peviitor.ro is an open-source project consisting of a web platform that offers users the possibility to search for the desired job ensuring independence from their choice of platform.

This project was completed as part of a volunteering activity within "Asociatia Oportunitati si Cariere". This NGO offers the chance for entry-level UX Designers, Frontend Developers, QA Testers, and other IT functions to collaborate and simulate a working environment.

ROLE

UI/ UX Designer

TEAM

Patricia Istrate

CLIENT

Oportunitati si Cariere Association

DURATION

January - May 2024

(5 mo.)

Problem & solution space

Challenge

Problem Space: Enhancing Job Search Accessibility & Application Visibility

Limited Job Market Visibility:

Issue: Many job platforms operate on a subscription basis, allowing only paying companies to post jobs. This results in an incomplete and non-transparent view of the job market for users.

Impact: Users miss potential opportunities, and the overall transparency of the job market is compromised.

Dependency, Overwhelm, and Scattered Information:

Issue: Users are tied to specific platforms, and checking multiple platforms becomes overwhelming. Job opportunities are scattered across various sources.

Impact: Dependency on a single platform limits exposure to opportunities, and the scattered nature of information leads to inefficiencies in the job search process.

Incomplete and Inaccurate Information:

Issue: Some platforms lack comprehensive information about job opportunities and company details, often relying on manual updates that can introduce inaccuracies.

Impact: Users face challenges in making informed decisions, encountering outdated or incomplete information that may result in mismatches.

Application Visibility and Integration

Issue: Resumes submitted through third-party platforms may not receive the same visibility as those directly submitted on the company's career page, potentially diminishing the chances of being noticed by hiring teams.

Impact: Manual manipulation of CVs introduces inefficiencies in the application process, potentially leading to delays and oversights in candidate evaluation.

By addressing these challenges through thoughtful UI/UX design, the goal is to create a job search platform that empowers users with a transparent, efficient, and comprehensive experience in navigating the Romanian job market.

Solution

Comprehensive Market Coverage:

The platform ensures inclusivity by featuring job listings from all companies in Romania, providing users with a comprehensive and unbiased view of the job market.

User Independence and Streamlined Search:

Users have the freedom to explore job opportunities independently, unrestricted by subscription barriers or platform limitations. Our interface facilitates a seamless and streamlined search experience.

No Subscription Requirement:

The platform does not mandate a subscription for companies to post job listings. This ensures that job opportunities are available to all, promoting transparency and eliminating barriers for companies and users alike.

Automated Job Postings:

Job postings are automatically sourced from the company's official careers page, ensuring real-time updates and eliminating the need for manual management. This guarantees that all job listings are current and not expired.

Direct Application Through Company Portal:

Users are redirected directly to the company's careers page when clicking on job details, streamlining the application process. This approach avoids third-party applications that may require manual CV manipulation, ensuring a smoother and more transparent application experience.

Reduced Dependency on Manual Inputs:

The platform minimizes reliance on manual inputs, enhancing efficiency in the job search process. Automated updates ensure that job and company information remains accurate and up-to-date in real-time.

By implementing these solutions, our web platform aims to shift the job search experience in Romania, offering users transparency, efficiency, and equal access to job opportunities. The focus on automation, real-time updates, and a seamless application process positions the platform as a catalyst for positive change in the job market landscape.

Design Process Overview

I used the user-centered design process to identify pain points and develop a web platform to address them. I interviewed potential users and created prototypes to get feedback from the Project Owner and technical team. In the end, I iterated on the designs and created a platform that offers candidates job market transparency and equal access to job opportunities.

RESEARCH & DEFINE

Problem statement
Research questions
User interviews
Persona
Competitive audit
MVP

IDEATE

User flow
Information architecture
Paper wireframes

DESIGN & TEST

Digital wireframes
High-fidelity prototype
Usability testing
Integrating feedback in the final design

RESEARCH & DEFINE

Anticipating a diverse user base that falls within a wide age range, educational backgrounds, and professional experiences. , our hypothesis aimed at developing a platform for both web and mobile, suitable for users who are extremely familiar with technology and prefer to apply on the go, and also for non-tech users who might feel more comfortable applying from the comfort of their home, using a desktop.

To refine our understanding, I conducted extensive user research and face-to-face interviews. The goal was to assess users' expectations, their familiarity with job search technologies and platforms, and understand their behaviors and decision-making processes.

Armed with these insights, we designed a user-centric platform, available for both web and mobile, ensuring flexibility for users to apply on the go or from the comfort of their homes. This holistic solution eliminates barriers to job market visibility, enhances the user experience, and ensures real-time accuracy, reducing manual dependencies.

Research questions

Who are our users?
What job-searching platforms are they using and why?
How are users currently using other job-searching platforms?
What could be their goals for using a job-searching platform?
What are their needs, pain points/ frustrations, or challenges when using a job-searching platform?
What are the common search patterns and behaviors of users when looking for a new job?
What are the most important criteria they consider when narrowing down the search for a job?
What factors do users consider when applying for a job?

User persona

Based on our research findings, we identified three user personas, based on career level and technology familiarity.

Pain points

The scattered information across various platforms presents a risk of oversight, making it challenging to identify and pursue suitable job opportunities.

Incomplete and non-transparent view of the job market may limit exposure to opportunities, and to making an informed application decision.

Applying for positions that are no longer available due to job listings that are not regularly updated.

Challenges in making informed decisions due to incomplete or outdated job and company information.

Competitive audit & market research

I conducted a market analysis of the main job-searching platforms in Romania.

eJobs

Pros:

No login required to start the search
The possibility of having a profile and search alerts
A good amount of filters to refine the search (by city, department, work type, education/studies, field/ industry, distance, date)
Possibility to save job ads for later (after signing in)
Has a Career section that helps the user make a CV and prepare for interviews
The user can get a comparison of their pay grade versus other similar professionals in the market that also shared this information
Possibility of sharing job descriptions with someone else

Cons:

In order to apply, the user must have an account on the platform
A company needs to pay to have its profile on the platform
For most jobs the application happens on the platform and a custom CV should be done. This can be hard to keep updated if every platform requires one
The companies are allowed to have very few free job ads or none, therefore the majority of jobs are paid by companies to appear on the platform
The company needs to have a separate profile on the platform from the official one, which is maintained manually by a representative
The job description appears on the platform and it may be outdated, as it has to be manually taken out if the role was closed and the listing didn't expire
The user has to search for the official link of the company separately if they want to visit it (if the company did not provide it on their page on the platform)

BestJobs

Pros:

An extensive amount of filters to refine the search (by field, experience level, spoken languages, company benefits, work type)
The possibility of having a profile and search alerts
The user can get a comparison of their pay grade versus other similar professionals in the market that also shared this information
Possibility of sharing job descriptions with someone else
A list of the company's benefits (on their profile on the platform)

Cons:

In order to apply, the user must have an account on the platform
A company needs to pay to have its profile on the platform
For most jobs the application happens on the platform and a custom CV should be done. This can be hard to keep updated if every platform requires one
The companies are allowed to have very few free job ads or none, therefore the majority of jobs are paid by companies to appear on the platform
The company needs to have a separate profile on the platform from the official one, which is maintained manually by a representative
The job description appears on the platform and it may be outdated, as it has to be manually taken out if the role was closed and the listing didn't expire
The user has to search for the official link of the company separately if they want to visit it (if the company did not provide it on their page on the platform)

Indeed

Pros:

A good amount of filters to refine the search (posting date, work type, city, company, spoken language)
Possibility to add reviews for a company from actual or former employees
A list of the company's benefits (on their profile on the platform)
In some cases, there is the option to apply directly on the company's official website
In some cases, the job listings are automatically taken from the company's official website and they cannot be outdated
Although it is a global platform, a company might have multiple profiles, depending on the country
When applying, the user can upload a CV that is platform-independent, apart from creating one in the platform

Cons:

In order to apply, the user must have an account on the platform
A company needs to pay to have its profile on the platform
The companies are allowed to have very few free job ads or none, therefore the majority of jobs are paid by companies to appear on the platform
The company needs to have a separate profile on the platform from the official one, which is maintained manually by a representative
A user cannot use the platform for too long without having an account or writing a certain number of reviews
The user has to search for the official link of the company separately if they want to visit it (if the company did not provide it on their page on the platform)

Pros:

Complex professional platform that focuses not only on job posts but also on networking
In some cases, there is the option to apply directly on the company's official website
The CV made on the platform is widely used and very popular
There are extensive search filters (by posting date, experience level, company, work type, easy application, location, field, title, number of candidates)
There is a functionality for recruiters to search for certain profiles, using extensive filters, and this increases the chances of a candidate being viewed or contacted
After signing in, the user can receive job alerts
In some cases, the job listings are automatically taken from the company's official website and they cannot be outdated
Announcements can be made and users can post about diverse topics for their community, with the possibility of reposting, reacting, or commenting on it
There is an option to message 1st and 2nd-level contacts
Professional design feel
User-friendly navigation

Cons:

Very expensive platform that might not be affordable for some companies
Users need to pay to use some of the features
The CV should be up to date all the time as the competition is very high for most roles

OLX

Pros:

Offers a large spectrum of services
Has many search filters (contract type, job type, experience level, working schedule, work permit)

Cons:

It's a platform designed for general services, especially for buying and selling items from people's home
Might have job ads that are a scam or fake
Unprofessional feel of design
Not suitable for some industries
Has a lot of ads unrelated to the search that make the page very busy

IDEATE

I defined the user flow of the platform, focusing on the path where the user searches for the desired job, applies filters and then views it on the company's official page.

User Flow

Information Architecture

I also organized and structured the information based on the research insights and market research observations.

Wireframes

Paper Wireframes

I created paper wireframes first to explore different design ideas and to get feedback from the team early in the design process.

Presented below are the paper wireframes that have been selected for further refinement.

Homepage v1

Homepage v2

Search results page v1

Search results page v2

DESIGN & TEST

Digital Wireframes

Usability Testing on High Fidelity Prototype

The prototype underwent testing with four potential users, who were tasked with accomplishing the following primary objectives:

Task 1: Users were instructed to search for a specific job and location and examine the page.

Task 2: Users were asked to select the Filtering option on the homepage, and provide feedback on the ease of finding and using this feature.

Task 3: Users were asked to apply multiple filters for the desired job and share their thoughts on this process.

Task 4: Users were asked to search for the desired job and review the results page.

Task 5: Users were instructed to apply additional filters on the search results page and to remove some as well.

Task 6: Users were asked to view the job cards and click the details button to see if they expected it to lead to the company's official page.

Homepage

First iteration

This is the initial landing page design for the website. Users could search for jobs by location, and a basic filtering system was implemented based on team feedback.

Clicking the filter button reveals a dedicated menu for adding filters

Second iteration

After some refinements with the team, the filter button was moved before the search button, creating a more logical sequence of steps. The next step was to test this page and its functionality with potential users.

Third iteration (final version)

After conducting user testing, the option to add filters on this page was removed. The main reasons for which this change was made is that the users expect immediate feedback when they apply filters as seeing changes in real-time helps them refine their search more effectively. When filters are applied and results are displayed on the same page, users retain their context and can easily make adjustments. Switching pages can disrupt this flow, causing users to lose track of their search parameters.

Ultimately, I aimed for a clean design with minimal input, focusing on the primary task the user needs to accomplish on this page.

Search results page

First iteration

From this point, users have access to a range of functionalities, including the ability to search for specific jobs, to refine their search by applying filters or selecting tags, and share jobs.

Second iteration

Following user testing, the tags were removed because their purpose was not immediately clear to users and they cluttered the interface. Additionally, it quickly became evident that the team did not have the capability at that time to extract these tags from the job descriptions or other sources.

Third iteration (final version)

The final iteration brought us the possibility of having square cards that were considered more suitable by the team and easier to scan by the users.

The Final Prototype

Homepage

Search Results Page

No Results Page

Conclusions & lessons learned

Working alongside a team that represented the client presented unique challenges, primarily due to the abundant flow of ideas and frequent change requests. This dynamic environment required me to adapt quickly and maintain a high level of flexibility. One of the key lessons I learned was the importance of conducting thorough additional research to support design decisions. This not only helped in creating efficient solutions but also positioned me as an advisor to the team, guiding them through complex design choices with informed insights.

Another significant lesson was the importance of managing and integrating large volumes of feedback effectively. At first, the amount of feedback seemed overwhelming, but it eventually became essential to my development. I refined my strategies for receiving and incorporating feedback, which improved my openness and adaptability. This experience highlighted the necessity of clear communication and the ability to provide constructive advice to the team.

Additionally, collaborating closely with the frontend team and working within functionality limitations was a unique experience. This project stands out because it wasn't just an internal exercise but was developed to be used by real users. The practical application of our work and the direct impact it had on users made this collaboration particularly special. It highlighted the importance of teamwork and real-world constraints in creating a functional, user-friendly product.

Overall, these challenges strengthened my skills in collaboration, flexibility, and advisory, ultimately helping me grow as a UI/UX designer.

You can find the platform at https://peviitor.ro/.

While it is fully functional, please note that it is still under development.

Thank you!

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peviitor.ro is an open-source project consisting of a web platform that offers users the possibility to search for the desired job ensuring independence from their choice of platform.

ROLE

TEAM

CLIENT

DURATION

Problem & solution space

Challenge

Solution

Design Process Overview

RESEARCH & DEFINE

Research questions

User persona

Pain points

Competitive audit & market research

eJobs

BestJobs

Indeed

LinkedIn

OLX

IDEATE

User Flow

Information Architecture

Wireframes

Paper Wireframes

I created paper wireframes first to explore different design ideas and to get feedback from the team early in the design process.

DESIGN & TEST

Digital Wireframes

Usability Testing on High Fidelity Prototype

Homepage

First iteration

Second iteration

Third iteration (final version)

Search results page

First iteration

Second iteration

Third iteration (final version)

The Final Prototype

Homepage

Search Results Page

No Results Page

Conclusions & lessons learned

Thank you!