Ever send a resume to an employer and feel like it was lost in a black hole? According to a Personified survey of 250,000 job seekers, nearly 60 percent of job applicants reported they never received a response from employers they recently applied to for a job. CareerBuilder launched a free tool this week called hireINSIDER that helps to remove some of the guesswork from the application process by enabling job seekers to see how they stack up against other applicants for a job. By getting an inside peek into the qualifications of other candidates, job seekers are able to better assess if they are a viable candidate for the job and the likelihood of an employer contacting them.

hireINSIDER aggregates user-generated information from all applicants for a particular job listing, protecting the privacy of each applicant. The innovative technology produces a real-time Job Competition Report, summarizing:

  --  Current number of applicants for the job in ranges
  --  Level of education
  --  Years of experience
  --  Average current salaries
  --  Top college majors of applicants
  --  Top languages spoken
  --  Employment status
  --  How many applicants submitted a cover letter

Job seekers can also sign up to receive a free Hiring Status Report. In exchange for sharing where they are in the hiring process, they receive an update on what the aggregate applicant pool reported - how many were contacted by the employer, interviewed, hired or were not contacted.

Those who want to drill down into a more in-depth analysis have the option to purchase a more detailed report that covers management experience, number of direct reports, popular companies worked for, recent industries worked in, popular colleges attended and more.

"hireINSIDER is a powerful tool that not only helps you to understand why you're not hearing back from an employer, it provides direction for your job search and desired career path," said Brent Rasmussen, President of CareerBuilder North America. "hireINSIDER also benefits employers who may not have the time or resources to respond to an increasing amount of applications in a tough economy. By providing the feedback that job seekers need, it helps to alleviate the negative impact that a lack of response can have on a company's employment brand."

Employers can also utilize hireINSIDER's technology to gain a better understanding of the demographics of their applicant pool. Based on the findings, employers can adjust messaging and targeting strategies accordingly.

About CareerBuilder®

CareerBuilder is the global leader in human capital solutions, helping companies target and attract their most important asset - their people. Its online career site, CareerBuilder.com®, is the largest in the United States with more than 23 million unique visitors, 1 million jobs and 32 million resumes. CareerBuilder works with the world's top employers, providing resources for everything from employment branding and data analysis to recruitment support. More than 9,000 websites, including 140 newspapers and broadband portals such as MSN and AOL, feature CareerBuilder's proprietary job search technology on their career sites. Owned by Gannett Co., Inc. , Tribune Company, The McClatchy Company and Microsoft Corp. , CareerBuilder and its subsidiaries operate in the United States, Europe, Canada and Asia. For more information, visit www.careerbuilder.com.

  Media Contact:
  CareerBuilder
  Jennifer Grasz
  773-527-1164
  jennifer.grasz@careerbuilder.com
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SOURCE: CareerBuilder