Jobs

Perhaps the most powerful illustration of the state of employment in these markets is the prevalence of “CV boxes.” A CV box is exactly what it sounds like — a physical box with a slot posted on the street outside a business, where job-seekers insert their résumés. One of the biggest complaints we heard in our research was that people would apply for a job and then never hear back.

In the face of these employment challenges, we saw the opportunity for a tech-driven solution, and that was how Kormo Jobs was born. Simplicity and efficiency were key to the app, which we made available in Indonesia, India, and Bangladesh. Job-seekers can filter jobs by profession (e.g., IT support or delivery rider), which helps them find jobs easily and quickly. Employers can post a job in just minutes and quickly see a shortlist of applicants who meet all mandatory criteria, which helps them select candidates to interview more efficiently.

To reach more job-seekers, we actively partner with governments, youth agencies, and private organizations. In September of 2021, for instance, we supported a virtual job event in Indonesia that was held by Plan International (a development and humanitarian organization) and the Indonesian government to help youths find jobs and build their career skills, which featured talks on how hiring processes have moved online and a demonstration of the Kormo Jobs app.

Amar was in his 20s, providing for his mother and younger sister who live in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh. Amar took up the responsibility of taking care of his family from a young age, and as a result, he could not pursue his graduate studies. But he understood the important role of education and decided to move to Saudi Arabia in 2019 to work toward funding his sister’s General Nursing & Midwifery course. Unfortunately, when his employment contract expired, he had to return to India where he found his financial situation tenuous —  he had no savings to fall back on while he desperately searched for a new job in a highly uncertain job market.

Amar discovered an ad for Kormo Jobs on the internet and started applying for various job roles. Just 36 hours later, he’d secured a job as a driver. For Amar, the entire process was paperless, simple, and efficient.

With the new job, Amar was able to help his sister finish school and is no longer the sole earning member of his family. He is proud of his sister who is currently in training at a local hospital. Life was very uncertain for him before he came to India and he is grateful for the ease with which he landed a job through Kormo Jobs. He is excited to now save and plan for his future as he aspires to pursue his graduation and land a desk job and gain some stability in his career.