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Japanese tech giant collects job application fee from graduates to narrow the field

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We previously wrote about Niconico Douga, a popular Japanese social video platform. With over 30 million registered users and two million paid users, the company behind the site, Dwango is one of the major tech companies here in Japan. Dwango recently made an interesting announcement regarding employment of fresh graduates. For its 2015 entry exam, the company will charge a 2525 yen (or about $25) fee. (2525 because of ‘Niconico’ douga). This system only applies to those residing in areas around Tokyo, and does not apply to those living in the countryside. This strategy was taken to attract only those who are truly passionate and serious about working at Dwango. The collected money will be subsequently donated to charity. According to Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the employment rate for graduating students is high as 93.9%. With the spread of technology and mobile phones, students can now apply to over 100 companies with a push of a button online. But Dwango explains that the number of available employment spots have not changed. And the increase in the number of application naturally means more work for the hiring side to narrow the field to the best candidates. Back in…

dwango-recruit
We previously wrote about Niconico Douga, a popular Japanese social video platform. With over 30 million registered users and two million paid users, the company behind the site, Dwango is one of the major tech companies here in Japan.

Dwango recently made an interesting announcement regarding employment of fresh graduates. For its 2015 entry exam, the company will charge a 2525 yen (or about $25) fee. (2525 because of ‘Niconico’ douga). This system only applies to those residing in areas around Tokyo, and does not apply to those living in the countryside. This strategy was taken to attract only those who are truly passionate and serious about working at Dwango. The collected money will be subsequently donated to charity.

According to Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the employment rate for graduating students is high as 93.9%. With the spread of technology and mobile phones, students can now apply to over 100 companies with a push of a button online. But Dwango explains that the number of available employment spots have not changed. And the increase in the number of application naturally means more work for the hiring side to narrow the field to the best candidates.

Back in April, we introduced a unique startup called Wild Card, which works to ease the job-hunting process for fresh graduates. As we mentioned at that time, the typical job-hunting process for such graduates begins in the fall of their junior year where they spend around six months to a year searching for their dream jobs. For big companies (i.e. those with over 5,000 employess), the job openings to applications ratio can be as low as 0.60.

We can expect to see more startups dedicated to disrupting the traditional job-hunting process, as well as creative tactics from employers to ease the rush on their end.

Recently we have also seen the emergence of a new website called Recme, which allows job-seeking students to post a 30- to 90-second long self-introduction video to appeal to potential employers. Leading Mark, the company behind Recme received funding of 50 million yen from Cyberagent Ventures in November.

For fresh graduates in Japan, a new startup eases the pain of job hunting

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Typically graduating students in Japan begin their job-hunting process in the fall in their junior year, and spend around six months to a year searching for the best employer. The state of economy certainly has has impact on the job market too. According to Nikkei, the job openings to applications ratio for big companies with over 5,000 employees is as small as 0.60. But an interesting student recruiting service is trying to lend them a hand. It’s called Wild Card, and it just recently launched in beta. With this new service, which is integrated with Facebook, students and employers can find a better match faster and easier. Students can start by connecting to their Facebook account and upload proof of the job offers they have received, such as an email or some sort of document. After careful screening, other companies using Wild Card can search for promising students, and seeing that they have already passed one screening process, they can reach out to them knowing the student has already met the initial criteria. In this way, talented students can skip the hassle of filling out endless application forms, taking recruiting tests, and doing group interviews. The founder of Wild Card,…

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Typically graduating students in Japan begin their job-hunting process in the fall in their junior year, and spend around six months to a year searching for the best employer. The state of economy certainly has has impact on the job market too. According to Nikkei, the job openings to applications ratio for big companies with over 5,000 employees is as small as 0.60.

But an interesting student recruiting service is trying to lend them a hand. It’s called Wild Card, and it just recently launched in beta.

wildcard-studentWith this new service, which is integrated with Facebook, students and employers can find a better match faster and easier. Students can start by connecting to their Facebook account and upload proof of the job offers they have received, such as an email or some sort of document. After careful screening, other companies using Wild Card can search for promising students, and seeing that they have already passed one screening process, they can reach out to them knowing the student has already met the initial criteria. In this way, talented students can skip the hassle of filling out endless application forms, taking recruiting tests, and doing group interviews.

The founder of Wild Card, Tairo Moriyama, further elaborates:

From my experience in HR, I thought it would be great if competent students with job offers from one company could skip the early recruiting process with other companies. Because the recruiting of brilliant new graduates is very competitive, some students feel pressured to commit to one company after receiving a job offer. But students should be allowed to see other options and figure out what’s best for them.

The site plans to go public in May and has already seen 500 students register in the first week. Wild Card is a great idea, in my view, because one job offer opens many doors to other potential jobs, and for students who live in the suburbs it will save them a lot of time and money.

Wild Card is convenient for companies too, because students on the site have already passed screening by other companies, making the recruiting process more efficient. The service uses a performance-based fee model, charging the company if the prospect is hired.

Wild Card has plans to release a mid-career version in the near future, so stay tuned for that as well.