Workpop, a job site with a career development focus, has launched after securing $7.9 million in funding.
After first raising $900,000 in seed funding earlier this year, the Venice company closed a $7 million Series A round in August, led by Trinity Ventures Partner Dan Scholnick.
Co-founders and co-Chief Executives Reed Shaffner and Chris Ovitz said that while working at their previous companies – which include Scopely, Microsoft and Zynga – they saw it was easy to recruit people for tech jobs, but other industries were left underserved.
“LinkedIn is great if you’re an investment broker or developer, but not necessarily for a line cook,” Shaffner said.
The site is geared toward job seekers and focuses on improving their applications to match them with the right company, which Shaffner and Ovitz said distinguishes Workpop from other job sites. Applicants can shoot video introductions to supplement their resumes, both of which can be open to private feedback from employers and other applicants. Workpop also gives applicants access to its analytics so they can find out how long employers watched their video cover letter for or how far down the resume they scrolled.
Employers post typical information, such as salary and skill requirements, on job listings. But the site’s minimalist platform also asks them to share glimpses into their company’s culture, including whether there are job perks such as free meals or paid parking. Workpop also keeps employers accountable by showing their response rate and time to applicants.
The site also provides a pre-drafted, legally binding job offer letter that businesses can send to potential employees. When a job is filled, all applicants are notified.
Employers don’t have to pay to post, and applicants don’t have to pay to apply.
“We want to put every single person in the job they like,” Shaffner said. “If we start charging people to post jobs, we think that’s getting in the way of the mission.”
So how does Workpop expect to make money?
The company eventually plans to upsell training modules to employers so they can learn ways to maximize the site’s data to find the best employees.
“Every thousand jobs we post on the site is roughly about $25 million in salary for people,” Shaffner said. “So I think there’s a lot more we can do to help businesses optimize that salary as they make the individual hire.”
Workpop’s team of 10 will initially cater to the Greater Los Angeles market, including Ventura and Orange counties. Ovitz said the startup is first focusing on building a strong presence in Los Angeles before expanding. So far, hundreds of Southern California employers have signed up though the company declined to share exact numbers. A mobile app for Android and iOS is on its way.
Staff reporter Melissah Yang can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @MelissahYang for the latest in L.A. tech news.
