BackBabajob raises $10 million from Australia-based Seek
The current round of funding follows a 2012 round led by GrayGhost Ventures and Khosla Impact
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Mumbai: Babajob Services Pvt. Ltd, an employment portal primarily focusing on informal jobs, on Tuesday said it has raised $10 million from Australia-based Seek Ltd, a global online employment marketplace.
This is the second round of funding for Babajob. It had raised a first round of funding, led by GrayGhost Ventures and Khosla Impact, in 2012.
Founded by Sean Blagsvedt in 2007, Babajob is looking to use the funds to hire more people, develop mobile apps, improve its telephony services and for brand building.
Babajob started off as a website connecting maids, drivers and cooks, among other workers in the informal sector, to potential employers. Later, it added more job categories in the formal sector.
“We are using technology to connect job seekers to better jobs, especially those in emerging markets. We screen and verify candidates across all states of the country through automated systems before connecting them to the employers," Blagsvedt said over the phone.
The company has listed more than 150,000 employers and 3 million job seekers. It provides services like missed calls for jobs, by which anyone in India can register their job profile in 5 local languages on the mobile app and website by making a free call.
For employers, it provides solutions like RapidHire, where screened candidates can make calls to employers within minutes, drastically reducing the inefficiencies of hiring in the informal sector. The company doesn’t charge any fee for listing of employers and job seekers. However, it charges employers for its RapidHire service where the employer pays ₹ 1,999 for 10 calls that it receives from job seekers.
Start-ups in the hiring space that have raised funds from private equity and venture capital funds include Zobtree Ventures Pvt. Ltd (Talentpad.com), GrownOut Solutions Pvt. Ltd (Grownout.com), Creative Living Solutions Pvt. Ltd (Myreferes.com) and Interview Master Technology Solutions Pvt. Ltd (Talview.com)
In January, Monster Employment Index, Monster.com’s employment index that measures India’s online hiring activity, registered a growth of 19% year-on-year and the outlook for 2015 looks bullish too. The year 2015 is expected to be better for job seekers and recruiters, stated the report.
Delhi-based marketplace for services FindYahan raised an undisclosed amount from the Phoenix Fund. Imma Web Pvt. Ltd, the company that operates LocalOye, another services listings mobile application, also raised $5 million from Lightspeed Venture Partners and Tiger Global Management this month.
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