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One of Google’s core strengths over the years has been its ability to deliver various services on top of its basic search engine technology, including things like business listings, image search and most recently Google Lens.
Sometime in the next few weeks, the company will add a new capability that will let people search for jobs across every category, wage and experience level, Google CEO Sundar Pichai said at the company’s I/O conference last week.
During his keynote address, Pichai described the new Google For Jobs feature in Search as a machine-learning-based service built in consultation with partners such as LinkedIn, Monster.com, Facebook, CareerBuilder and Glassdoor.
“The first step for many people when they start looking for a job is searching on Google,” Pichai said. “So we have built a new feature in Search with the goal that no matter who you are or what kind of job you are looking for, you can find the jobs that are right for you.”
One of the key features of the new service will be its ability to help people search for jobs in areas such as retail and the hospitality sector that have been much harder to search for and classify on typical job sites.
Since many employers in these sectors do not use standard terminology for different jobs, a retail job could for instance mean anything from a store clerk, to store management to a sales associate, Pichai said.
Google for Jobs will use machine learning to categorize and cluster such jobs in a manner that makes it possible for job seekers to find a close match for their skills and experience.
It will automatically recognize the location of a jobseeker and give the individual an opportunity to filter jobs based on commute times and by a variety of other criteria specific to their interests. When a user finds something of interest, they will be able to apply for the job with a single click, Pichai said.
“Whether you are in a community college looking for a barista job, a teacher who is relocating across the country and wants a teaching job or someone looking for a job in construction, the product should do a great job in bringing that information to you.”
Google For Jobs reflects Google’s ongoing commitment to using the company’s search engine and machine learning expertise to help people find work, Pichai said.
He pointed to last year’s launch of Google’s Cloud Jobs API as another example of the company’s work in this area. The Jobs Application Programming Interface is designed to help organizations bolster their recruitment websites, applicant tracking systems and processes.
For example a corporate job website that has integrated the API, will be capable of suggesting available, and even potentially available jobs to people on the site based on their experience and qualifications.
According to Pichai, several organizations have already integrated the Google Jobs API into their career websites, including Johnson & Johnson and FEDEX.
“Forty-six percent of U.S employees say they face talent shortages and say they have issues filling open job positions, while job seekers may be looking for openings right next door,” Pichai said. “There’s a big disconnect here.”
Google For Jobs will become available in the U.S. market first in the next few weeks and will be rolled out in other countries in coming months.