At the conclusion of this webinar, you will know: - What “semantic search” really is – in plain English - How semantic search compares with Boolean search - The latest semantic search tools, applications, and websites useful for recruiting - The best ways to incorporate semantic search into your sourcing efforts

1. The Webinar Will Begin Shortly If you cannot hear music, or the presenter to today's webinar, please use our toll-free call in number. Number: 888-469-1348 Pass code: 2940000 Navigating Semantic Search Presented by: Irina Shamaeva Partner, Brain Gain Recruiting May 13, 2010

3. Abbreviations

4. Synonyms

6. Social MediaSemantic Search Engines Semantic Search Tools for Recruiters Resources Q&A 2

7. What is Semantic Search? Semantic is meaning In recruiting, semantic search would ideally identify the right candidates Resume Job Description Resume Resume Resume 3

9. Narrow topic vs. “everything”

10. A task to solve vs. exploration4

11. What is Boolean? Boolean means AND, OR, NOT Boolean search syntax is the Boolean logic combined with operators, special characters, and options: 5

12. What is Boolean? Note: Boolean syntax is different for different search engines and databases 6

14. Semantic is meaningElements of semantic search are present in existing “Boolean” search engines New “semantic” tools often include Boolean logic 7

15. Sourcing Process 8

16. “Boolean” Approach Example Pick keywords from a job description and create Boolean strings Software Engineer. You’ll help build next-generation security products, working as part of an energetic team and hacking in a Linux/Mac/open source environment The ideal candidate has: * 3+ years software development experience (Demonstrable fluency in C/C++) * Demonstrable fluency in Ruby, or another interpreted, open source language (Python, Perl, PHP, etc.) * A Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Mathematics or equivalent work experience * TCP/IP experience, up and down the stack * RDBMS familiarity, including entity design and SQL query troubleshooting 9

17. “Boolean” Approach "software engineer” Linux "open source" C++ Ruby TCP/IP SQL “7,000+" results (an estimate);not right – mostly job posts "software engineer” Linux "open source" C++ Ruby TCP/IP SQL -jobs -job about 700+results (not bad!; many are resumes, some are not) intitle:resume | inurl:resume "software engineer” Linux "open source" C++ Ruby TCP/IP SQL about 75 results(good but we want more) intitle:resume | inurl:resume "software engineer” | developer Linux | UNIX "open source" C++ Ruby | Perl | python | PHP TCP/IP SQL about 700 results; pretty good; can play with it and look at the results 10

18. “Semantic” Approach May… Recognize the title, keywords, must-haves, locations Suggest alternative terminology, abbreviations, target companies, colleges Search for resumes that have target titles, must-have keywords in the recent experience 11

19. Still, Any Tool Requires Human Input Real life challenge: “Тhey would like the functional candidates to come from similar consulting firms or recently in a consulting firm. They want to see some stability. For the technical roles – they need consulting, not out of industry. Except for the hard-to-find roles like Business objects.” 12

23. Semantic Features – Web Search Engines Google offers similar search strings Google personalizes results, making them more relevant over time 16

24. Semantic Features – Web Search Engines Asterisk * (almost) allows for proximity search 17

25. Semantic Features – Web Search Engines Tilde ~ allows to search for synonyms 18

26. Semantic Features – Social Media Structured profiles allow meaningful search (but no synonyms recognition) 19

28. Search within targeted groups and communities: LinkedIn groups20

30. Find people in the right locations

31. Find skills matching those in a job description

32. Not to miss resumes with similar termsWe need to review lots and lots of resumes trying to find the best 21

34. Semantic search22

35. Parsing Tools By parsing search results we can narrow them down to those that are likely to be on target Example: Find resumes using the keyword Microsoft, parse, and pick those where Microsoft means employer 23

37. For a limited set of structured documents (such as a resume database), than for the web24

38. General Semantic Search Engines… …may be useful for research… 25

39. …but won’t solve recruiting problems Screenshot from a semantic search engine 26

41. Implementations of semantic search for sets of resumes or profiles

43. String suggestions (restrictive)

44. Use clouds of keywords for an industry

45. Use lists (like “top schools”, “list of majors”, etc.)28

46. Semantic Search For Recruiters:Functionality (cont.) Allow users to give weights to keywords Search for matches in user’s networks Add extra semantic search capacity to existing resume databases 29

47. Semantic Search For Recruiters:User Interface Boolean search strings may look cryptic but they allow control over search A substitute UI needs to be friendly without affecting the quality of results Look for the right tool 30

49. Have the right expectations

50. Try it out for your purposes (industry, location, etc.) Extra points if it can “learn” or be tuned

51. See how it integrates with other tools you use

52. Check whether the UI is clear and friendlyYou may want to use several sourcing tools if they complement each other 31

53. Summary Use semantic search capacity of search engines and Social Networks Use general semantic search engines for research Review new semantic search tools for recruiters – start incorporating them into your recruiting strategy Expect increasing industry focus, adoption, and innovation in semantic recruiting in the months to come 32

54. Thank You & Q&A Boolean Strings Network and Group http://booleanstrings.ning.com/ LinkedIn group: http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=1176637 My Blog http://booleanstrings.wordpress.com/ I offer: Training DVDs and Webinars Sourcing Help Please email me at irina@braingainrecruiting.com 33