Abstract:
The present invention discloses a network accessible software application that includes an interface permitting a set of profile providers to input personal biographical information, which includes job history information and education information. The application can also include an interface enabling a set of commentators to view biographical information provided by the set of profile providers and to add input regarding this information. Software of the application can establish/calculate at least one verification score against the personal biographical information based at least in part upon the added input from the set of commentators. Further software can convey the personal information along with the verification score to a set of profile consumers. At least a portion of the commentators can have a social networking connection to the profile providers for whom the added input is provided.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
       [0001]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0002]    The present invention relates to the field of employment practices and, more particularly, to improving the hiring process by sharing job seeker information that has been verified at least in part using social networking techniques. 
         [0003]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0004]    The current job application process is fraught with many time consuming and financially costly procedures for potential employers and employees alike. One problem in particular, is the timely process of soliciting and verifying background information about a job candidate. This occurs primarily through an application form that a candidate completes. Employment applications typically contain information such as educational history, employment history, associations, and references. As these applications rarely vary considerably, the job applicant is forced to duplicate the same information for each job to which they apply. With this duplication of information, applicants sometimes make mistakes which can be detrimental to their chances of success. For example, inadvertent spelling and grammatical errors reflects negatively on prospective employees. Additionally, applicants can make errors such as incorrectly filling out important fields such as past work history and references. 
         [0005]    Companies spend a considerable amount of money and time verifying an applicant&#39;s biographical information. For example, recruiters spend a considerable amount of time verifying an applicant&#39;s resume; time that can be better spent on searching for suitable candidates. Once an applicant&#39;s information is verified, this information is rarely shared between organizations. Thus a large amount of replication of work occurs for each company that needs to verify the candidate&#39;s information. It would be advantageous if a solution were devised that would reduce job application overhead, decrease processing delays, and provide a better experience for involved parties. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0006]    The present invention discloses a solution for improving the efficiency of the hiring process using personal information verification based on trusted sources. In the solution, personal information about an individual engaged in the employment process can be verified using one or more practices. One technique for verifying job seeker information can include the use of a Web of trust in a social network to verify biographical data. Based on a threshold value of connections, specific information (e.g. work history, education, etc.) about an individual can be considered to be authentic. Another means to establish user authenticity can rely on using a known authority source capable of verifying personal information. This trusted source can use aggregated profile data and/or manual confirmation techniques to guarantee an individual&#39;s identity. Trusted or authority sources can include private and public records, organizational/institutional databases, and the like. 
         [0007]    The present invention can be implemented in accordance with numerous aspects consistent with the materials presented herein. One aspect of the present invention can include a network accessible software application that includes an interface permitting a set of profile providers to input personal biographical information, which includes job history information and education information. The application can also include an interface enabling a set of commentators to view biographical information provided by the set of profile providers and to add input regarding this information. Software of the application can establish/calculate at least one verification score against the personal biographical information based at least in part upon the added input from the set of commentators. Further software can convey the personal information along with the verification score to a set of profile consumers. At least a portion of the commentators can have a social networking connection to the profile providers for whom the added input is provided. A validity of the added input can be weighed based at least in part upon a strength of and a confidence level in the social networking connection. 
         [0008]    Another aspect of the present invention can include a method for leveraging social networking information for an employment context. The method can include a step of extracting from a social networking Web site information relating to biographical data provided as part of a resume by a profile provider. A set of verification scores for discrete entries contained in the biographical data can be algorithmically determined using the extracted information. Additional input from at least one authority source can be used to further refine the set of verification scores. The verification scores can be provided along with the biographical data to a set of hiring entities. The verification of the biographical information can be done independent of a system controlled by any of the hiring entities. 
         [0009]    Still another aspect of the present invention can include a method for utilizing social networking technology for job application purposes. The method can include a step of a network element receiving a personal profile from a person comprising biographical information of that person. The biographical data can include job history information and education information. The biographical information can be verified based at least in part upon social networking connections associated with the person. Verified biographical information can be provided to at least one remotely located hiring entity. 
         [0010]    It should be noted that various aspects of the invention can be implemented as a program for controlling computing equipment to implement the functions described herein, or as a program for enabling computing equipment to perform processes corresponding to the steps disclosed herein. This program may be provided by storing the program in a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a semiconductor memory or any other recording medium. The program can also be provided as a digitally encoded signal conveyed via a carrier wave. The described program can be a single program or can be implemented as multiple subprograms, each of which interact within a single computing device or interact in a distributed fashion across a network space. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
         [0011]    There are shown in the drawings, embodiments which are presently preferred, it being understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown. 
           [0012]      FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram illustrating a system for improving the efficiency of the hiring process using personal information verification based on social networking techniques and a set of trusted sources in accordance with an embodiment of the inventive arrangements disclosed herein. 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  is a schematic diagram illustrating a set of scenarios for using a verified profile to improve the quality of business and personal relations in accordance with an embodiment of the inventive arrangements disclosed herein. 
           [0014]      FIG. 3  is a flow chart illustrating a method for verifying provider profile information for use by a profile provider and/or consumer in accordance with an embodiment of the inventive arrangements disclosed herein. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0015]      FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram illustrating a system  100  for improving the efficiency of the hiring process using personal information verification based on social networking techniques and a set of trusted sources in accordance with an embodiment of the inventive arrangements disclosed herein. Many social networking sites record biographical data about their users, which is used by other users to determine common interests that may be worthwhile to pursue. New contacts/friendships are often made by people connecting through the social networking sites with the contacts of others. Over time, circles and chains of friendships and contacts are established. System  100  leverages advantages of social networking applications for a job application process. 
         [0016]    Job seekers, referred to as profile providers  112 , can establish a personal profile on a server  120 , which can include basic user  112  biographical data. Biographical data can include common information needed when applying for a job, such as education history, job history, and a set of references. The biographical data can optionally be used for social networking purposes of a social networking site in addition to being used for employment purposes. Unlike many “typical” sets of references, the references provided as part of a profile  114  can include a set of individuals who know and actively correspond with the person being profiled  112 . 
         [0017]    The system  100  can include a validation engine  130  designed to verify that information contained within a profile  114  is accurate and to be trusted. A portion of this accuracy can be based upon social networking connections. For example, a trustworthy applicant  112  should have several connections and recommendations associated with them. Each of these connections should in turn have other connections and recommendations, a third-degree of connections should also exist, and so forth. The connection network associated with a provider  112  can be analyzed by the validation engine  132  to ensure that a circle of suspect connections of people recommending each other for personal gain to take advantage of the system does not exist. Verifications can occur at multiple levels, which include at a high level or at lower levels for individual resume (profile) items. 
         [0018]    As more users  112  utilize system  100 , associations among provided profiles  114  can be established. For example, two individuals  112  working for a common company, in the same location, during the same time period can be presumed to know each other, and can even be used to verify each others performance regardless of whether they list each other as references or not. The same can apply for people  112  attending the same university program during a common time period. When multiple individuals who should theoretically know a profile provider  112  due to commonalities do not, a verification rating associated with that entry can be lowered. Providers (job seekers)  112  and hiring companies ( 142 ) who use system  100  can be permitted/requested to verify information provided by others. A verification of a highly trusted source can have more weight than one provided from an unknown source. In one embodiment, comments and/or ratings can be submitted by information providers concerning information in a profile  114  of another. For example, an employer or an employee&#39;s peer can rate a performance of a profile provider  112 , which can be optionally made available to the consumer  142 . 
         [0019]    A number of authority sources  162  can be additionally used to verify profile  114  information and/or to increase a trust rating of an entity. For example, an authority source  162  for verifying educational references can include server  160  that maintains university records for its students. Such a server  160  can verify resume items down to low levels, such as verifying grade point averages, courses taken, and the like. In this case, additional information from an authority server  160  not provided by a user  112  can be added to that user&#39;s profile  126 , which can be made available to the profile consumers  142 . In another example, an IRS server  160  can provide information to verify employment information contained in a profile  114 . In still another example, a server  160  containing historical address information, such as old address and phone number records from telephone directories, can be used to verify that a provider  112  lived in an area during expected times, as listed for employment history and education history. 
         [0020]    As shown in system  100 , a set of profile providers  112  can provide profile  114  information concerning themselves, which is conveyed over network  150  and stored in server  120 . The server  120  can include a profile manager  124  that manages a set of user profiles  126 . Providers  112  can establish a set of user preferences  128 , which specify who is to be given access to the profile  114  information and that indicate any provider  112  established restrictions regarding use of authority sources  162 . Some preference  128  can require explicit provider  112  documents, such as documents permitting consumers  142  to access a particular authority source  162  for information related to the provider  112 , such as authorizations to access IRS information, credit report information, university records, and the like. In one embodiment, a profile certification server  130  can access the authority source  162  once, and provide this information to multiple profile consumers  142  at need. For example, a single transcript request for educational information can be made by the certification server  130 , which is thereafter stored and accessible at need to consumers  142 . 
         [0021]    Profile  114  can include a data set containing personal and/or professional information about provider  112 . Information can include, but is not limited to, name, age, residential/business address, education, work history, credit rating, and the like. The profile  114  information can be stored as part of a user profile  126 , which can contain supplemental information provided by other sources, such as transcript information, job performance ratings, referral comments, and the like. In one embodiment, supplemental information provided by others can be hidden from the provider  112 . Each user profile  126  can be separated into one or more segments or items which can be independently verified. Verification of profile data can be performed by other providers  112 , by one or more consumers  142 , and/or by one or more authority sources  160 . 
         [0022]    Profile certification server  130  can be a computing device capable of verifying a profile  126  and tracking the verification process of the profile  126 . Server  130  can include a validation engine  132  and a transaction engine  134 . When the profile verification process is invoked, profile  126  information can be conveyed to profile certification server  130 . In one embodiment, server  130  can be configured to provide verification capabilities as a Web service. 
         [0023]    Validation engine  132  can be utilized to verify part or all of a profile  126 . Profile information conveyed to validation engine  132  can be selectively processed based on authentication rules  136 . The validation engine  132  can submit validation request to other providers  112 , to profile consumers  142 , and/or to one or more authority sources  162 . Additionally, engine  132  can execute verification algorithms to identify intentional system  100  abuses (e.g. a closed circle of users who only authenticate each other). These verification algorithms can be of arbitrary complexity to ensure that profile information  126  has characteristics of real information as opposed to fabricated information. A learning loop can be used to ensure performance of the validation engine  132  improves over time with use. 
         [0024]    Transaction manager  134  can be responsible for accounting and auditing the validation process and for handling financial concerns relating to a profile verification service. That is, each request/response transaction can have a monetary fee associated with the transaction. Fees can be based on the simplicity/complexity of the query performed by the certification server  130 . Alternatively, fees can be determined based on session length or for each profile verification request performed. Information can be provided at different levels of granularity for different fees. Further, providers  112  and/or consumers  142  may have to pay a subscription fee for use of server  130  capabilities. Reports detailing authority sources  162  used to verifying profile data can be generated at request by manager  134  or by a reporting component of the server  130 . Report data can include a transaction list, fees incurred, alternative authority sources  162  used, and the like. 
         [0025]    Authentication rules  136  can be used to control the behavior of the verification process. Rules  136  can include usage of preferred authority servers  160 , preferred sources  162 , preferred profile attributes for verification, and the like. Rules  136  can be used to control whether specific profile information can be automatically or manually confirmed. Different sets of rules  136  can be established that are specific to consumers  142 , which can be configured by the consumers  142 . 
         [0026]    A version of a profile available to the consumer  142  can be referred to as a verified profile  118 . The verified profile  118  can comprise of confidence levels indicating a level of authenticity for a profile characteristic. As shown in verified profile  118 , provider&#39;s  112  education can be “100% verified”, which can denote to the consumer  142  a high level of authenticity about provider&#39;s  112  education. Conversely, provider&#39;s  112  work history shown in profile  118  as “20% verified”, can convey a low level of confidence or indicate a partial validation of profile  114 ,  126  information. 
         [0027]    Client  110  and  140  can include hardware/software computing device capable of computational tasks associated with profile creation, modification, verification, and presentation. Profile creation, manipulation, and presentation can occur through stand alone application, via Web browser graphical user interface (GUI), or via a Rich Internet Interface (RII). Client  110  can include, but is not limited to, desktop computer, laptop, mobile computing device, mobile phone, a kiosk, and the like. 
         [0028]    The profile certification server  130  can be stand-alone server, a distributed server, or a cluster of servers. In one embodiment, the validation engine  132  and the transaction manager  134  can be implemented within separate computing systems and/or software packages. Additionally, the profile certification server  130  can be configured to directly integrate with consumer  142  specific human resource systems, which can include formatting profile  126  information in a consumer  142  specific manner, using authority sources  160  specified by a consumer  142 , requesting additional profile  114  information from a provider  112  specific to a consumer  142 , and the like. 
         [0029]    Network  150  can include any hardware/software/and firmware necessary to convey digital content encoded within carrier waves. Content can be contained within analog or digital signals and conveyed through data or voice channels and can be conveyed over a personal area network (PAN) or a wide area network (WAN). The network  150  can include local components and data pathways necessary for communications to be exchanged among computing device components and between integrated device components and peripheral devices. The network  150  can also include network equipment, such as routers, data lines, hubs, and intermediary servers which together form a packet-based network, such as the Internet or an intranet. The network  150  can further include circuit-based communication components and mobile communication components, such as telephony switches, modems, cellular communication towers, and the like. The network  150  can include line based and/or wireless communication pathways. 
         [0030]    The information managed by servers  120 ,  160 ,  130 , and associated with consumer  142  can be stored in a one or more data stores. These data stores can be a physical or virtual storage spaces configured to store digital information. The data stores can be physically implemented within any type of hardware including, but not limited to, a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a semiconductor memory, a digitally encoded plastic memory, a holographic memory, or any other recording medium. Each of data stores can be a stand-alone storage unit as well as a storage unit formed from one or more physical devices. Additionally, information can be stored within the data stores in a variety of manners. For example, information can be stored within a database structure or can be stored within one or more files of a file storage system, where each file may or may not be indexed for information searching purposes. Further, the data stores can optionally utilize one or more encryption mechanisms to protect stored information from unauthorized access. 
         [0031]      FIG. 2  is a schematic diagram illustrating a set of scenarios  205 ,  250  for using a verified profile to improve the quality of business and personal relations in accordance with an embodiment of the inventive arrangements disclosed herein. Scenarios  205  and  250  can be performed in the context of system  100 . In scenarios  205  and  250  a verified profile can be created for use in establishing the authenticity of biographical information associated with an individual. 
         [0032]    In scenario  205 , a candidate  210  seeking employment can create a personal profile  214  containing useful information for job applications. Information, such as work history, education, and a list of references can be included in the profile  214 . Using client  212 , network  230 , and authority server  220 , candidate  210  can convey a verified version  244  of the personal profile  214  to one or more recruiting agents  240 . Optionally, personal profile  214  can be conveyed to agent  240 , who can submit it to authority server  220  for verification  244 . Verification of candidate  210 &#39;s biographical information can reduce the time and/or expense typically experience by a recruiting agent  240  when verifying the information manually (e.g. contacting references, past employers, etc). 
         [0033]    Profile verification can be achieved using authority server  220  comprising of authority sources  222 . Authority sources  222  can be educational records capable of establishing the validity of educational claims made by personal profile  214 . In one instance, authority sources  222  can include social networking source(s), a credit bureau source, IRS records, police records, court records, university records, and the like. 
         [0034]    Scenario  250  shows that verified job related information or just generic profile information can be used to enhance a trust level of a social network contact to minimize a likelihood that an individual being interacted with in a social networking setting is a sexual predator, a voyeur using a fictitious identity, and the like. For example, an unverified profile  255  can be initially entered by a user  251  via a browser  253  or other interface that is conveyed over network  270  to a social networking site. This information can be compared against information contained within one or more authority sources  262  through associated authority servers  260 . When the information checks out, the profile can be verified  259  and the user  251  listed as trusted  258 . In one embodiment, a user  251  can initialize the process to verify their profile  256  to gain a trusted status. In another embodiment, verification can be an automatic service provided by a social networking site to ensure a level of security to its users. 
         [0035]      FIG. 3  is a flow chart illustrating a method  300  for verifying provider profile information for use by a profile provider and/or consumer in accordance with an embodiment of the inventive arrangements disclosed herein. Method  300  can be performed in the context of system  100 . In method  300 , provider profile information can be processed to establish the validity of profile information. 
         [0036]    In step  305 , a provider creates a profile containing person/biographical information. In step  310 , if the provider and/or consumer attempts to verify profile information, the method can proceed to step  315 , else proceed to step  320 . In step  315 , profile information is selected to be verified against one or more authority sources. Selected information can include one or more types of information including, social security number, national identification information, financial information, and the like. In step  320 , if profile information is verified, the method can proceed to step  325 , else the method can jump to step  330 . In step  325 , verified information can be indicated as authentic on the provider&#39;s profile. In step  330 , unverified information can be indicated as unconfirmed data on the provider&#39;s profile. 
         [0037]    In step  335 , if there is more profile information to be verified, the method can return to step  315 , else proceed to step  340 . In step  340 , if the profile is sufficiently verified for use by provider or consumer, the method can proceed to step  345 , else jump to step  350 . In step  345 , profile information can be verified against other authority sources to increase confidence level of confirmed information or to verify unconfirmed data. Further verification can include methods manually performed by a human service agent, such as contacting difficult to reach sources, researching background data, and searching offline databases. The method can return to step  315  based on the determining step  345 , else continue to step  350 . In step  350 , provider and/or consumer utilize profile for conducting personal and/or professional activities. 
         [0038]    The present invention may be realized in hardware, software or a combination of hardware and software. The present invention may be realized in a centralized fashion in one computer system or in a distributed fashion where different elements are spread across several interconnected computer systems. Any kind of computer system or other apparatus adapted for a carrying out methods described herein is suited. A typical combination of hardware and software may be a general purpose computer system with a computer program that, when being loaded and executed, controls the computer system such that it carries out the methods described herein. 
         [0039]    The present invention also may be embedded in a computer program product, which comprises all the features enabling the implementation of the methods described herein, and which when loaded in a computer system is able to carry out these methods. Computer program in the present context means any expression, in any language, code or notation, of a set of instructions intended to cause a system having an information processing capability to perform a particular function either directly or after either or both of the following: a) conversion to another language, code or notation; b) reproduction in a different material form.