Company review: Doostang - the personalized LinkedIn
The problem with successful companies is that they often lose the connection they once had with their initial constituents or customers. However popular, LinkedIn - a place to make connections, mainly for jobs - seems to have lost that personal touch when it comes to finding work.
By comparison, not-even-one-year-old Doostang (whose video pitch is embedded in this post) has created a personal, exclusive forum to more effectively find a job. It appears that Mareza Larizadeh and Pavel Krapivin, founders of Doostang, are on the path to providing an innovative tool for all those seeking meaningful careers.
Larizadeh and Krapivin are MIT and Stanford graduates pushing the limits of social networking and career advancement. The site is geared toward all individuals in quest of career advancement, and even those at critical junctures in their profession. The user base of Doostang has gradually grown since its launch in August 2007, and has aleady received Series A funding through Shasta Ventures in September 2007 for $3.5 million dollars.
So, is there hype around Doostang? Or, is there substance behind this company? Social networking has been the fuss over the past couple of years. Since the day News Corp paid the handsome amount of $580 million for Myspace.com, the buzz has yet to settle. Now with Facebook eyed as the next big social networking site, companies are itching at a chance to get a piece of the pie.
Doostang unlike other social networking site’s, truly sticks to the idea of networking. The platform allows users to share vital information about careers and even offers a helping hand for those just entering the game. It simplifies the complexities of everyday job hunting in a “networking” kind of way. Since Doostang is an invitation only website, it sticks to the roots of true networking, connecting others through immediate personal contacts. The growth of Doostang relies heavily on members inviting others to join the network.
In doing
so, Doostang solidifies the worthiness of its user base by ensuring
that every user has the faith of at least one trusted member. Its main
focus is restructuring quality vs. quantity ratios in the job market.
Ironically, as the community has grown over the past year, the quantity of qualified users has grown. Doostang believes in collaboration, sharing information, and networking for your career.
Ironically, as the community has grown over the past year, the quantity of qualified users has grown. Doostang believes in collaboration, sharing information, and networking for your career.
