Hi Friends,

Even as I launch this today ( my 80th Birthday ), I realize that there is yet so much to say and do. There is just no time to look back, no time to wonder,"Will anyone read these pages?"

With regards,
Hemen Parekh
27 June 2013

Now as I approach my 90th birthday ( 27 June 2023 ) , I invite you to visit my Digital Avatar ( www.hemenparekh.ai ) – and continue chatting with me , even when I am no more here physically

Sunday, 6 September 2020

Job Portals : morphing as Consent Managers ?





Job Portals have been around for 30 + years – biggest being Naukri – MonsterIndia -TimesJobs  - Shinejobs etc
Each claim to have databases of 20 to 40 million resumes of jobseekers
Main services offered by Job Portals are :
  • To Jobseekers (  FREE service ) :  Submit Resume / Search Jobs and Apply Online or thru a Mobile App
  • To Employer Companies : ( Subscription based ) : Post Job advts / Search and download Resumes ( limited numbers )

Occasionally , some Job Portals offer “ Resume Writing “ service to jobseekers ( for a fee )
At its core, this traditional Business Model is nothing more than :
Selling “ resumes of jobseekers to employers (by charging hefty subscriptions ) and enticing jobseekers to provide their PRIVATE / PERSONAL DATA ( with offer of a FREE service ) “
And, while “ Submitting Resumes “, jobseekers grant an “ omnibus consent “ to the job portal , by clicking on “ I agree with the Terms and Conditions “ ( without reading ). Far from an “ Informed Consent “
I think this Business Model is very likely to undergo a major change, in light of the just released Draft of Government Policy permitting Indian Citizen to “ Sell their PERSONAL DATA “ , as described in my following blog :
Released : Govt Policy for Selling Personal Data   ……………………………………….( 06 Sept 2020 )

I see following possibilities :

[ A ] …. Job Portals may start selling of “ Bulk “ resumes to Companies with no interest in “hiring “any
            candidate but to use the database for targeted advertising, in order to increase customer base ( Eg :
           Educational Institutions / Health-Care Companies / E Commerce Portals / Insurance Companies etc )
            In this scenario , Job Portal starts acting as a CONSENT MANAGER and would require to obtain from
            the Jobseekers concerned, their “ SPECIFIC – INFORMED “ consent

[ B ]…..  Some Start-Ups becoming CONSENT MANAGERS, and facilitating transfer of RESUME-DATABASES
             from one company ( Seller ) to another company ( Buyer )
            It is worth remembering that most organized sector companies ( and especially those who have, in
            the past, subscribed to Job Portals and, over the years downloaded THOUSANDS of resumes for which
            they have no use any more . These resumes are just lying on their servers . So why not unleash their
           intrinsic / latent value by selling ?
           The Start-Ups interested in implementing this, may want to look up :

                  Resumes Exchange   ………………………………………………….[ 09 Feb 2016 ]

                 Resumes Exchange : A Job Portal Earthquake ?.........[ 29 June 2017 ]

 

      [ C ]… Job Portals themselves ( or OFFLINE RECRUITMENT  AGENCIES ) , may want to get into this business of

                EXCHANGE of RESUMES between Buyers and Sellers ( as outlined above )

 

At this stage , readers may say :

 

Hey , What kind of PERSONAL DATA does a Resume contain which would interest many Buyers ?

Here is my guess for the Data Fields which you might find in a SUBMIT RESUME form of a job-portal :

 

1.        First Name  /  Middle Name  /  Last  Name 
2.        Address  /  Current  Location 
3.     Photo ( sometimes optional ) 
4.        Mobile  Number  /  Email  ID  /  Birth Date 
5.        Gender   
6.        Educational  Details ;  Degrees -  Diplomas  -  Colleges  -  Years- attended  -  Marks  obtained   
7.        Current  Employer -  Designation  -  Salary 
8.        Jobs  held  in past – names of Companies – Periods worked – Salaries drawn – Designations held
9.        Reasons for leaving /  Position applying for or interested in
10.     Preferred location  /  Salary expected   
11.     Current   Industry – Function 
12.     Job Role  /  Skills acquired   
13.     Languages spoken – written 
14.     Area of specialization
15.     Marital  Status   
16.     Names of  References for checking background
17.     Name of Spouse
18.     Number of Children ( with their ages ) etc

Has there been any Court Judgments in past on the legality ( or otherwise ) of Job Portals " Selling "  personal data of jobseekers to third parties ?

YES . ( source : A  Fool's Paradise ?  / 29 Aug 2017 ) , from which I quote :



"At the time of entering personal information or data, job-seekers are not aware that the said data can be sold to any third person or that it can be misused. Accordingly, the said ostensible consent of the said applicant/individual cannot be said to be a free, voluntary or informed consent..." he said.
 


"It is common knowledge that when a person applies for a job on the internet, s/he feeds personal information which includes name, address and mobile number. In my opinion, the said data being personal information cannot be transferred /shared / sold to some third person without the consent of the said person," the court said.

=====================================

How do you propose compensating the Jobseekers when Consent Manager " Sells "  his personal data ?

>  Upon receiving a " I want to buy ( shopping cart of shortlisted resumes ) " request , Consent Manager ( Job Portal ),to obtain SPECIFIC / INFORMED consent from each resume-owner who got shortlisted ( may be an email with a link to click, fully explaining the purpose )

>  Asking the BUYER to direct deposit  ( DBT ) , Rs 30 / - in the JanDhan Bank Account of each consenting Resume-Owner

>  Upon getting confirmation of the CREDIT from each JD Account , Job Portal to email resumes of the relevant-consenting jobseekers to the Buyer 


=======================================================================

The following DIAGRAM , very briefly explains these scenarios :

 

 
=======================================================================
What might happen to the BIG  DADDIES ( of Online Recruitment Industry ) , if some agile / passionate /  obsessed START-UP implements ?

                  Resumes Exchange   ………………………………………………….[ 09 Feb 2016 ]


Imagine if EVERY company’s Computer has 100 MILLION , identical resumes ( and getting SYNCHRONIZED automatically , every morning )
And that Start-Up enabling downloading of a Resume Search Engine to each of those companies, to enable local searching of resumes on OWN COMPUTERS , instead of searching on Job Portals
Now , you can guess what will happen !
=====================================================================
hcp@RecruitGuru.com  / 07 Sept 2020


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