WO2001004811A1

WO2001004811A1 - A system for searching multiple job posting web sites through a single web site

Info

Publication number: WO2001004811A1
Application number: PCT/US2000/018366
Authority: WO
Inventors: Erik Anderson; Brian Farmer; Andrew Evans; Brent Smith
Original assignee: Careerbuilder, Inc.
Priority date: 1999-07-07
Filing date: 2000-07-06
Publication date: 2001-01-18
Also published as: AU6068800A; WO2001004811A8; WO2001004811A9

Abstract

A system and method for searching multiple job posting Web sites via a single Web site. The system (100) includes a search server (102) comprising a search handler (104) and a search engine (106). The search server (102) generates a Web page that can be accessed by a job seeker via the Internet. The job seeker enters criteria related to a desired job opening in areas of a Web page generated by the search server (102). The job seeker can also indicate desired job posting Web sites that are to be searched. The search handler (104) receives the job search criteria from the job seeker, and provides the job search criteria to a search engine (106), which creates multiple sockets via which the search criteria is sent to data bases of the third party (110) job posting Web sites to be searched. The results are then presented to the job seeker in a prioritized manner.

Description

A SYSTEM FOR SEARCHING MULTIPLE JOB POSTING WEB SITES THROUGH A SINGLE WEB SITE

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by any-one of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.

The present invention claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) of a U.S. provisional application of Erik D. Anderson et al. entitled "System and Method for Searching Multiple Job Posting Web Sites Using Search Criteria Entered For A Single Job Search Request", Serial No. 60/142,536, filed July 7, 1999, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein by reference. CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS Related subject matter is disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 5,978,768 entitled "Computerized Job Search System"; and in a copending U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 09/158,452, filed September 22, 1998, entitled "Computerized Job Search Network", the entire content of each being incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention:

The present invention relates to a system and method for searching multiple job posting Web sites with search criteria entered for a single job search request at a single Web site. More particularly, the present invention relates to a system and method which is accessible on-line to receive a search request including information pertaining to a desired job opening, and which searches multiple job posting Web sites on-line for posted jobs meeting the search criteria and returns a listing of job postings meeting the search for criteria to the search requestor.

Description of the Related Art:

Many job search Web sites are currently in existence and are used by numerous job seekers daily to locate desired job openings. The job seeker visits a desired Web site on-line via the Internet, and enters criteria pertaining to a desired job in locations of a Web page generated by the job posting Web site. Job criteria can include type of job, location, minimum salary requirements and so on.

Once the job seeker has entered the desired job criteria, the computer hosting the job posting Web site searches a job database which includes a plurality of files containing information pertaining to job openings that have been posted to the Web site by employers. The computer returns the search results to the job seeker, who can then peruse the located job openings and, in some cases, submit a resume or job application to the employer on-line.

As can be appreciated from the above, job Web sites are useful in enabling a job seeker to locate desired jobs effectively. However, because not all employers post to all job Web sites, a job seeker may need to access multiple Web sites to find an ideal job.

Accordingly, a need exists for a system which is capable of searching multiple job posting Web sites from a single Web site.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a system and method for generating a Web site to which a job seeker can submit job search criteria, and which is capable of using that search criteria to search multiple Web sites for matching job openings.

Another object of the invention is to provide a system and method for receiving search criteria pertaining to a job opening from a job seeker on-line, searching multiple Web sites for job openings matching the search criteria and returning the results of the search in a prioritized format to the job seeker.

These and other objects of the present invention are substantially achieved by providing a system and method for searching multiple job posting Web sites via a single Web site. The system includes a search server comprising a search handler and a search engine. The search server generates a Web page that can be accessed by a job seeker via the Internet at, for example, a home page of the Web site generated by the search server, or by linking from a Web site designated as an affiliate Web site of the system which can be generated by another server. The job seeker enters criteria related to a desired job opening in areas of a Web page generated by the search server. The job seeker can also indicate desired job posting Web sites that are to be searched. The search handler receives the job search criteria from the job seeker, and provides the job search criteria to a search engine, which creates multiple sockets via which the search criteria is sent to data bases of the third party job posting Web sites to be searched.

The matching job opening information located by the searches are returned via the socket to the search engine. The search engine compiles the search results in a prioritized format and forwards the search results to the search handler. For example, the search engine can organize the results such that the matching job openings that have been posted at the Web site from which thejob search was initiated can be listed before any of the other matching job openings located at other Web sites. The search handler in turn returns the search results to the job seeker. The job seeker can then peruse the search results and, if desired, click on any job opening in the search results to access more detailed information pertaining to that particular job opening.

Specifically, when a job seeker clicks on a particular job opening, the search server links the job seeker to the Web site from which the job opening was located.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will be more readily appreciated from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic illustration of a system capable of searching multiple job posting Web sites according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a flow chart illustrating operations performed by the search server, search handler and search engine shown in Fig. 1 when a job seeker request a search of multiple job opening Web sites;

Fig. 3 is an example of a Web page displayed at a job seeker's computer when thejob seeker visits the Web site generated by the system shown in Fig. 1, to enable a job seeker to request a search of multiple job posting Web sites; Fig. 4 is an example of a Web page displayed at the job seeker's computer as created by the search sever shown in Fig. 1 which enables the job seeker to enter criteria pertaining to a desired job opening;

Fig. 5 is an example of a Web page of an affiliate Web site that can be displayed at the job seeker's computer and which includes a link to enable the ob seeker to request a search of multiple job posting Web sites;

Fig. 6 is an example of a Web page displayed at the job seeker's computer listing job posting Web sites that can be selected for searching by the search engine shown in Fig. 1 ;

Fig. 7 is a diagrammatic illustration of operations performed by the search engine shown in Fig. 1 to generate multiple search requests of multiple job posting Web sites in response to a request by a job seeker; and

Fig. 8 is an example of a Web page displayed at the job seeker's computer as created by the system shown in Fig. 1 , which provides a listing of job openings located by thejob search.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Fig 1 is a diagrammatical view of a job search system 100 for searching multiple Web sites from a single Web site location according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the system 100 includes a search server 102 running on a computer (not shown). The search server 102 can be written in any suitable computer programming language, such as C++.

Search server 102 includes a search handler 104 and a search engine 106, the details of which are described in more detail below. As further shown, a job seeker's computer terminal 108, running a Web browser, can access the search server 102 via the Internet or any other suitable computer network. Also, the search server 102 accesses third party databases 110 via the Internet or any other suitable computer network to search those databases for designated information as described in more detail below.

As will now be described, the system 100 enables a job seeker to fill out a single job search form, located on a single Web site, such as the site hosted by search server 102 or by linking from a Web site designated as an affiliate Web site of the system which can be generated by another server, and to receive job results from databases located at multiple Web sites formatted into a single results list. The flowchart shown in Fig. 2 illustrates exemplary operations performed by the search server 102 and, in particular, by the search handler 104 and search engine 106 of the search server 102 shown in Fig. 1, when a job seeker request a search of multiple job posting Web sites. For exemplary purposes, those operations are discussed with respect to a single job seeker computer terminal 108. However, as can be appreciated by one skilled in the art, the search handler 104 and search engine 106 are capable of simultaneously handling job search requests from multiple job seeker computer terminals.

When a job seeker visits the Web site hosted by search server 102, the search server 102 detects this visit in step 1000 and in step 1010 causes a Web page, such as Web page 112 shown in Fig. 3, to be displayed on the display screen of the job seeker's computer terminal 108. The Web page includes, among other things, a quick job search button 113, discussed in more detail below, and job search links 114 and 115.

If the search server 102 determines in step 1015 that the job seeker has clicked on the quick job search button 113, the processing proceeds to step 1017 where the job seeker can perform a search of the job openings posted on the Web site hosted by server 102 in a manner similar to that described in U.S. Patent No. 5,978,768 entitled "Computerized Job Search System" and in copending U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 09/158,452, filed September 22, 1998, entitled "Computerized Job Search Network", both referenced above. The processing then proceeds to step 1020 as indicated. Although steps 1015 and 1020 are shown in sequence, as will be appreciated from the following, steps 1015 and 1020 can be performed in parallel, with the processing proceeding to their respective subsequent steps depending on whether button 113 or either of links 114 or 115 have been selected.

That is, when the search server 102 determines in step 1020 that the job seeker has clicked on either of job search links 114 or 115, the search server 102 in step 1030 causes another Web page, such as Web page 116 shown in Fig. 4, to be displayed on the display screen of job seeker's computer terminal 108.

Web page 116 acts as a "search form" into which a job seeker can enter search criteria.

As discussed above, the Web page 112 also can be accessed by linking from a Web site designated by the system 100 as an affiliate Web site 117, as shown, for example, in Fig. 5. Affiliate Web sites are Web sites maintained by entities such as corporations and the like that are in a contractual or other similar arrangement with the company (i.e., CareerBuilder, Inc.) maintaining the Web site hosted by search server 102. As illustrated, affiliate Web site 117 includes a link 117-1 from which the job seeker can be linked to the Web page 116 shown in Fig. 4. Web site 117 also includes links 117-2 and 117-3 that enable a job seeker to, for example, post his or her resume and establish a personalized job search as is disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 5,978,768 entitled "Computerized Job Search System" and in copending U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 09/158,452, filed September 22, 1998, entitled "Computerized Job Search Network", both referenced above.

As shown, the search form Web page 116 (Fig. 4) includes menu 118 which allows a job seeker to select a job location from a preset list of locations, and menu 120 which allows a job seeker to select a job description from a preset list. The search form Web page 116 further includes a keyword entry field 122 into which the job seeker can enter keywords to be included in the search criteria. The search form Web page 116 further includes a salary selection section 124 which enables a job seeker to enter a salary range to be included in the search criteria, and a Web site search selector button 126 which allows the job seeker to select Web sites to be searched from among a preset list of Web sites.

Specifically, when the job seeker clicks on the Web site search selector button 126, the system 100 (search server 102) causes another Web page, such as career site Web page 128 shown in Fig. 6, to be generated on the display terminal of the job seeker's computer terminal 108. Career site Web page 128 includes a listing of job posting Web sites which the job seeker can select to be searched with the entered job search criteria. As shown, the Career site Web page 128 also includes a quality rating of each Web site.

When the job seeker has finished selecting the Web sites to be searched, the job seeker can click on return button 130, in which event the system 100 (search server 102) causes the search form Web page 116 shown in Fig. 4 to be displayed on the display screen of the job seeker's computer terminal 108 (Fig,. 1). The search form Web page 116 further includes a define results section 132 which enables a job seeker to select the number of jobs to be displayed per page and within a selected time period in which the jobs were posted (e.g., posted any day, posted within the last week, posted within the last two weeks, and so on).

Once the job seeker has entered all of the desired search criteria in the search form Web page 116, the job seeker can click on the "search now" button 134 to initiate the search of the selected Web sites. In this event, the search handler 104, using Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) or any other suitable format, accepts the search request from the search form Web page 116 in step 1040 and passes the search request to the search engine 106 for processing in step 1050.

In step 1060, the search engine 106 generates multiple processes, handled in parallel, to search against multiple job posting Web sites, as shown in Fig. 7. In order to prepare these multiple processes, the search engine 106 transforms the data submitted in the received search request into request criteria that will be recognized by the third party databases being queried. For example, if the request was submitted for the description "secretary" and one of the databases being queried used the term "administrative" to refer to the same class of data, the search engine 106 would transform the request for "secretary" into "administrative".

As discussed above, once the search criteria has passed from the search form Web page 116 to the search server 102, the search criteria are passed to the search handler 104 via an HTTP request. The search criteria are then passed on to the search engine 106 in step 1050 via inter-process communication (IPC). For each chosen job posting Web site, the search criteria are transformed into destination-specific search requests by the search engine 106 in step 1070. Once all the search requests have been properly prepared, the search engine 106 will create a socket for each third party Web site 110.

The search engine 106 will then send an HTTP search request on each socket in step 1090, and asynchronously monitor for HTTP responses. As each third party web site 110 responds, the search engine 106 saves the HTML data returned. In some instances, the search request may be for some number of results (e.g., 50), but the third party site queried may only return results in groups of a smaller number (e.g., 20). In this case, the search engine 106 determines in step 1100 that the number of search results is insufficient, and repeats steps 1080 and 1090 to automatically generate further requests for additional results sets until the desired results number (e.g., 50) has been satisfied.

Once searching of each of the third party Web sites 110 has been completed, in step 1110 the search engine 106 parses each third party Web site's job results and adds them to a results list which contains the results from all sites, and orders the results by each site's priority. That is, when the results are returned from the various third party databases, they are compiled according to a priority system inherent in the search engine 106. For example, if the search engine 106 recognizes three priority levels of Web sites, configuration files indicate, for every third party Web site 110 capable of being searched by the search engine 106, whether it has a priority level of 1, 2, or 3. Also, additional priority levels can be established, if desired.

First priority site results will be delivered to the top of the results set, the second priority site results will be listed next, and so on. In addition to being placed first, the first priority site results could be listed differently, and additional information can be presented for these results which is not presented for priority level 2 and 3 results.

For example, the search engine 106 can be configured to arrange the results so that the matching job openings that were located which have been posted to the web site from which the job search has been initiated are listed before any of the other matching job openings. That is, if the search was initiated from the Web site 117 shown in Fig. 5, then any matching job that has been posted to that site 117 and tnus was located at that site 117 can be listed prior to any of the other matching job openings.

Also, the search engine 106 gives each priority level a "timeout" window representing a period of time within which the server of a third party Web site at that priority level must respond in order for the results to be listed in the results set. If a server responds prior to the timeout, the results will be displayed. However, if the timeout period passes, the results are automatically displayed with the next available priority set.

Once the search engine 106 has arranged the search results in the appropriate order, the search engine 106 takes the ordered results list and generates the HTML search compiled results page in step 1120. In step 1 130, the search engine 106 returns this page to the waiting search handler 104, which in turn passes the page back to the job seeker's computer terminal 108 in step 1140. The job seeker's computer terminal 108 then displays the results page, such as results page 136 shown in Fig. 8, with the job search results being displayed in their order of priority.

Also, each job title listing includes a link which enables thejob seeker to access additional information pertaining to the job title. For example, if the job seeker clicks on the job title, the search server 102 links the job seeker's computer terminal 108 to the Web site at which the job is posted and from which the job title was retrieved during the search. The job seeker can then peruse the additional information pertaining to the job opening at that Web site in a manner as described, for example, in U.S. Patent No. 5,978,768 entitled "Computerized Job Search System"; and in copending U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 09/158,452, filed September 22, 1998, entitled "Computerized Job Search Network", referenced above.

Although only a few exemplary embodiments of this invention have been described in detail above, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention as defined in the following claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. An on-line employment recruiting method for use with a computer network having a plurality of sites adapted for access by a workstation via said computer network, comprising the steps of: posting at least one job opening to at least one of said sites; identifying at least one of said sites as an affiliate site; permitting searching for any said posted job opening having criteria matching a search criteria to be initiated by said workstation from any said affiliate site; and displaying at said work station information pertaining to each said posted job opening located during said searching step, such that any said posted job opening that has been located at that said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated is given a higher priority that any other of said job openings located.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein: said displaying step displays a listing of each said located job opening such that each said posted job opening located at said affiliate site is displayed closer to the beginning of said listing than any said job opening located at a site other than said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising the step of: retrieving said each located job opening from its respective site; and wherein said displaying step displays a listing of said located job openings such that each said posted job opening retrieved from said affiliate site during a designated period of time is displayed closer to the beginning of said listing than any of said job openings located at sites other than said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated.

4. A method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein: said information includes a description of said job opening.

5. A computer readable medium of instructions for performing online employment recruiting using a computer network having a plurality of sites adapted for access by a workstation via said computer network, said instructions comprising: a first set of instructions, adapted to control said network to post at least one job opening to at least one of said sites; a second set of instructions, adapted to control said network to identify at least one of said sites as an affiliate site; a third set of instructions, adapted to control said network to permit searching for any said posted job opening having criteria matching a search criteria to be initiated by said workstation from any said affiliate site; and a fourth set of instructions, adapted to control said network to display at said work station information pertaining to each said posted job opening located during said searching, such that any said posted job opening that has been located at that said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated is given a higher priority that any other of said job openings located.

6. A computer readable medium of instructions as claimed in claim 5, wherein: said fourth set of instructions is further adapted to control said network to display at said work station a listing of each said located job opening such that each said posted job opening located at said affiliate site is displayed closer to the beginning of said listing than any said job opening located at a site other than said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated.

7. A computer readable medium of instructions as claimed in claim 5, further comprising: a fifth set of instructions, adapted to control said network to retrieve said each located job opening from its respective site; and wherein said fourth set of instructions is further adapted to control said network to display at said workstation a listing of said located job openings such that each said posted job opening retrieved from said affiliate site during a designated period of time is displayed closer to the beginning of said listing than any of said job openings located at sites other than said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated.

8. A computer readable medium of instructions as claimed in claim 5, wherein: said fourth set of instructions is adapted to control said workstation to display said information which includes a description of said job opening.

9. A computer network having a plurality of sites adapted for access by a workstation via said computer network, and being adapted to perform on-line employment recruiting, said network comprising: a first component, adapted to post at least one job opening to at least one of said sites; a second component, adapted to identify at least one of said sites as an affiliate site; a third component, adapted to permit searching for any said posted job opening having criteria matching a search criteria to be initiated by said workstation from any said affiliate site; and a fourth component, adapted to display at said work station information pertaining to each said posted job opening located during said searching, such that any said posted job opening that has been located at that said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated is given a higher priority that any other of said job openings located.

10. A computer network as claimed in claim 9, wherein: said fourth component is further adapted to control said network to display at said work station a listing of each said located job opening such that each said posted job opening located at said affiliate site is displayed closer to the beginning of said listing than any said job opening located at a site other than said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated.

11. A computer network as claimed in claim 9, further comprising: a fifth component, adapted to control said network to retrieve said each located job opening from its respective site; and wherein said fourth component is further adapted to control said network to display at said workstation a listing of said located job openings such that each said posted job opening retrieved from said affiliate site during a designated period of time is displayed closer to the beginning of said listing than any of said ob openings located at sites other than said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated.

12. A computer network as claimed in claim 9, wherein: said fourth component is adapted to control said workstation to display said information which includes a description of said job opening.

13. An on-line employment recruiting method for use with a computer network having a plurality of sites adapted for access by a workstation via said computer network, at least one of said sites having at least one job opening posted thereon, and at least one of said sites being an affiliate site, said method comprising the steps of: searching at least some of said sites for any said posted job opening having criteria matching a search criteria to be initiated by said workstation from any said affiliate site; and displaying at said work station information pertaining to each said posted job opening located during said searching step, such that any said posted job opening that has been located at that said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated is given a higher priority that any other of said job openings located.

14. A method as claimed in claim 13, wherein: said displaying step displays a listing of each said located job opening such that each said posted job opening located at said affiliate site is displayed closer to the beginning of said listing than any said job opening located at a site other than said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated.

15. A method as claimed in claim 13, further comprising the step of: retrieving said each located job opening from its respective site; and wherein said displaying step displays a listing of said located job openings such that each said posted job opening retrieved from said affiliate site during a designated period of time is displayed closer to the beginning of said listing than any of said job openings located at sites other than said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated.

16. A method as claimed in claim 13 , wherein: said information includes a description of said job opening.

17. A computer readable medium of instructions for controlling a computer network to perform on-line employment recruiting, said computer network having a plurality of sites adapted for access by a workstation via said computer network, at least one of said sites having at least one job opening posted thereon, and at least one of said sites being an affiliate site, said instructions comprising: a first set of instructions, adapted to control said computer network to search at least some of said sites for any said posted job opening having criteria matching a search criteria to be initiated by said workstation from any said affiliate site; and a second set of instructions, adapted to control said computer network to display at said work station information pertaining to each said posted job opening located during said searching step, such that any said posted job opening that has been located at that said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated is given a higher priority that any other of said job openings located.

18. A computer readable medium of instructions as claimed in claim 17, wherein: said second set of instructions is further adapted to display at said workstation a listing of each said located job opening such that each said posted ob opening located at said affiliate site is displayed closer to the beginning of said listing than any said job opening located at a site other than said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated.

19. A computer readable medium of instructions as claimed in claim 17, further comprising: a third set of instructions, adapted to control said computer network to retrieve said each located job opening from its respective site; and wherein said second set of instructions is adapted to control said computer network to display at said workstation a listing of said located job openings such that each said posted job opening retrieved from said affiliate site during a designated period of time is displayed closer to the beginning of said listing than any of said job openings located at sites other than said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated.

20. A computer readable medium of instructions as claimed in claim 17, wherein: said fourth set of instructions is adapted to control said workstation to display said information which includes a description of said job opening.

21. A system for controlling a computer network to perform on-line employment recruiting, said computer network having a plurality of sites adapted for access by a workstation via said computer network, at least one of said sites having at least one job opening posted thereon, and at least one of said sites being an affiliate site, said system comprising: a first component, adapted to control said computer network to search at least some of said sites for any said posted job opening having criteria matching a search criteria to be initiated by said workstation from any said affiliate site; and a second component, adapted to control said computer network to display at said work station information pertaining to each said posted job opening located during said searching step, such that any said posted job opening that has been located at that said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated is given a higher priority that any other of said job openings located.

22. A system as claimed in claim 21 , wherein: said second component is further adapted to display at said workstation a listing of each said located job opening such that each said posted job opening located at said affiliate site is displayed closer to the beginning of said listing than any said job opening located at a site other than said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated.

23. A system as claimed in claim 21 , further comprising: a third component, adapted to control said computer network to retrieve said each located job opening from its respective site; and wherein said second component is adapted to control said computer network to display at said workstation a listing of said located job openings such that each said posted job opening retrieved from said affiliate site during a designated period of time is displayed closer to the beginning of said listing than any of said job openings located at sites other than said affiliate site from which said searching was initiated.

24. A system as claimed in claim 21 , wherein: said fourth component is adapted to control said workstation to display said information which includes a description of said job opening.