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Bangalore firm launches toll-free service for IT sector jobs

Priya Ganapati in Mumbai

If your tired of sifting through numerous Web sites and appointment ads for a job in the information technology industry, just pick up the phone and dial 1600-444-929, the toll-free telephone line launched by TVA Infotech, a Bangalore-based recruiting company specializing in IT recruitment.

In a first of its kind service, TVA Infotech has launched a telephone line dedicated to job seekers from anywhere in India from 9 AM to 9 PM IST on weekdays at no extra cost.

A call on the toll-free line not only updates prospective job seekers on IT job openings throughout the country, but also tells them what is hot and what is not in the current market. And the toll-free number ensures it is all for free.

"We decided that if we give candidates a way to reach us, they can have all the doubts clarified at one shot and so the toll-free number as it doesn't cost the candidate anything to call on it," explains Gautam Sinha, chief executive officer, TVA Infotech, which counts Oracle, Microsoft, Wipro, Talisma and Siemens among its clients.

Unlike sifting through job portals or classified ads, callers on the toll-free number, christened 'Careerline', need not always be hunting for a new job. Candidates can call in just to prospect the market and keep an eye out for lucrative openings.

"Recruitment is a personalized concept and Web sites and ads can only provide generic information. Talking to a candidate enables us to address specific queries that they have which a Web site can never do," explains Sinha.

For instance, earlier TVA Infotech used to include the URL of a prospective employer in its correspondence with a hopeful job seeker. However inevitably the candidate would get back asking for specific details about his role in the company.

"If the candidate was in Bangalore, he would call us. If he was elsewhere, he would mail us. So we would end up explaining the content and the career path to the person. We then realised the need to have a dedicated telephone line where candidates could call in with their queries," says Sinha.

When a candidate calls up on the toll-free number, one of TVA's headhunters takes down the location of the caller, skill set, domain expertise and educational background.

This is recorded in a database, based on which the headhunter talks about career prospects in a particular company or group of companies.

Once the job seeker is convinced about the opportunities, the headhunter gives him an e-mail address where he can send his resume for further processing.

What really strikes a chord with prospective job seekers holding the other end of the telephone is that the people who handle their queries are experienced headhunters who understand technology and can therefore assess correctly where a potential candidate would fit in a company.

The 'Careerline' is manned by TVA Infotech's in-house recruiters.

Not surprisingly, nearly 80 per cent of those who call on the number end up actively looking for a new job. The rest dial in to gather information on the current job scenario and a few are those who stray in from other sectors.

Since it was launched three months ago, 'Careeline' averages 80 calls a day, but it is yet to have any candidates successfully placed. However, it is yet too quick to assess the service's efficiency, protests Sinha.

"The recruitment cycle is normally 75-90 days from resume to offer. Considering that it is just 90 days since we launched this service it is not a surprise no one who has called in this number has joined. However, we have guys who are in the process of getting offered jobs," he says.

Where 'Careeline' trips up is that it is restricted by the jobs in the database of TVA Infotech. But Sinha says that the service goes beyond just recruiting and is more of an information exchange about the job market.

"Through Careerline, experienced IT recruiters provide information like what are the hot skills in the market, what is the general market outlook, what are the kind of skills that a person needs to add to his/her existing skill set so that the person becomes a hot commodity. So what we deliver is job-related information which goes beyond just specific openings. The line gives you one source which takes care of all your career information needs in the IT arena," explains Sinha.

The concept of a toll-free number for job seekers has caught the fancy of IT companies too. Software giant Oracle has set up its own Careerline, dedicated to those who seek openings in Oracle India.

It was easy enough to convince Oracle. Last December, the TVA Infotech team, which has been handling recruitment for Oracle, mooted the idea of setting up a toll-free line for the company.

The Oracle Careerline (1600-444-928) would have prospective candidates interact with Oracle as a recruiting brand and thus pose as a permanent recruitment ad for Oracle.

"Oracle will be able to attract passive job seekers who will never apply to ads directly. They will call on this number to obtain information about Oracle and then we will sell the brand to them and will be able to convert some of them to apply to Oracle. So the quality of hires over the long term will increase," suggests Sinha.

More importantly, the number would reduce Oracle's recruitment costs and attract a continuous supply of fresh talent, an idea that seems irresistible to the software major.

"Exclusivity helps. We get away from the clutter, provide the proper focus, precise information desired. The exclusive line helps in building confidence with the candidate," says Srihari Udupa, Director-HR, Oracle India Private Limited.

"All other forms are typically one-sided with limitations in terms of sharing the kind of information the candidate would want. This line being dedicated and interactive obviously helps in being more personal, giving the prospective candidates a clear appreciation of the company needs. The candidate could seek specific information that he desires about the company, job, expectations and prospects before he sends his resume. Clarity on mutual expectations results in our attracting right quality applicants. The strike rate or success of hiring through this medium would be definitely better," Udupa adds.

TVA is working with other IT companies to establish similar toll free-lines for them. It gives them the much-needed edge over other headhunters.

"We don't charge for setting up the number. Our business model remains the same that is we will charge on the basis of per candidate that we place," says Sinha.

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