Deepening its relationship with Yahoo has been a key strategy for HotJobs since the Sunnyvale, California, job board was acquired in late 2001 by Yahoo, says Susan Vobejda, vice president of marketing for HotJobs.

    "Realigning ourselves with such a powerful brand is critical for us," she explains.

    Some of the changes for the job site include the use of Yahoo’s signature corporate colors of purple and white. In addition, the Yahoo brand is more prominently displayed on the Web site.

    HotJobs also will be offering features that are customized to users’ needs. For instance, there is a new tool highlighting jobs specifically for the individual job seeker.

    The recommendations are based on information gathered from registered users that may include career interests, skills and areas of focus. There are other new features on the Web site designed to encourage repeated visits to the site, including a mechanism that shows job seekers how many times a résumé has been viewed by recruiters.

    HotJobs is also increasing the community feel of its Web site. The job board joined forces with Flickr, an online photo-sharing platform also owned by Yahoo. Partnering with Flickr enables HotJobs users to post images of a workplace on the site.

    "The point of all of this is to get talent engaged in the site," Vobejda says.

    This is not the first time that HotJobs has partnered with one of its sister companies. In the spring, the company began integrating content from Yahoo Answers, an online community forum where visitors can ask questions and receive answers on virtually any topic. In the case of HotJobs, the material discussed pertains to career-related discussions.

Workforce Management Online, July 2007 -- Register Now!