I have had many people ask why DirectEmployers/JobCentral is a non-profit organization.

As a former corporate hr-type and former president of a leading commercial job board, I can attest to the power of companies working together to accomplish a task. I can also attest to the pressures of Wall Street and the effects it can have on business decision-making.

By working together, an immediate, cohesive group of leading U.S. employers was available to federal agencies for a fast response to the Katrina disaster. Likewise, employers can now work together to create a fast, low-cost alternative to America’s Job Bank (AJB) which the U.S. Department of Labor has announced will be phased out in mid-2007. A cooperative of employers can also provide a low-cost employment site where all employers, regardless of size, can participate. All difficult to do in a for-profit environment.

Is non-profit better?

Absolutely not!

It’s just different.

There are distinct advantages and disadvantages to both non-profit and for-profit employment sites. There is a definite need and place for both.

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The “young turks” I have referred to are actually experienced onlline recruiting professionals whose voices can now be heard through the magic of blogging.

Joel “Cheezhead” Cheesman, an online recruiting veteran going all the way back to 1997 with E-Span and now a search engine optimization (SEO) guru, has been in online recruiting almost as long as the “old dog”. Blogging has provided a platform for him to show his brilliance — and what a job he has done!

Bob Wilson’s previous work includes development of visionary workforce information systems, skill match applications, and customer-focused Internet services that received eight national awards for innovation and customer service. He worked 11 years with the Oregon Employment Department. His blog is well thought out and he does some great analytical work. I’ve learned a lot from him.

Jim Stroud is another “young turk” who has been around a while. Jim is a seasoned executive and technical recruiting specialist who has worked with industry-leading U.S. corporations providing recruitment and recruitment marketing strategies, online research, and competitive intelligence. I have really enjoyed Jim’s blog. He does a tremendous job incorporating humor into his work.

Again, “young turks” all — but they have been around and know what they are talking about.

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I deeply appreciate the welcome to the blogging world I have received from “young turks” like Joel Cheesman, Bob Wilson, Jim Stroud and others.

I must confess though that the most humbling experience came this week when I heard from industry icons John Sumser and Peter Weddle. It actually made “old dog” misty-eyed. I appreciate John’s classy Interbiznet Bugler write-up and Peter’s congratulatory email.

John mentioned that “from now on he’ll have a platform to return fire”. Rest assured that my days of “returning fire” are long gone and I will only blog to help people understand what “old dog” is doing and why. I apologize for all old wounds and battle scars and look forward to continuing work in the online recruiting industry with these two “old warriors” for whom I have great respect.

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I spent a lot of time last week with questions from the press about O*Net codes and why they are important.

The Occupational Information Network - O*Net database has replaced the Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT) as the nation’s primary source of occupational information. The O*NET database and related products helps millions of employers, workers, educators, and students make informed decisions about education, training, career choices, and work. O*Net codes are used extensively by state workforce development counselors. They are also used for “crosswalk” purposes in comparing civilian and military occupations. The O*NET Project is administered and sponsored by the US Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration.

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The blogging world is very interesting. I think it has brought some exciting new players to the online recruiting industry. My hat is off to bloggers like Bob Wilson, Cheezhead, Jim Stroud and all others who take the time to do proper research, dig in, ask questions and fully understand something before responding to reporters, publishing an in-depth analysis, or giving their opinions. Very refreshing…

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I have had a number of reporters ask what is new and different with the JobCentral National Labor Exchange versus the “old” JobCentral. The differences are significant:

JobCentral National Labor Exchange allows job seekers to search jobs with one search across thousands of corporate web sites, Google, networking site Jobster, and leading Internet employment search engines such as Indeed.com and SimplyHired.com. Over five million (5,000,000) jobs are available to job seekers from corporate web sites, newspapers, trade associations, and other Internet sources in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia, 230 major metropolitan areas, and all U.S. cities and postal zip code areas.

Job distribution to leading Internet search engines such as Google, Indeed.com, and SimplyHired.com plus Jobster.com and over 1000 other Internet sites including diversity, military, alumni, and state sites are available to all employers regardless of size in all industries.

JobCentral National Labor Exchange will offer extensive benefits free-of-charge to state workforce centers. Career OneStop Centers, counselors and other individuals who have Workforce Development responsibilities in each state will have access to jobs in their respective city, state, or region. Jobs will be available through state or federal government- approved job distribution sites, a link to the JobCentral site, or by providing the job search technology on the state’s employment center web site.

Jobs will also be available at no cost to each state via an Application Programming Interface (API), links from state web sites or via File Transfer Protocol (FTP). JobCentral will automatically place O*Net classification codes on all member-company jobs as is currently required by state workforce classification systems.

Bottom line is that JobCentral is now positioned to effectively play a major role in helping member companies meet their OFCCP, Veterans hiring and EEOC Affirmative Action requirements in addition to helping companies meet their general recruiting goals at a time we are all faced with an impending labor shortage.

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Early morning random thoughts as old dog contemplates his fledgling blogging career. I’m overwhelmed with the welcome I have received to the blogging world. Thank you all! A big thanks to Ray Schreyer and Dan Guaglianone. Without you guys it wouldn’t have been possible.

If you don’t know Randy Shute you really should.

Dr. Marilyn Mackes, Executive Director at NACE is a super competent lady with great integrity. What a great mix!!

I really like what Peter Weddle is doing with the International Association of Employment Web Sites (IAEWS).

The press is really interested in what we are doing. Great questions. Good material for future blogs.

Our experience with Cheezhead at SHRM convinced me that blogging is a great way to communicate….. and advertise.

I’m glad Don Ramer dodged the bullet and is back to work. He’s a good one.

Old dog sees a lot of good young talent in our space. That’s a good thing!

Didn’t John Sumser start blogging before blogging was blogging?