Web 2.0 Portal to Link CRM Job Seekers

A CRM consultancy will be launching what it describes as the first CRM Web 2.0 portal for executive recruitment and career development in this industry.

Located at myCRMcareer.com, the Web site will be managed by Bruce Culbert, Ted Hartley, and Paul Greenberg, principals at BPT Partners.

Besides employment opportunities, it will offer career management and placement services, general industry resources, exclusive content — Greenberg is the author of “CRM At the Speed of Light” — and Web 2.0 tools for users.

“There is a demand in the industry for a Web site that offers both content and these Web 2.0 tools,” Hartley told CRM Buyer.

MySpace.com for CRM

The site’s goal is to increase industry competency for the CRM professional, Hartley said. The integrated platform will allow CRM professionals to network with peers, much as people do on Facebook or MySpace.com, to develop their own content through such tools on the site as podcasts, audio files, blogs and videos, and to showcase their own skills and accomplishments.

Users will also be able to search other CRM professionals’ profiles, he added.

The Web site will go live on Monday in conjunction with Gartner’s 2007 Customer Relationship Management Summit, which is being held in Hollywood, Fla., next week.

Another Monster?

Much of the site’s ultimate success will depend on its content and the participation of the industry’s top leaders and vendors, said Rebecca Wettemann, vice president of Nucleus Research. If it will be just a portal for job opportunities, she told CRM Buyer, it is unlikely to attract the necessary visitors, or job postings for that matter.

“The CRM industry, given all the mergers and acquisitions that have happened over the years, is a fairly tight community, so a Web site like a Linkedin is usually sufficient to make new contacts,” she said.

For jobs below the C-level or VP-level, she added, “I can just search for CRM on Monster.com.”

CRM-specific resources that can help people develop their careers, on the other hand, will be a welcome addition to the industry, Wettemann said.

“It is very important to note that what we will be launching on Monday is just the beginning of how we expect the site to evolve,” Hartley said. “We will continue to roll out updates and additional releases frequently.”