Goodwill® believes in the power of work to change lives. We understand that having a meaningful job provides more than just a paycheck. When people work, it has a ripple effect, changing the lives of entire families and their communities as well as strengthening the economy.
Even though we are in one of the strongest labor markets in history – with 7.5 million open positions – there are millions of people looking for the right employment opportunity. The unemployment rate is at its lowest level in 50 years. People who have been on the sidelines and who have previously had trouble landing a job are joining manufacturing workers, women in their prime working years, Americans with disabilities and those with criminal records, among others but there are still many people who need improved job prospects after years of disappointment.
Goodwill is changing that by partnering with Indeed to help employers discover that their next great hire may not have a traditional background or career path, but that they have the skills, strengths and qualifications needed to make their business better. While everyone has talent and the ability to contribute, not everyone has equal access to opportunity.
Both organizations recognize that the right employment opportunity can change someone’s life. That is why Goodwill, the leading nonprofit provider of employment and Indeed, the world’s leading job search tool with more than millions of jobs in more than 60 countries and 28 languages, and more than 250 million monthly job seekers, will provide access to opportunity and promote inclusive hiring over the next five years. The initiative will prepare job seekers to demonstrate their competencies and capabilities to businesses – even if they don’t yet have a traditional credential, and will make a major impact on the trajectory of people’s lives while also strengthening the economy.
With Indeed data scientists, developers and engineers, and the Goodwill network’s workforce development experts, they will equip and connect talent to employers looking to grow their businesses. Indeed aggregates job listings from thousands of job boards, newspapers, trade associations and company career pages and tracks powerful analytics on what people are searching, what they are applying to, which applications are getting a positive response from employers, and which jobs people are getting hired to, which will be a value add to Goodwill organizations across North America. Goodwill will leverage Indeed’s products, data, insights, expertise, and networks to refine the wrap-around support services that it delivers for job seekers every day. Goodwill will help Indeed identify and connect with skilled job seekers in cities nationwide. In partnership, Goodwill and Indeed will equip people with the skills they need to be the talent businesses need.
There are three ways in which job seekers can benefit from Indeed tools and resources so that the two organizations can help each other in their missions: skills-based assessments hiring events and job seeker supports.
- More sophisticated self-assessments. Indeed and Goodwill are piloting ways in which Indeed’s online Assessments tool can give Goodwill’s job seekers “greater visibility into the opportunities for them today — and the opportunities they can have tomorrow — if they develop their skills. Indeed’s Assessments tool provides aptitude, skills and personality tests, which will help job seekers determine the jobs for which they’re most qualified.
- Employer hiring events. Combining Goodwill’s employer-hosted hiring events with Indeed’s event management tools will help people who’ve often had challenges gaining access to good employers — in front of relevant hiring professionals.
“These events will give us an opportunity to show employers what our job seekers can do and that their life challenges often have no effect on their ability to fulfill a job,” says Steve Preston, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries International. “What excites me about the hiring events is that Indeed’s technology and existing relationships with job seekers helps Goodwill recruit new participants for upskilling and workforce and services. When Goodwill can leverage Indeed’s hiring tool they have a chance to get new individuals into Goodwill’s doors who were not aware of how we can assist them.”
- Job seeker support. Goodwill job seekers will receive training and support in using Indeed tools to showcase their competencies and capabilities and search for jobs more effectively online.
Goodwill organizations collaborate with tens of thousands of small, medium and large companies across North America to understand their talent needs – immediate and emerging – to co-create upskilling and reskilling opportunities. Employers will be able to find a pool of candidates based on skills, and job seekers will learn how to best demonstrate their background, whether it’s a functional or chronological resume, or skills based testing. Indeed and Goodwill will use labor market analyses to understand where the jobs are, what they require and where the trends are heading so we can better equip talent to deliver for businesses and provide for themselves and their families.
