Rocket Internet is getting into the temp recruitment business

Photo credit: andreypopov / 123RF.

German startup leviathan Rocket Internet may have had a mixed 2016, but that’s certainly not preventing it from continuing to invest in new companies.

The latest startup to launch in Asia is Ushift, a marketplace for businesses to hire temporary staff. Ushift will officially launch on January 16 with Singapore as its first port of call. It’s a brand-new venture in its own right and, unlike some other startups, not a company that Rocket has exported from existing operations in Europe or Latin America.

Robinson Blanckaert, CEO of Ushift, tells Tech in Asia that the decision to target this niche was because existing processes for hiring short-term workers in Southeast Asia are fragmented and broken. There’s real demand from businesses like event management firms, restaurants, and catering outlets, but most recruiting is done through Facebook groups or word of mouth.

“If you manage a restaurant during high season, you might need from the next day on up to ten additional waiters to meet the workload. Ushift allows its clients to find the right candidates in a fast and convenient way,” he adds.

Prospective employees sign up on the site and answer questions about experience, education, and availability to build a profile. Candidates also upload a short video to introduce themselves.

But that doesn’t mean all applicants are automatically added to the pool. Once candidates have done their bit, their profiles are put in ‘pending’ mode. Ushift’s team conducts background checks, including a Skype call to vet the person and verify his/her details. They’re added to the roster if everything checks out.

Ushift’s Robinson Blanckaert. Photo credit: Publicity.

No commission

Rob explains they’re trying to engender a model that’s radically different from traditional short-term recruitment agencies.

“There are many [such agencies] which work with hotels and large hospitality players, and they do their jobs well, but they charge a year’s salary as commission. As a result, workers get paid less,” he says.

Ushift doesn’t take any money from people looking for work. It won’t charge employers a percentage of individual salaries either. There’s a tiered-pricing model in place – businesses can hire unlimited staff through the site for a monthly fee of US$100. Employers with staffing needs of up to five temporary hires a month use the site for free.

The pricing mechanisms aren’t yet in place. They’ll be implemented once the team has understood how best to serve businesses and employees and has achieved a semblance of product-market fit.

“Like any marketplace, there’s the possibility of taking the process offline, but that’s totally fine. That’s why we don’t want to do the commission model. A license fee means you’re now committed to the platform,” outlines Rob.

The focus of the company will always be on helping to fill temporary positions – which Rob defines as jobs that last from “one night up to one month, but not more.” There are absolutely no plans of getting into traditional recruitment, as the space is already quite crowded.

But within Ushift’s niche, the team is trying to make a concerted effort to ensure workforce quality. One problem plaguing current short-term hires, especially in Singapore, is that many simply don’t show up for work despite agreeing to a particular task. If that happens with a registered Ushift worker, they’ll be banned from the site permanently.

At the same time, there are incentives in place for exemplary workers. Rob claims they’ll be paid bonuses by Ushift – above and beyond the agreed rate with employers – if they gather consistently high ratings.

When the platform goes live on Monday, there will already be 500 jobseekers online – pre-screened and available for work immediately.

Snapshot of the Ushift site.

Conquering Southeast Asia

By industry standards, the Ushift CEO is a Rocket Internet veteran. He’s spent two years at the German incubator, previously heading beauty services marketplace Vaniday. He explains that the idea for such a service came to him during his interactions with salon and spa owners across Southeast Asia.

After encouragement from Rocket’s core management team in Singapore, Rob discussed his plans with other startups in cities like Bangkok and Jakarta to get feedback on the business model.

“Rocket isn’t interested in just one country, [the idea] has to be scalable. Very early on, we understood there was a need for this platform,” he says.

In typical Rocket Internet execution speed, the company went from idea to launch in just two months.

They plan on growing quickly. Launches in Thailand and Indonesia are firmly on the radar – within the next two months, according to Rob, who points to the “means within the Rocket group” as an ace up its sleeve.

He will face competition from the likes of Helpster, which raised US$2.1 million in November to expand across Southeast Asia.

Rob is tight-lipped about how much money Rocket Internet has poured into the company, saying he’s not in a position to disclose, but does add that it’s enough to meet requirements for a year. The team’s aiming for 1,000 active employers and 50,000 jobseekers in Singapore by the end of the year.

“We think that’s normal and an achievable goal. I’m 100 percent sure we can meet those targets […] feedback from businesses has been very positive,” says Rob.

This post Rocket Internet is getting into the temp recruitment business appeared first on Tech in Asia.

from Tech in Asia https://www.techinasia.com/ushift-rocket-internet-temporary-staffing
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