No matter how you look at it, job hunting is difficult. Even more so if you enter the same information into an application over and over again. This feels like a process ripe for a digital update, with early-stage startup Simplify combining surveys, job scraping, job matching, autofill applications, and text-based question answering assistance into one. We are trying to achieve digital updates by doing this. program.
Today, W21 YC alumni continue to work with applicants and employers to build business models around this idea, announcing a $3 million seed.
Michael Yang, the company's CEO and co-founder, says it's long overdue for us to be able to apply for jobs smarter than we are now. “People spend dozens of hours scrolling through job boards, finding opportunities, and applying hundreds of times. So what do we do? At Simplify, we We're building what we like to call an 'always-on AI carrier agent,''' Yang told TechCrunch.
He likens it to a Hollywood agent. An agent understands your career, background, skills, and salary requirements and can help you find the right match. You can take quizzes to help the algorithm understand your skill set. It's probably best suited for someone with a technical background with specific skills such as programming languages or development tools.
You can also set preferences for work/life balance, diversity, innovative technology, and more. Additionally, you can set your salary expectations and the software will find jobs that match your answers. The company also offers a more detailed resume creation application on its site.
But finding a potential job isn't the end of the story. It helps you fill out application forms by auto-filling the most common information where you need to enter the same information over and over again, making it easier through automation. The company intentionally positions itself as a separate tool from LinkedIn, but it should make LinkedIn more private because no one sees your information except potential employers. That's what Mr. Yang says.
When it comes to job listings, you'll see a collection of jobs from around the web that match your skills and requirements. Alternatively, you can download the Simplify Copilot Chrome extension to automatically apply to jobs you find in your job search. Tools other than Simplify. The Copilot tool also helps you answer questions within the application based on your background and skills.
The co-founders came up with the idea for Simplify several years ago while in college, applying to hundreds of jobs and entering the same information over and over again. They thought there had to be a better way, so they launched Simplify in 2021 and joined the Y Combinator Winter 2021 cohort.
Currently, the company has about 10 employees. For now, it's a remote location, but that could change in the near future, Yang said. When it comes to hiring, he believes diversity is especially important for companies like his, where bias can easily creep into the job search. “If you have a product that's designed by all men in a small room with similar backgrounds, it's probably only going to work for men with similar backgrounds,” he said.
For now, the company has a runway to test ideas, but is still experimenting with monetization methods. His $3 million seed today was led by Craft Ventures with support from YC, Hyphen Capital, GFC, and several industry angels.