Meet the tech team that’s innovating the job marketplace

With the layoffs that have been occurring due to the current economic landscape, job search platforms have an important role to play in helping people get back on their feet.

However, being a simple job board doesn’t cut it nowadays. Both job seekers and employers need support in finding the right fit, and this is what Seek, the firm behind job platforms JobStreet and JobsDB, is aiming to do.

The firm is “investing in AI and technology to create innovative products that connect talent with job opportunities and help organizations find employees in the most efficient way possible,” ​​says Shen Tham, Seek’s chief technology officer for Asia.

Investing in technology also means investing in the people that help the firm develop and execute on its ambitions – people like engineering manager Gladys Lim and product manager Daniel Joshuia.

Helping employers find the right talent

“I’m a huge believer in creating impact in people’s lives and what Seek Asia believes in is improving lives through better careers,” says Lim, “So I figured, why not do something that I’m passionate about and believe in, day to day?”

This pull toward purpose-driven work fuelled Lim’s career journey, which first began in 2014 in the city of Kuching, Malaysia.

Back then, Kuching’s tech industry was still starting out. Lim realized that in order to grow as a software engineer, she’d have to venture into larger cities where opportunities in tech were booming.

After going to Kuala Lumpur, she found her first role with JobStreet. Starting out as a software engineer in its upskilling arm, she eventually became the local team’s technical lead.

In her current role as engineering manager, Lim focuses her time on empowering her team to work collaboratively to solve employer acquisition challenges and enhance employers’ user experience on the platform.

Creating a one-stop partner for career needs

Unlike Lim, pursuing a role in tech was not part of the plan for Joshuia. He was originally a commercial pilot by training – a childhood dream job.

“At the beginning, it was fun. But after a while, things got a bit mundane. I went from point A to point B, going through the same procedures every time,” shares Joshuia.

In a move to break the monotony and spurred on by the “personal pain point” that he encountered in trying to find work opportunities, he started a job platform startup with a friend in 2014. It specialized in entry-level to mid-level jobs – ironically putting him in direct competition with his future employer.

At his startup, he became a product manager “without knowing it” as he dove into operations, worked with developers, and built a team of around 40 people. He eventually moved to another company to become a product lead before making the leap to Seek in 2022.

What gave him the impetus to make the move was Seek’s unique work environment – in his view, it’s as agile as a startup but with the resources of a large corporation. He experienced this when he was working on SeekMax, an offering within the main JobStreet app that aims to be a one-stop partner for all candidates’ career needs. This includes adding new capabilities such as learning materials and a community function, all to keep users with JobStreet for more than just the duration it takes for them to land a new role.

Seek’s people were also a big selling point for Joshuia. Throughout his interviews, he enjoyed his conversations with his future colleagues and potential manager, who he knew he could look to as a mentor.

“Our people are always at the front and center of our organization and operations,” says Tham. “We have such a diverse and international team, yet we still have a strong connection and collaboration with each other.”

Building a people-first company

To create this people-first culture, Seek offers more than just competitive wages. For instance, it implements a hybrid working model and has also introduced a “work from anywhere” perk that allows employees to work remotely from a different location for up to four weeks a year. Diverse career paths are also available, giving tech employees the choice to become a generalist or a specialist.

“We have a meaningful purpose of helping people live more productive and fulfilling work lives and helping organizations succeed,” says Tham. “Our tech team is at the heart of building, adapting, and supporting our platforms so we can deliver on this purpose every day.”

On the learning and development front, Seek holds career days twice a year, which let employees focus on and take part in career development activities. The firm also organizes both panel discussions and private career mentoring sessions where senior leaders share their own journeys and experiences.

“It’s great that you can schedule calls with leaders at Seek, pick their brains, and have a conversation about where the company’s going or which areas you should focus on as an individual,” says Joshuia.

Seek has also partnered with Go1, a professional learning and development platform, to give employees the opportunity to upskill and reskill at any time. They can also take paid study and examination leaves should they want to undertake further education.

Seek’s tech team also organizes weekly knowledge-sharing sessions, allowing members to learn the latest technical skills and knowledge from one another and also foster stronger relationships within the team.

“As the leading career and talent partner for candidates and employers in the region, we have a deep understanding of what today’s talent want and that’s why it’s even more important that we walk the talk,” explains Tham. “We put people first because at the end of the day, the only metric that matters is our people.”

The next step

Both Joshuia and Lim are looking forward to bringing more benefits to employers and job seekers with their efforts.

“I’m excited about the opportunity to add different types of content to the SeekMax platform, such as podcasts. On top of that, we will also be potentially looking at launching in more countries this year,” says Joshuia.

Lim, on the other hand, is looking to tackle new challenges with the talent search team, which helps employers to proactively match and connect with talent via smart search capabilities.

We put people first because at the end of the day, the only metric that matters is our people.

Both Joshuia and Lim also intend to hone their management skills, and Seek has the environment and resources to help them do so.

“At Seek, you have an ecosystem of 70 to 80 product managers that you can actually speak to and have access to. It’s a community where you learn together,” explains Joshuia, “You can also lean on the senior colleagues and get to see how they think on a more strategic level.”

With the efforts of Joshuia, Lim, and the rest of the tech team at Seek, the company hopes to reach its goal of helping 500 million people in Asia develop their careers with 5 million companies by 2025.

“Our tech team will continue to work on the core proposition of our marketplace and ensure our platforms remain reliable, personalized, and effortless for our customers,” says Tham.

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Seek Asia is a leading global tech company that is solving real problems for our customers and connecting the right work with the right people.

Find out more about joining the tech team and working at Seek Asia on its website.

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This content was produced by Tech in Asia Studios, which connects brands with Asia’s tech community. Learn more about partnering with Tech in Asia Studios.