Zappos ditches the job posting

Zappos, which has made HR headlines in the past for offering to pay employees to quit, has announced another human resources revolution: The end of job postings.

Jobseekers going to the website of the online shoe and clothing retailer are met with a screen that reads, “No more job postings?! What’s up with that?”

In a web post on ere.net, Mike Bailen — a senior HR manager with Zappos — explained the reasoning behind the decision.

“Recruiting has become a walking contradiction,” he wrote. “We care about the candidate experience, but we spend five to seven seconds looking at a resumé. We are dedicated to get back to all candidates in an effort to provide great service, but the majority of candidates get a rejection email.”

He pointed out that the company received 31,000 job applications last year, and hired 1.5 per cent of them. He talked about the link between employment brand and company brand, and lamented the fact that jobseekers are allowed to “slip into a black hole.”

“I don’t want our first interaction with someone to be over a rejection email template,” wrote Bailen.

So, after some “sleepless nights, lots of brainstorming and some liquid courage,” Zappos decided to take a drastic step and axe job postings, he wrote. In its place, the company has set up the “Zappos Insider” program for people who want to work for the company. It explains it thusly on its website:

“We want to have real conversations with you and give you a chance to interact with us by introducing yourself, asking questions and getting the answers you seek,” it reads. “If we both already know each other, then we’ll know exactly what type of role is perfect for you if/when a position becomes available.”

Jobseekers can set up a profile, and pick the department at Zappos they would most likely be interested in — and then the company takes it from there. Applicants don’t need to join multiple teams, because the recruiting team will be able to search all candidates for any roles throughout the company.