JobStreet’s ‘upskilling’ app now targets Filipinos, certifications eyed

JobStreet said on Wednesday that it anticipates Filipinos keen on retraining to use its in-app learning platform seekMAX.

The job-seeking platform is also studying to offer certifications through its partners, said Chook Yuh Yng, chief growth officer at SEEK Asia, JobStreet’s parent company, during a briefing.

JobStreet does not intend to compete with established educational platforms like Coursera and Udemy, which offer paid certifications, she told BusinessWorld. Instead, seekMAX, currently accessible for free, sets itself apart by providing content intentionally curated for job seekers, she noted.

Citing its own report, JobStreet said that 75% of Filipinos willing to retrain prefer self-study and 65% use digital learning platforms.

The top five in-demand skills in the Philippines are digital literacy, adaptability, interpersonal skills, multitasking efficiency, and time management, according to the platform.

“Candidates need to continue upskilling not only for professional growth but also for honing their soft skills which is what most industries look out for nowadays more than the candidate’s proficiency in their technical skills,” said Dannah Majarocon, JobStreet Philippines’ managing director.

According to JobStreet, the top 10 in-demand jobs in the Philippines are customer service representatives, teachers, administrative officers, call center operators, nurses, software engineers, team leaders, business analysts, sales associates, and engineers.

In June, the unemployment rate reached a three-month high due to lower job quality.

According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the rate increased to 4.5% in June from May’s 4.3%, representing the percentage of jobless Filipinos in the labor force. This was still lower than the 6% recorded in June 2022.

Around 2.33 million Filipinos were unemployed in June this year, up by 159,000 from May, yet notably down by 663,000 compared to June 2022’s 2.99 million unemployed individuals.

“Initially launched in Indonesia in 2022, seekMAX successfully reached over 2.5 million users who have consumed 6.5 million minutes of content on the platform,” JobStreet said.

The top content categories include job search tips, career guidance, salary advice, and self-improvement, it noted. — Arjay L. Balinbin