The Swedish HR tech company JobAgent matches jobseekers and employers by highlighting the candidate's personal qualities rather than previous experiences. With the help of JobTech Development's APIs, the company has developed and improved its platform and received ideas for new, innovative solutions.

JobAgent helps job seekers to introduce themselves to employers beyond the traditional resume format and matches them with recruiting companies. Via the company's platform, an “advertisement” is created that highlights the candidate's personality and skills, in addition to education and previous work experience. The content is made accessible and searchable, so that recruiters can contact the person in question, instead of the other way around. Candidates can also apply for advertised jobs via the platform.

Björn Elowson, founder and CEO at JobAgent

In the work of developing the digital matching service, which has been on the market since 2019, JobAgent has benefited from open data and technology from JobTech Development.
“We use the APIs to develop and improve our platform, but also to create new innovative solutions. It's incredibly good! ”, Says Björn Elowson, founder and CEO.

So far, they have mainly benefited from the JobSearch, which provides access to all ads in Platsbanken and makes it possible to match JobAgent's users with advertised jobs. But it is only a matter of time before you will connect additional APIs, Björn explains: "We are currently looking at the possibility of using JobTech Taxonomy and JobAd Enrichments, both to get sharper matches and to develop completely new solutions."

The technical solutions that JobAgent gets free access to via JobTech Development are important pieces of the puzzle to attract and activate the platform's users, and thus play a central role for the company and the business as a whole. "It is incredibly important. This means that we can offer our users to apply for jobs through our platform in addition to making them interesting and searchable for recruiters. And it has an indirect significance for our business because the candidates return and update the information about themselves" says Björn Elowson.

How do you see that authorities, private companies and other actors in the labor market collaborate and share data in the way we do within the framework of JobTech Development?
"That's the only right thing to do! If we are to solve the major problems that exist in the labor market, we need to collaborate. That Arbetsförmedlingen, which has the task of oiling machinery in the labor market, can help us in the business world with technical solutions that stimulate matching is a very good synergy. ”

If you were allowed to wish freely, what kind of open data and / or technical solutions do you wish we could offer, in addition to what you already use?
”The ability to translate your taxonomies into other languages. The work you have done is superb, but the labor market is an international market, and to get even more effect from your innovations, we need them in English”.

The collaboration with JobTech Development has been of great importance to the startup company Layke Analytics, which offers a solution for intelligent screening of CVs.

- “It has laid the foundation and helped us incredibly much. Above all, it has given us a much shorter start-up distance compared to if we had developed everything ourselves” says Anna Rapp, CEO.

Layke Analytics offers an AI solution that automates the selection and matching process when recruiting. With its algorithm, the solution can read, interpret and analyze the CV and thus determine whether the candidate is relevant for a job, something that is usually a time-consuming process. The company is primarily aimed at recruitment and staffing companies as well as HR departments.

Anna Rapp, CEO of Layke Analytics

“Quickly assessing whether a candidate is relevant to a job is a challenge. It requires an overview of all professions, positions and industry-related terms available on the market. In addition, recruiters are expected to make an objective assessment without any element of personal values, and even there there may be challenges. Therefore, we see that an automated solution can facilitate the recruitment process in many ways, ”says Anna Rapp.

The development team at Layke Analytics has used three of the APIs available on the JobTech Development platform. JobAd Enrichments is used to extract the requirements profile from a job advertisement as the API can identify key information and exclude what is irrelevant. JobSearch is used for "reverse matching", when you start from a CV and find a job that suits the candidate. Historical Jobs is used to train the language model used by the matching algorithm. “A prerequisite for being able to build a good language model is that you have relevant data, and there the APIs have played a significant role for us. The large amount of data that we have gained access to is a super-relevant basis for us, and since it spans several different industries, we can apply it to all professional areas”.

 Having free access to large amounts of data and smart technical solutions has given the company, which started in 2020, a real boost to the market. “Without the APIs, we would not have been able to develop our product as quickly as we have. It had taken us a long time to develop them ourselves and we had to go to many different data sources ", says Anna Rapp and continues:" As a start-up, you do not have as much time and money as you like. It is important to get started with a customer case at an early stage, and it makes a big difference if you can get started in three months instead of nine. ”

The collaboration with JobTech Development and the Swedish Public Employment Service has also been an advantage in communication with customers, explains Layke Analytics' CEO. “Using open data from an authority strengthens the credibility of our product. It creates a trust that means a lot to us. ”

What do you think about authorities and private actors in the labor market collaborating and sharing data in the way that takes place within the framework of JobTech Development?
“I was pleasantly surprised that Arbetsförmedlingen offered this. What an opportunity! We would like to see more authorities and private companies work in this way. It would have been a real upside for us and many other startup companies. ”

If you could freely wish, what kind of open data or technical solutions would you like to have access to, in addition to what you already use?
“At the top of our wish list is JobAd Enrichments in English. Although Swedish is the language spoken in most workplaces, English is incredibly common on the CV, so it could be very important to us. We would also like a taxonomy of industries and company names”.

During the autumn, JobTech Development arranges open webinars for anyone who wants help getting started with our APIs.

To make it even easier to use our APIs, we are organizing four webinars during the autumn where we provide a technical introduction and the opportunity to ask questions directly to our developers. The webinars are primarily targeting at new and existing users, but are open to anyone who wants to know more about how our APIs can be used for the development of digital services for the labor market.

At the webinars, our development team, represented by Johan Brymér Dahlhielm and Henrik Suzuki, will provide information and practical guidance for APIs such as "JobSearch", "JobStream" and "JobTech Taxonomy". This is followed by an open conversation with the opportunity to ask questions, give feedback and present ideas and wishes for new technical solutions from JobTech Development.

“We look forward to helping and inspiring new users through this autumn's webinars. Through more dialogue and feedback, we also get a greater opportunity to use our products and become more accurate when we develop new technical solutions for the labor market, ”says Henrik Suzuki.

All webinars will be held according to the "open space" model, which means that the agenda and topics of conversation are largely governed by the participants' specific interests and needs.

Five more questions ... Johan Linåker, Lund University, who is a follow-up researcher to JobTech Development and has reached halfway in his work to study how we, through collaboration and open data, build a digital ecosystem for the Swedish labor market

Why is it interesting to follow JobTech Development?

”It is very exciting to follow how to work with open data and open software, and above all how you collaborate with actors within one and the same ecosystem around both the data and the software. With the research hat on, I can say that it is unique and forward looking, and so far there is little reported and written in the field. The general debate in the public sector is about opening up and publishing your data, but there is very little focus on collaboration and the connection to open software. That is why JobTech Development and the ecosystem you are building is a cutting-edge project that many can learn from. ”

What is your role as a companion researcher?

“As a companion researcher, I have two different hats. With the "collaboration hat", I help JobTech Development to build a sustainable ecosystem. I support, coach and provide input from research on how to collaborate on open data and open source software. With the "researcher hat", I follow how the ecosystem develops and compare with other examples in the outside world and give feedback to JobTech. I have, for example, compared with Trafiklab, which is Samtrafiken's platform for open data connected to public transport. I have also taken a closer look at open data ecosystems in Finland and the USA. In addition, I work to spread knowledge about how authorities can use and collaborate on open data and open source software. A concrete result is the newly formed Network for Open Software and Data (NOSAD.se) where we arrange workshops and collect materials that can help authorities in their work with these issues. ”

You have come halfway into your work. What have you come up with so far?

One insight is that authorities can collaborate on the data they open up in many different ways. JobTech Development is one example, Trafiklab another. What fits best depends on the individual case. It has also been fun to see the strong synergy effect that exists between open source software and open data. Partly as a way to inspire how the data can be used and simplify for developers, partly to create transparency about how the data is used, and partly to enable the provision of the data. If a municipality is in a closed system, it can be as bad they dont even have access to the information. "

What should your work as a companion researcher lead up to?

“I hope that it contributes to a stronger ecosystem, that more actors are added and that the data comes into use, and that this in turn leads to better matching between employers and jobseekers. I also hope that the work and research can help authorities, both in Sweden and internationally, to improve their work with open data and open software. ”

How can those who are interested take part in your work?

“A tip is to go to NOSAD where you can take part in research articles, open source policy, reports and training materials. I also share material via my Twitter and LinkedIn accounts. [(@ Johanlinaker)] (). ”

In our forum, you can follow what is happening within NOSAD and participate in discussions within the jobtech area.

Under hösten arrangerar JobTech Development öppna webinarier för alla som vill ha hjälp att komma igång med våra API:er.

Nu fortsätter vi med vår populära webinarserie där du som ny användare får praktisk vägledning och möjlighet att ställa frågor direkt till vårt utvecklingsteam.

Nästa tillfälle är fredagen den 24 september.

På webinarierna möter du bland annat Johan Brymér Dahlhielm som inleder med att berätta mer om API:er som ”JobSearch”, ”JobStream”. Vi har även utvecklare med som kan berätta om ”JobTech Taxonomy”, ”JobAd Enrichments” och om vårt spännande projekt ”Connect Once” som har släppts nyligen. Efter detta finns möjlighet att ställa frågor, ge feedback och framföra idéer och önskemål för nya tekniska lösningar från JobTech Development.

Vi serverar ingen färdig agenda för mötet utan innehållet styrs utifrån dina specifika intressen och behov enligt sk. ”open space”-modell.

För anmälan: https://www.jobtechdev.se/sv/kalender

Varmt välkommen.

Through a collaboration between Sweden's largest advertising and matching players, initiated by JobTech Development, it will be possible to show a comprehensive picture of all the job advertisements on the market - and jobseekers do not have to worry about having missed job opportunities. The technical solution is now being tested by a pilot in Platsbanken.

The collaboration "Ecosystem for advertisements" means that advertising and matching actors open up and share job advertisement data in a common digital ecosystem. The aim is partly to make it easier for jobseekers to navigate among job advertisements and find jobs, regardless of platform, and partly to create a larger basis for Statistics Sweden's labor market statistics.Testing the news blog post.

“We have to face the digital restructuring, which means, among other things, that people are currently forced to navigate a variety of advertising platforms when looking for work, without knowing if they have the full range. Neither Arbetsförmedlingen nor any other actor can solve the problem on their own because no one has access to all job advertisements, so we do it together ", says Maria Dalhage, project manager at JobTech Development/Arbetsförmedlingen who is responsible for the technical solutions required for joint management of advertising data .

The actors who have joined the collaboration and thus chosen to share their advertising data are Blocket, CareerBuilder, Jobbdirekt, Monster, NetJobs, Offentliga Jobb, OnePartnerGroup and Studentjob. Together with the advertisements that are already displayed in Platsbanken, this constitutes approximately 80 percent of the market's job advertisements.

"The pandemic has meant that we have more candidates looking for jobs - at the same time as there are fewer ads out there. Right now, it is more important than ever to facilitate job search, and as one of the largest commercial job actors, it feels natural to be part of this collaboration”, says Matilda Adelborg, PR Manager at Blocket Jobb.

“We at Monster look forward to this collaboration that will make it so much easier for jobseekers to find a new and exciting job. This is completely in line with Monster's goal which is to create the right match between candidates and employers ", says Per Wadell, country manager at Monster.

The technical solution, the API "JobTech Links", is initially tested as a pilot in Platsbanken.

“With the pilot, we will study how the API works in practice and evaluate how users perceive the interface. We will also follow how our partners experience the collaboration and ensure that we have a sustainable model that benefits all parties. Our expectation is that more players will join since we aim to have one hundred percent of the ads ", says Maria Dalhage.

In the long run, the solution may become an open API that can be used at any time to access all advertising links. "Our intention is to create an open API, but the main focus only now is to find a successful collaboration and a sustainable model that we can scale up", concludes Maria Dalhage.

Do you / your company want to know more about "Advertising ecosystem" and how you connect to the collaboration? Contact project manager Maria Dalhage at [maria.dalhage@arbetsformedlingen.se]

Irrelevant search results and strange job proposal are something many jobseekers recognize - and are happy to avoid. With the AI ​​solution JobAd Enrichments, which is free for all matching actors to use, the problem can be avoided, while at the same time contributing to in-depth insights into the labor market.

The JobAd Enrichments API, which is based on AI technology, automatically identifies words in ads that have real meaning in a search situation, while filtering out redundant information.

With the help of JobAd Enrichments, it becomes much easier to navigate and quickly find your way among job advertisements in digital advertising platforms. The jobseeker does not have to spend time sorting search results and reviewing long ad texts in detail to see if they contain information that is interesting and relevant.

The API has been tested over a year in the Swedish Public Employment Service's own platform Platsbanken. It is now also available to all players who want to improve search services or advertising platforms.

In addition to improved matching, JobAd Enrichment can be used to gain in-depth insights into the labor market and to guide jobseekers. By compiling and analyzing structured ad data, it becomes possible to identify:

• Skills and abilities that are in demand for different professional roles.
• Occupations that are suitable for those who have certain skills / abilities, or which skills should be invested in to become more in demand in a particular profession.
• If certain skills / abilities are in demand at all, and whether the interest in them increases or decreases.

The API can also be used in the development of digital services aimed at employers. For example, there may be services that analyze and improve content in job ads:

• How much of the ad actually consists of relevant and in-demand words?
• What concepts are usually requested for a profession? Missing important words in our ad?
• How unique is our ad compared to other ads in the same area? If we use words and expressions that are inflationary and thus not so useful.

Are you a developer and want to use our new AI solution? Here you get started with JobAd Enrichments, which is a complement to our other range of open APIs for language, individual and labor market data.

In our forum you can ask questions and participate in discussions about JobAd Enrichments or one of our other APIs. Welcome to join!

You can also contact us via Email

Five questions to Mattias Persson, developer responsible for the AI solution JobAd Enrichments.

What is behind the investment in JobAd Enrichments?

“Anyone looking for a job via digital advertising platforms today often encounters problems with irrelevant search results and job proposals, or search results that only partially match what they are looking for. This leads to frustration and to being forced to spend time reviewing texts to see if they really contain anything interesting. With JobAd Enrichments, we make it easier for jobseekers to navigate and quickly find the right job advertisements. The API is based on an AI solution that automatically identifies relevant words in job advertisements, and filters out information that is not directly related to the service itself. There is also a synonym function that allows you to get relevant hits even if keywords in the ad or search query are misspelled. ”

Who will be able to benefit from JobAd Enrichments?

"All matching actors, private and public, who want to extract structured data from ad texts so that the services or build new innovative solutions will be able to benefit from it. This in turn will benefit jobseekers and employers who use these services. Over the past year, JobAd Enrichments has been tested in Platsbanken to increase the quality of search results and make it easier for jobseekers to find the right ads, a concrete example of an API that is useful. Others who will be able to benefit from being able to extract structured advertising data are researchers and experts who want to learn more about how the labor market works. ”

How has the development itself been working?

“We started building a glossary of the actual terms used in the ads, to then be able to identify them when we automatically interpret the ad texts. In order to be able to assess whether, for example, a competence is in demand or not by the employer, we used Deep learning / AI. To create the AI models, we created training data using the Snorkel framework and then we trained the AI models with Google's Tensorflow. ”

What has been the biggest challenge?

“Finding the optimal configuration for the AI models to work. It took a long time and many failed attempts to find an optimal solution. Without exaggerating, I can say that it has been a patient test. "

How can JobAd Enrichments contribute to a better labor market?

“In addition to streamlining matching, the API provides us with completely new information about the labor market, and with the in-depth knowledge, conditions are created for new digital matching and guidance services. It will be exciting to see how the API is received by developers and other actors who follow our work, and I hope to see many innovative services with JobAd Enrichments as part of the solution. ”

Five more questions ... Gregory Golding from JobTech Development who participates in the Internet Days on November 24 to talk about collaborations between public and private actors, and how it can contribute to a better labor market.

"Innovation in the service of society" is the theme for JobTech Development's participation at the Internet Days. What is it about?

“We from JobTech Development will talk about how, with the help of tax funds, we can create better conditions in the labor market through investments in new, innovative digital solutions. We will also talk about why it is important for authorities to work more externally and become better at supporting and facilitating other actors, both private and public, through different types of collaborations. ”

In what way does innovation occurs when authorities and private actors work together?

”We get different perspectives, become more fast-paced and always have the customer in focus. It is about creating solutions for the whole society, but we divide the cost and effort so that everyone can do what they are best at. There will be better usage of the available resources.”

Jobtech Development has extensive experience in this area, can you give an example?

“A very successful example is our collaboration with one of the world's largest insurance companies, AXA. We created a blockchain solution that makes it easier for policyholders in their contacts with the Swedish Public Employment Service, and at the same time we gave individuals increased power and control over their own data. Together with AXA, we have tackled a common problem, and our collaboration has benefited both our customer groups. ”

What do you see as the biggest challenge in this area, in general?

“Regulations that do not keep up with the rapid development are the biggest challenge. Digitization is described as the new industrialization, but it becomes difficult to create structural changes when the existing regulations do not keep up. I see this as a major obstacle to innovation and new collaborations between public and private actors. "

Finally, what will be your most important message to the audience at the Internet Days on November 24?

"Politics and law must give us better conditions for innovative solutions that private and public actors develop, together."

Five more questions… Jonas Södergren, Technical Manager at JobTech Development and one of the initiators of the "Network for Knowledge Sharing around Open Data" which brings together participants from the Swedish authorities to work cross-border and practical with open data.

Why is this network needed?

“I have contacts with other authorities, we have understood that many have thoughts and challenges about open data. It's about everything from licenses and legislation to how to solve practical problems. At the same time, the government is pushing increasingly for Sweden to invest in open data and for us to reuse resources within the state. So we called all authorities to hear how others work to reach out to users, what challenges there are, how to measure investments and ensure benefits. When we realized that many face exactly the same challenges, the idea was born to create a network, where we need and inspire each other to move forward in the work. ”

Who is involved?

"We from JobTech Development / Arbetsförmedlingen have formed a planning group together with Samtrafiken, Digg, Sweden's Municipalities and Regions, the Internet Foundation and the Patent and Registration Office, but at the workshops we have organized so far, there have been participants from over a hundred organizations, most of which authorities and other public actors. It has been a huge interest with packed workshops on both occasions, and that is really amazing ”

What happens at the network meetings?

“In our first workshop, the conversations in particilur was about which licensing conditions should apply to the authorities' open data in Sweden. There is an official policy on this in progress, which the Patent and Registration Office will develop, and we were all invited to participate in the discussion. In other respects, the meetings are very much about how we can collaborate, share knowledge and inspire each other, for example by showing practical examples. We also have a special sharing page underway, where everyone has a concrete opportunity to share their data. ”

What will be JobTech Development / Arbetsförmedlingen's most important contribution in this?

“We coordinate and coordinate and drive development, because we see that there is a pent-up need for collaboration. It is important that we start working concretely with what is here and now, and not sit and wait for a new law or similar. Another contribution from our side is of course also that we show other authorities what we do in the area of open data and open source, both our successes and the challenges we face. ”

What is your wish the network meetings will lead to?

“I hope that each authority will begin to share resources and experiences to a much greater extent than is done today. Many people are used to sharing data when someone asks for it, but we need to be much more proactive. Unfortunately, we see in international surveys that Sweden is lagging behind when it comes to innovation based on open data, so there is undeniably a big job to be done. We must make sure to take part in those measurements, and ultimately it is about contributing to creating a better life situation for residents in Sweden. ”

DO YOU WANT TO PARTICIPATE?

The "Network for Knowledge Sharing around Open Data" is held on the first Tuesday of each month and is open to anyone who wants to participate. Read more and register for the next meeting. NOTE! The number of places in the workshop is limited.

Framtid.se

By using technology and open data from JobTech Development, the career platform Framtid.se has not only increased the benefits for its users, but also developed its business.

"From being focused on proactive messages and guidance, we can now also offer direct recruitment, so it has really been important," says Kristoffer Jarefeldt, founder and CEO.

Framtid.se is part of the company Framtidsutveckling i Sverige AB, which is also behind GymnasieGuiden, YHGuiden.se and FrågaSYV.se. The platform is aimed at everyone who is looking for work or wants to change careers, as well as students who want to gain a deeper knowledge of professions and opportunities in the labor market. The site is primarily based on the profession you want to work as, not on the choice of education, which many other players in the same industry do.

Kristoffer Jarefelt, Founder and CEO at Framtid.se

“There is a matching problem in the labor market, where employers are looking for skills and a broader recruitment base for the shortage, while young people often choose other educations. Therefore, we give our visitors a clear picture of what the demand for different professions looks like, and try to contribute to a better match to the needs of the labor market, ”says Kristoffer Jarefeldt, who started the company almost thirty years ago.

Framtid.se uses the JobStream to access all job advertisements from the Arbetsförmedlingen job sharing plattform Platsbanken, and JobTech Taxonomy to link current job advertisements to the professions described on the site. “The job advertisements complement our offer in a very good way. In addition to guidance on professions and educations, our users get an overview of vacancies linked to each profession.”
Kristoffer continues:
“Another concrete benefit for us is that we can create forecasts for different professions based on the advertising material from Arbetsförmedlingen. If there are many ads, we can conclude that it is easier to get a job. ”

The collaboration with JobTech Development has also helped the company to develop its business and make Framtid.se a platform for recruitment.
“The technology and job advertisements that we have access to have meant the opportunity to develop and broaden our business. From being focused on proactive messages and guidance, we can now also offer direct recruitment, so it has really mattered. We have been able to create a more comprehensive offer for the target groups who are looking for a job or want to change careers. ”

How do you see that authorities, private companies and other actors in the labor market collaborate and share data in the way we do within the framework of JobTech Development? 
“I think it is good because it increases the opportunity to share important information. But at the same time, it places high demands on responsible handling, and each actor must take its own responsibility and follow the guidelines that apply. Another positive effect of sharing information is that it creates competition, which often leads to development and improvement. So for the consumer, it's great. ”

If you were allowed to wish freely, what kind of open data and / or technical solutions do you wish we could offer, in addition to what you already use?
“We would like the information in the job advertisements we download to have a clearer structure, as it would make it easier for us to match it with other data. In general, I think there should be more control when companies fill in job advertisements through dropdown formats where they are forced to choose skills, desired level of education, personal characteristics and so on. "
"Another thing that would be useful for us is data on salary levels for different job offers, because many of our users wonder about just that."