus for providing recruitment information via a computerized network such at the Internet or other communications network. U.S. Pat. No. 7,251,658 to Dane et al. discloses a résumé database system that allows communication between multiple users. In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 7,099,872 to Carpenter et al. discloses a method of managing employment data that provides access via the Internet, uses information spidering to collect and update employment data, matches the updated employment data with an employer&#39;s criteria, and contacts the employer regarding the match. 
         [0012]    None of these known systems, however, utilizes the innovative cost model of the present invention that screens and matches applicants to particular jobs, whose requirements are selected by the employer, and then charges the employer only for successful matches. 
         [0013]    Additional objects and advantages of the invention are set forth, in part, in the description which follows and, in part, will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art from the description and/or from the practice of the invention. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0014]    In response to the foregoing challenge, Applicant has developed an innovative and cost effective system and method for engaging an online employment service. As embodied herein, the computer-implemented system for engaging an online employment service comprises a database management system that assesses at least one employee attribute from at least one prospective employee and at least one employment criterion from at least one prospective employer, wherein the database management system produces a job match when the at least one employee attribute matches the at least one employment criterion. The invention further comprises a screening process for triggering a fee to the at least one employer only after the job match results. 
         [0015]    The computer-implemented system of the present invention further comprises a first online database for accepting the at least one employee attribute from the at least one prospective employee, and a second online database for accepting the at least one employment criterion from the at least one prospective employer. The present invention may further comprise a notification system for informing the at least one prospective employee and the at least one prospective employer of the job match. 
         [0016]    The at least one employee attribute may further comprise employee personal information, years of experience, military experience, previous employment, education, languages, résumé, certification and licenses, security clearances, employment goals, relocation considerations, felony convictions and work status. 
         [0017]    The at least one employer criterion may further comprise employer information, job characteristics, location of job, job type, salary range, proximity to employee zip code, years of experience, career, level, education level and certification and licenses. 
         [0018]    In addition, the screening process may trigger a subsequent fee to the at least one employer after each subsequent result of the job match between the at least one employee attribute and the at least one employment criterion. Further, said at least one prospective employee may comprise a plurality of prospective employees and said at least one prospective employer may. comprise a plurality of prospective employers. 
         [0019]    The computer-implemented system of the present invention may further comprise the hardware and software necessary to operate the first database for accepting the at least one employee attribute, the second database for accepting the at least one employment criterion, the database management system for assessing the at least one employee attribute and the at least one employment criterion in order to produce the job match, the screening process for triggering the fee, and the notification system for informing the at least one prospective employee and the at least one prospective employer of the job match. 
         [0020]    The present invention of a computer-implemented method for engaging an online employment service may comprise the steps of accepting at least one employee attribute from at least one prospective employee into a first online database, accepting at least one employment criterion from at least one prospective employer into a second online database, assessing the at least one employee attribute and the at least one employment criterion with an online database management system, producing a job match when the at least one employee attribute matches the at least one employment criterion, screening the job match so as to trigger a fee to the at least one employer only after the job match results, and notifying the at least one prospective employee and the at least one prospective employer of the job match. 
         [0021]    The at least one employee attribute of the computer-implemented method may further comprise employee personal information, years of experience, military experience, previous employment, education, languages, résumé, certification and licenses, security clearances, employment goals, relocation considerations, felony convictions and work status. 
         [0022]    The at least one employer criterion of the computer-implemented method may further comprise employer information, job characteristics, location of job, job type, salary range, proximity to employee zip code, years of experience, career level, education level and certification and licenses. 
         [0023]    It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only, and are not restrictive of the invention as claimed. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein by reference, and which constitute a part of this specification, illustrate certain embodiments of the invention and, together with the detailed description, serve to explain the principles of the present invention. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
         [0024]      FIG. 1  is a flowchart depicting a system and method of providing an online employment service known in the prior art. 
           [0025]      FIG. 2  is a flowchart depicting a system and method of engaging an online employment service according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0026]      FIG. 3  is a diagram of the software architecture according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0027]      FIG. 4  is a diagram of the architecture headings for information categories according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0028]      FIG. 5  is a screen print of the home page showing the Employment Search and Job Search screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0029]      FIG. 6  is a screen print of the Post Resume and Job Seeker Login screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0030]      FIG. 7  is a screen print of the Employee Logged In screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0031]      FIG. 8   a  is a screen print of the first page of the Employee Account Setup screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0032]      FIG. 8   b  is a screen print of the Resume Setup screen, the second page of the Employee Account Setup, according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0033]      FIG. 9  is a screen print of the result of a Job Search of a particular job listing by a qualified applicant, showing the active Apply button according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0034]      FIG. 10  is a screen print of the result of qualified applicant&#39;s applying for a particular job, showing that the application has been sent according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0035]      FIG. 11  is a screen print of Applicant Detail, the information submitted to an employer by the applicant in order to apply for a particular job according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0036]      FIG. 12  is a screen print of the Employer Sign Up and Login screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0037]      FIG. 13  is a screen print of the Employer Account Setup screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0038]      FIG. 14  is a screen print of Employer Logged In, showing a screen with Post A Job, Job Manager, Applicant Manager and Edit Profile buttons according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0039]      FIG. 15  is a screen print of the Employer Post A Job screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0040]      FIG. 16  is a screen print of the Employer Job Manager screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0041]      FIG. 17  is a screen print of the Employer Applicant Manager screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0042]      FIG. 18  is a screen print of the Employer Applicants List screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0043]      FIG. 19  is a screen print of the Employer Account Stats and Edit Profile screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0044]    Referring now to  FIG. 1 , a flowchart of prior art online employment services is shown. The prior art services typically use a business model for pricing that charges an up-front fee to a prospective employer for each job listing, regardless of whether any applicants are ever matched to that listing. 
         [0045]    Referring now to  FIG. 2 , a flow chart of a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown. The system and method of engaging an online employment service is shown as  1 . System and method  1  preferably comprises a first step of providing an online database  10  for accepting personal information from prospective employees (“employee” is used herein interchangeably with “applicant” and “job seeker”). System and method  1  also preferably comprises a second step of providing an online database  20  for accepting job requirements from prospective employers. 
         [0046]    The present invention further comprises a third step of providing online employee database  10  with a plurality of employee attributes  30 , and a fourth step of providing online employer database  20  with a plurality of employment criteria  40 . System and method  1  preferably comprises a fifth step of providing an online database management system  50  for matching employee attributes  30  with employment criteria  40 . The present invention further comprises a sixth step of providing an online screening process  60  for triggering a fee to an employer only when there is a job match between employment criteria  40  and employee attributes  30 . As embodied herein, system and method  1  preferably comprises a seventh step of providing a notification process  70  for informing both employers and applicants of both job matches and non-matches. Notification process  70  may include sending an email message to the employer that an applicant has applied for a particular job. Alternatively, that information may be available from the website via the Applicant Manager screen (as shown in  FIGS. 14 ,  17  and  18 ). Notification process  70  may also include sending an email message to the applicant that he/she has either been accepted for or rejected from the application process for a particular job. 
         [0047]    Referring now to  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the software architecture for a system and method of engaging an online employment service  1  is shown. The step of providing a plurality of employee attributes  30  further comprises the step of providing the following categories of employee information  100  or attributes: years of experience  110 , military experience  120 , previous employment  130 , education  140 , languages  150 , résumé  160 , certifications and licenses  170 , relocation preferences  180 , and work status  190 . 
         [0048]    With continuing reference to  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the step of providing a plurality of employment criteria  40  further comprises the step of providing the following categories of employer information  200  and job characteristics  210 : salary  215 , location  220 , job type  230 , proximity to place of employment  240 , experience level  250 , career level  260 , education level  270 , certifications and licenses  280 , and other (unspecified category)  290 . 
         [0049]    With continuing reference to  FIG. 4  and as shown in  FIG. 5 , system and method of engaging an online employment service  1  further comprises the step of providing a list of job categories  300  for which positions are available. 
         [0050]    Implementation of the system and method of engaging an online employment service  1  will now be described. With continuing reference to  FIG. 5 , a job seeker may access the website of the present invention. The job seeker preferably clicks on the Post Resume tab. Referring now to  FIG. 6 , the job seeker logs in. Online employment service  1  displays the login confirmation as shown in  FIG. 7 . Referring now to  FIGS. 8   a  and  8   b,  the job seeker preferably submits the required information in the fields labeled Personal Information  100 , Experience (Years of Experience  110 , Military Experience  120 , and Languages  150 ), Employment Goals, Equal Opportunity/Affirmative ACTION/OFCCP, Receive Optional Information, Previous Employment  130 , Education  140 , Certifications  170  and Relocation Considerations  180 . The job seeker preferably then clicks Submit and his/her résumé is posted to online employment service  1 . 
         [0051]    With continuing reference to  FIG. 5 , a prospective employer may access the website of the present invention. The employer preferably clicks on the Employers tab. Referring now to  FIGS. 12 and 13 , the employer logs in and preferably submits the required information for Employer Account Setup (Employer Information  200 ) in the fields labeled Login Information and Contact &amp; Company Information. Online employment service  1  displays the login confirmation as shown in  FIG. 14 . With continuing reference to  FIG. 14 , the employer preferably clicks on the Post A Job button. Referring now to  FIG. 15 , the employer submits information in the fields for job description  210 , salary information  215 , job location (including Location  220  and Miles from Zipcode  240 ), experience  250 , career level  260 , education level  270 , and certifications &amp; licenses  280  (not shown), and selects the information to be posted on the job listing, as well as notification information. The employer preferably then clicks Submit Job and the job listing is posted to online employment service  1 . 
         [0052]    Referring back to  FIG. 5 , the job seeker may conduct a job search by category or location. For example, the job seeker may select PR jobs. Referring back to  FIG. 3 , online database management system  400  compares the job seeker to employer criteria for the selected category and displays only those jobs whose criteria are met by the job seeker. For example, as shown in  FIG. 9 , the job Public Relations Assistant is displayed. Database management system  400  preferably allows the job Seeker&#39;s application to pass to the employer only if the specified criteria are met. Referring again to  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the screening process  60  of the present invention then triggers a fee to the employer. Thus, simultaneously, applicant data  410  and charge to employer  420  are sent. Referring now to  FIG. 10 , the job seeker preferably is notified that his/her application has been sent. The employer may be notified by email or other means as well, if this has been specified. Referring again to  FIG. 3 , after the employer receives the first matched applicant information and is charged for only that applicant, a follow-up trigger  500  will allow subsequent screened, qualified and matched applicant information to be sent and charged to the employer. 
         [0053]    Referring back to  FIG. 14 , the employer may click the Job Manager button to review the posted jobs. As shown in  FIG. 16 , Search your Job Postings, the employer may enter one or more criteria, including Job Post Date, Job Status, Category, Title, Type, Security, Government, Job City, Job State, Job Zipcode, Miles from Zip, Job Experience, Career Level, Education Level, Country Authorization, Confidential, Email Notify Active, Notification Email Address, My Company Job Identifier and Salary/Hourly Job, in order to check the status of current jobs offered by that employer. 
         [0054]    Again referring back to  FIG. 14 , the employer may click the Applicant Manager button to review the status of applicants for jobs offered by that employer. As shown in  FIG. 17 , Search for Your Applicants, the employer may review or enter applicant information, including Applicant ID, Job Title, Application Date, Rejected Applicants, Applicants Contacted and Job Folder, and may also rate an applicant. The employer may also add folders in order to group applicants and facilitate applicant management, by clicking on the Add Folder button. By clicking on the Find Applicants button, the employer brings up records of applicants for job, based on the criteria selected, as shown in  FIG. 18 . The employer may select a particular job/applicant record, and access detailed information about the applicant, as shown in  FIG. 11 . 
         [0055]    Finally, referring back to  FIG. 14 , the employer may click the Edit Profile button and may update the company information fields, as shown in  FIG. 19 . 
         [0056]    It will be apparent to those skilled in that art that various modifications and variations can be made in the configuration of the present invention without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. For example, screening criteria for either job seeker or employer may be added to or removed. Further, the levels within each screening criterion may be adjusted as needs dictate.