From humble beginnings to outplacement offerings

Posted at September 15, 2009

Over three years ago I found myself in a tough transition. I wasn’t humble at first but a poorly conducted job search got me humble really quick.

Within a few weeks I realized there was something significant missing from a job seeker’s toolkit. I had been using a homemade spreadsheet to organize my job search, but that really was not good enough. I knew there were more appropriate solutions, but nothing was offered to job seekers.

Long story short, I formulated a website that would replace the job search spreadsheet, and finally realized there was a business opportunity for me. The decision to move forward with my own business was encouraged by my failing job search. I went where the attention and action was, instead of continuing my job search.

Growth has been slow and fast. Slow because I thought it would be a lot faster, fast because I look at other sites like JibberJobber and realize I’ve been fortunate to get the number of signups and traffic that I’ve gotten.

Fast forward 3+ years and here we are, launching a new service to employers.

I have been studying the outplacement space since the beginning and have always been intrigued by it. I knew my past company would not have thought of paying for outplacement – they were figuring out how to get rid of hefty salaries… why would they want to take on tens of thousands of dollars in additional expense (I was let go with about 15 others)?

I learned that every outplacement company I’ve come across has offerings that start at around $1,500 to $2,000 per person … and they go up from there.

And I realized an opportunity – what if we could provide value-add services and information at a price where no outplacement firm wants to go?

What if we could provide services that were helpful to displaced employees for less than $1,000?

I’m sure some outplacement firms will consider us “competition,” but I think it’s fair to say we are offering services at a price point they are not interested in.

It will be an interesting ride… stay tuned to this blog to keep up with our journey!