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The Job Search

Project Overview
For BoomNation users, finding better work faster is a core goal in their user journey. On the hiring side, employers expect a steady stream of qualified applicants. When applications are down, churn increases. In an effort to meet quarterly objectives and reduce churn, the product team sought a solution to drive application quantity and quality.
Role
Lead Designer
Date
2022
team
Erin Mosher, VP of Product
Cole Arn, Project Manager
Understanding the Problem
A constant problem BoomNation faced was low applications from the job search app. This resulted in high employer churn. As a supplement to growing the size of their user base, the product team looked for potential solutions within the app's UI to help increase total job applications and move the needle on quarterly objectives.
Key Performance Indicators
Job applications
Churn rate
User Research
As part of my initiative to better understand our user base, I conducted frequent user research to dial-in personas and identify pain points. A common problem that emerged was a lack of jobs within a reasonable distance to apply. After affinity mapping data from long-form survey, I discovered that 63% of users had also identified “more jobs postings” as their number one pain point.
From 450+ user responses
From 74+ user responses
For a new job search platform, "more job postings" is a pain point that is to be expected. However, there was one unexpected finding from a recent survey that pointed to the solution we'd been looking for. In a community-wide study, I found that one of the most common feature requests was "adding a filter" to the jobs page. Given that our jobs page already had a filter, I went back to the drawing board.
Competitive Analysis
Determined to get to the bottom of this intriguing piece of feedback, I performed a competitive analysis of the six top job search apps to better understand best practices for filtering. These apps were LinkedIn, Indeed, ZipRecruiter, Snagajob, Monster Jobs, and Glassdoor. Below you can see the strengths and weaknesses of four industry leaders.
LinkedIn
Main filter icon first in row of pills
Filter pills used for 8 of the top job filtering criteria
Location text input only shown after searching
Filters only visible after search
Indeed
Text input for both job and location at top of jobs page
Filter pills for 11 of the top job filtering criteria
Main filter icon first in row of pills
Filters only visible after search
ZipRecruiter
Location text input appears when on search screen
Distance radius filter adjacent to location text input
No main filter icon shown in row of filter pills
Poor visibility of filter pills (only 2 shown without scroll)
Snagajob
Main filter icon first in row of pills
Location text input appears when on search screen
Distance radius filter adjacent to location text input
Filter pills shown on recommended job screen
Limited filtering options
The results from my competitive analysis showed that four of the six platforms used pill-based filters and only two hid their filter behind an icon (Snagajob and Monster). Location text inputs were commonly used in all the apps' UI. Three of the four apps that used pill-based filtering placed their main filter icon at the start of the row of pills.
Usability Issues
The map icon was easily lost in the row of icons near the search bar.
The filter was concealed behind the icon entry point, resulting in low visibility for anyone unfamiliar with iconography.
There was no visual indicator for an active filter or a quick way to clear the filter.
The jobs page lacked pill-based filter buttons, adding friction to the job search process.
There was no search field for location, despite the fact that it was standard in almost all other job search apps.
Wireframing
I explored a variety of layouts based on the insights derived from my competitive analysis and usability testing. On the jobs page, I tested several locations for the filter icon, map icon, and search bars. The main filter was broken down into bottom sheets that would link to their respective filter pill. In a collaborative effort, the product team and I polished the design with a tight deadline approaching.
Prototyping
Once the hi-fidelity mock-ups were dialed in, I prototyped all necessary flows in Figma. The designs were then shared with the rest of the team to gather further input before the engineering handoff. Below, you can see how the key screens connect in the initial prototype.
Shifting Constraints
In an effort to stay light on our feet and maximize flexibility, the product and engineering team had been working in short sprints rather than longer product cycles.
As a result, the design needed to be simplified to get the feature release shipped on time. With new project constraints, we decided to scrap the location search bar.
Looking for a quick work-around, I had the idea to order filter pills by importance to the user. Using a brief in-app pop-up survey, I asked our users what they valued most when applying for a job.
After collecting the results, the filter pills were then ordered from left to right in order of their ranking from the survey. The finalized order was Location, Trade, Pay, then Per Diem.
Final Design
After removing the location search bar from the search screen, the finalized jobs page had taken shape.
Here's a quick rundown of the UI.
The order of the filter pills reflects the priorities of the user base, drawn from survey data.
The main filter icon was placed at the start of the pills, consistent with the best practices identified from the competitive analysis.
The filter and map icons are no longer crowded beside the "search jobs" text input.
When a filter is active, the user can now see a short description of the filter criteria and the number of jobs returned from their search.
The map icon is now nested in a button with the label “Map” to draw further attention to the app's most popular feature.
Key Takeaways
Data is still being collected to determine whether or not we achieved a statistically significant change in KPIs. However, within the first two weeks after the feature was released, we saw an 8% increase in job applications. With an easier application process, employers should also see more workers applying to their jobs, reducing churn rate.
This project taught me how tight deadlines can affect deliverables and how the ability to deal with change is critical to designing the best product possible.
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