Craig Besant

"We liked their product a lot," said Craig Besant, vice president of Tribune Classified Services."Their reporting technology, in terms of being able to give feedback that both job seekers and employers were looking for, was good.It was a superior platform in that respect, and it was a lot easier to customize to (our) different needs and to make changes."

Craig Besant
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With ownership shuffles now behind it, CareerBuilder is ready to focus on enhancing its capabilities, said Besant.
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Besant said FlexAd gives employers an opportunity to create more robust online ads while giving the job seeker the chance to apply directly from the Web site.

E-commerce technology supplied to CareerBuilder by AdStar Inc., meanwhile, makes it possible for employers to purchase recruitment ads either through the phone or through CareerBuilder's Web site.

"We've invested heavily in AdStar in a couple of different rounds," said Besant.
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Besant, who joined CareerBuilder from Monster.com parent TMP Worldwide, said CareerBuilder competes best with online-only entities in terms of service and local brand awareness.
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Clearly, Besant said, there's a market for the other half of the employment base.More than 50 percent of employment ads running in Tribune's Newsday, for example, are seeking people to fill such positions, he said.

"Traditionally only large companies could buy the product," said Besant."We're making it bite-sized so that medium-sized or small employers can have access to that database for a relatively small amount of money.We think that's going to change the way that those small employers look for employees and vice versa."

That said, Besant said the biggest challenge for CareerBuilder won't come from how the company is now structured or the services it offers.Instead, CareerBuilder's future will largely be staked to how quickly the national employment picture brightens.

"We really haven't seen an uptick yet," he said."In terms of our revenue year-over-year we've certainly seen a flattening out of the print side, as opposed to the online side, which has grown."

Regional differences will also affect the bottom line.Where Chicago has been slow to recover, Besant said two Florida markets - Orlando and Fort Lauderdale - have "rebounded quite nicely."

"We liked their product a lot," said Craig Besant, vice president of Tribune Classified Services."Their reporting technology, in terms of being able to give feedback that both job seekers and employers were looking for, was good.It was a superior platform in that respect, and it was a lot easier to customize to (our) different needs and to make changes."

Craig Besant

Last October, Gannett became the third investor in CareerBuilder, purchasing one-third interest for an undisclosed sum.

Next step
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With ownership shuffles now behind it, CareerBuilder is ready to focus on enhancing its capabilities, said Besant.

One important area is how member newspapers can integrate their print and online recruitment advertising.New technologies are changing how that's done.

"Early last year we were doing a lot of the ‘fries with a burger' approach," he said."Let's say in Chicago if you were to buy a print ad for a couple hundred dollars, for $50 you would add the online ad for a week.Toward the end of last year we worked towards developing [a service option called] FlexAd, which integrates the two.
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Besant said FlexAd gives employers an opportunity to create more robust online ads while giving the job seeker the chance to apply directly from the Web site.

E-commerce technology supplied to CareerBuilder by AdStar Inc., meanwhile, makes it possible for employers to purchase recruitment ads either through the phone or through CareerBuilder's Web site.

"We've invested heavily in AdStar in a couple of different rounds," said Besant."We did that primarily to obtain this e-commerce interface that would allow employers or recruiters to go directly online and buy these FlexAds."

Sales divided

Although CareerBuilder maintains its own sales force, much of the sales groundwork remains the responsibility of the member newspaper.

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Besant, who joined CareerBuilder from Monster.com parent TMP Worldwide, said CareerBuilder competes best with online-only entities in terms of service and local brand awareness.

"When we say a 10-line ad plus 30 days online is $360, it's not a coincidence that Monster's open rate is $305.We want to be close to them, being a major player in the industry, but we're not competing on price per se.We think we do offer more value being (available in) both print and online.We like the leverage of the newspaper name in the local markets."

Diversifying options
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Clearly, Besant said, there's a market for the other half of the employment base.More than 50 percent of employment ads running in Tribune's Newsday, for example, are seeking people to fill such positions, he said.

"Traditionally only large companies could buy the product," said Besant."We're making it bite-sized so that medium-sized or small employers can have access to that database for a relatively small amount of money.We think that's going to change the way that those small employers look for employees and vice versa."

That said, Besant said the biggest challenge for CareerBuilder won't come from how the company is now structured or the services it offers.Instead, CareerBuilder's future will largely be staked to how quickly the national employment picture brightens.

"We really haven't seen an uptick yet," he said."In terms of our revenue year-over-year we've certainly seen a flattening out of the print side, as opposed to the online side, which has grown."

Regional differences will also affect the bottom line.Where Chicago has been slow to recover, Besant said two Florida markets - Orlando and Fort Lauderdale - have "rebounded quite nicely."

In a highly competitive situation like the one faced by the Star-Bulletin, an alliance with Monster.com may be worth the risk, says Craig Besant, director of recruitment category, Tribune Classified Services.The deal makes less sense when the newspaper is the primary classified vehicle in its market."Personally, I would be very careful if I was a newspaper because Monster.com doesn't have the shared goals," Besant says."Not only [is Monster.com] ambivalent about the success of print, one could say they benefit from the demise of print to some degree."Besant should know: He joined Tribune Co. from Monster.com, where he was vice of president of marketing.Over time, Monster.com's huge sales force could attempt to disintermediate a partner newspaper's relationship with its clients, Besant says.

"Personally, I would be very careful if I was a newspaper because Monster.com doesn't have the shared goals." - Craig Besant, Tribune Classified Services

Executives at CareerBuilder Inc., jointly owned by Tribune and Knight Ridder Inc., have announced their intention to topple Monster.com with a powerful print/online strategy.
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The Star-Bulletin's decision to introduce a strong online element to its print classified program validates the CareerBuilder approach, Besant says.

In a highly competitive situation like the one faced by the Star-Bulletin, an alliance with Monster.com may be worth the risk, says Craig Besant, director of recruitment category, Tribune Classified Services.The deal makes less sense when the newspaper is the primary classified vehicle in its market."Personally, I would be very careful if I was a newspaper because Monster.com doesn't have the shared goals," Besant says."Not only [is Monster.com] ambivalent about the success of print, one could say they benefit from the demise of print to some degree."Besant should know: He joined Tribune Co. from Monster.com, where he was vice of president of marketing.Over time, Monster.com's huge sales force could attempt to disintermediate a partner newspaper's relationship with its clients, Besant says.

"Personally, I would be very careful if I was a newspaper because Monster.com doesn't have the shared goals." - Craig Besant, Tribune Classified Services

Executives at CareerBuilder Inc., jointly owned by Tribune and Knight Ridder Inc., have announced their intention to topple Monster.com with a powerful print/online strategy.
...
The Star-Bulletin's decision to introduce a strong online element to its print classified program validates the CareerBuilder approach, Besant says.

Craig Besant, Classified Services V.P. Tribune Company (NYSE: TRB)