As unemployment levels rise to the highest level in 16 years, the job market has become even more competitive than usual, meaning candidates must stand out. With the advent of the Web 2.0 world the traditional format of two-page CV is no longer compelling, according to Zookel, a London-based online recruiter.

NMK spoke to the company’s CEO, Paul Duggan, about this new form of recruitment agency, which promotes the use of video profiles and psychometric profiling, for example, to give candidates a more personal presentation of themselves and better assist hiring firms in making informed decisions.

What was the inspiration for Zookel and how long did it take to come to fruition?

The idea for Zookel had been bubbling under the surface for a while. When I first left my last management role and began to think about my career, I looked at the sites available and realised that they didn’t provide the tools that I would have expected. It wasn’t until I started actively recruiting for the companies I have invested in that it turned from observation to frustration at the difficulty of identifying great candidates from the ‘traditional’ sites, and at the failings of our employee referral practice. It was these inadequacies that provided the impetus for Zookel, with development starting in earnest at the end of May 2008.

How does the Zookel process work, in a nutshell, and what’s in it for candidates and hiring companies alike?

The Zookel process for users is straightforward. Users join, complete the career focus test, create their Web 2.0 CV, and decide whether they would like to record a video version of their CV, ask colleagues for referrals etc, and start searching and networking for jobs. It is just as easy for companies looking to hire. The process for signing-up is very quick – you can be identifying potential candidates within 20 minutes.

What niche does Zookel fill?

Our primary unique selling point (USP) is the fact that we make matching the right candidate with the right job an easier and more intelligent process. Whilst it sounds simplistic, this is the sweet spot in terms of recruitment - the point at which the maximum benefit accrues to both jobseekers and hiring companies. Everything we do from adding psychometric profiling, to leveraging existing social networks is done on the basis of improving our performance on this USP.

Why the name ‘Zookel’ – what does it represent?

We want the site name to become synonymous with recruitment over time and having a blank sheet of paper in terms of our users’ and clients’ perception of the name was important. As such we choose Zookel not on the basis that it is Hawaiian for ‘great new job’ or Swahili for ‘intelligent recruiting’ but on the fact that it’s short, memorable and distinctive.

What security do you provide to candidates, given they’re placing a lot of personal information in your care?

Alongside implementing best practice from a technical perspective - including secure sockets layer (SSL) to protect pages with user information, system generated alerts and preventions in case of unauthorised access attempts, housing the database on a separate encrypted secure server, and password protection with the system configured for “strong” passwords - we have given the user the ability to completely control who can see their profile and what exactly they can see at a granular level.

Why launch now in a deep economic trough? What’s the opportunity for you?

When we first started developing Zookel, the signs that we were potentially heading towards a downturn were there, so it’s a very valid question.

Why did we continue to invest and launch rather than mothball it and wait? We feel that during this current downturn and the ongoing war for talent, the benefits of a site that can improve the process for applicants competing for roles, and for recruiters seeking to identify the best available candidate are perhaps clearer than ever.

You’re looking to leverage social networks to help place candidates. What’s your advice to candidates in the Web 2.0 world where content and images published online concerning them are out of their control and could be potentially damaging?

Whilst we’ve all heard one or two horror stories, I believe that in recruitment terms Web 2.0 offers significantly more benefit than risk. The best, most crucial advice I can give is control the elements you can have by ensuring you set the appropriate permissions on any site where you have a profile. Whilst it’s not the most exciting thing you can do with your Facebook profile, for example, it can certainly save a lot of pain in the long term.

Aren’t you just another Monster.co.uk-style job filter?

If we were just another Monster, or indeed a more targeted version by sector of the same, I would certainly not look to launch now as we wouldn’t be bringing anything new to the table.

But our singular focus is on making it easier to match the right candidate to the right job, and the inclusion of the additional free tools we offer both job seekers and recruiters - such as social networking, video CVs and psychometrics - give us a distinct USP. Indeed in this regard I should probably admit a debt of gratitude to the traditional online job sites like Monster, who have not only shown us what’s possible but also help to highlight the current gaps.

Do you think school and university leavers have enough guidance on how to generate a solid Web 2.0 CV?

Strictly speaking - possibly not. However the same could be argued for lots of us as Web 2.0 CVs represent a paradigm shift. Indeed it was this realisation that prompted us to spend the time and money creating a range of sample profiles for users to reference when they were setting up their own Zookel profiles.

On a separate note given the technological aptitude of current school and university leavers, and the trend shown with sites like Facebook, my personal view is that these groups will readily understand the concept of Zookel and leverage our tools to full effect.