job portal development

Job Portal Development: How to Build One, Costs & Features

Things have changed dramatically in the recruiting market in recent years. Due to the advancement in technology, businesses no longer advertise job openings in newspapers or on leaflets. Rather than that, they focus on digital tools such as work hunt smartphone apps or online portals to attract the best candidates. On the other side, work hunters are freed of the burden of racing from one employer to the next in search of a place to drop their application.

The increasing prevalence of career platform software has significantly altered the landscape of job searching, rendering the whole method more convenient. This recruiting phone application may assist work seekers in developing resumes, finding appropriate positions, engaging with employers, and pursuing opportunities.

As per reports by 2025 the online recruitment market size is anticipated to $39.76 Bn.

Job Portal Development Benefits

One of the most significant benefits of utilizing work portals is that they have access to an infinite number of job openings. Work applicants can quickly browse through a variety of job openings to locate one that meets their criteria.

The benefits for job seekers

  • Affordable

When politicians attend walk-in appointments, they are expected to expend money on lodging, accommodation, and formal wear. However, they can conveniently apply for their desired job via online career portals without breaking the bank.

  • Job updates regularly

A decent career recruiting software will keep you informed about new work opportunities daily. This means that students do not lose out on opportunities to apply for their desired jobs and launch their careers.

  • Numerous employment prospects

Both reputable career directories provide a comprehensive listing of current job openings at leading businesses. One should peruse the list to find the career they’ve always wanted.

Benefits for employers 

  • Candidate selection is easy.

You can conveniently access a list of candidates who possess the required qualifications, skills, and abilities by using a career portal. This will significantly simplify and expedite the recruiting process.

  • Resume search made simple

The majority of career portals have simple-to-use filters. It would help if you used the necessary filters to find resumes that match the desired collection of skills and experiences. This streamlines the recruiting process, so managers are no longer need to go through and resume individually.

Features to Look for in a Job Search & Recruitment App

Panel with Job Seekers

  • Sign Up to log in with Social Media
  • Management of Resumes
  • Management of Profiles
  • Work search filtering by experience, place, keyword search, and wage estimate, among other criteria.
  • Employ a Professional Resume Writing Service

Panel with Recruiters

  • Subscribe/Login via email
  • Work posting/creation/editing
  • Prospects via email
  • Resume Filtering and Downloading
  • Invites to apply for jobs
  • Subscription Plan Payments

Admin Control Panel

  • Manage Work Advertisements
  • Administration of Candidate Profiles
  • Management of Packages
  • System for Managing Content
  • Management of Recruiter/Employer Profiles
  • Invites

A Job Recruitment Mobile App’s Advanced Features

  1. Stable backend Solutions

The most critical component of a successful work recruiting mobile app is a sensitive database that holds all of the job seeker’s information. Thus, a stable backend is needed to handle this database seamlessly. This often enables fault-free front-end activities.

  1. Scanner of documents 

This is a critical function since it enables candidates to search any of their papers using the built-in scanner. They will quickly search their diplomas, identification documents, credentials, and pay stubs to link them to their profile.

  1. In-app chat 

This function will aid in the smooth engagement of work seekers and recruiters. The two will exchange pertinent information and also arrange an interview to advance the recruiting phase.

  1. CV Development

The curriculum vitae is the most critical component of any career application. It’s crucial to have several options for attaching a CV to a work applicant’s profile, such as uploading directly from the system, importing from other sources, or creating one inside the portal.

  1. Integration of CRM

A career portal’s Customer Relationship Management system is critical. Integrating a comprehensive CRM simplifies the process of managing client needs and matching them with appropriate work. Apart from that, a CRM assists in newsletter management, consumer data gathering and management, marketing and analytics, and many more.

  1. Integration of Content Management Systems

A content management system (CMS) enables the management and modification of any platform’s content. It can be used to monitor the portal’s blog, career posting descriptions, and employee resumes.

Team Structure Required for Recruitment & Job Portal App Development 

Developing a personalized career portal application is a complex challenge that involves the skills of a select group of practitioners. Thus, it is critical to contact a reputable mobile app development company that hires a team of intelligent technicians who are committed to delivering the project on schedule and under budget.

The following team structure is needed for a work recruiting mobile app:

  • Manager of Project
  • Designers of UI/UX
  • Developers of Android and iOS applications
  • Developers of backend systems
  • Testers and Quality Assurance Professionals

Step-by-step how to develop a job portal app

how to develop a job portal app

Developing a job portal app is a complex process that requires careful planning to ensure all the steps are well covered, including integrations, security checks, and testing processes, among other steps. The steps to follow when developing a job portal app include the following:

  • Conceptualization & market research

Before you develop a job portal, you must have the concept in mind that you need to transform into a big project. This process involves proper market research to determine similar software solutions in the market, user audience, missing gaps, and market demand. The insights you collect at this stage will help you develop a competitive and reliable job portal with features and functionalities that will meet all user needs.

  • Outline the goal and core features

Based on the insights collected during the conceptualization and market research phase, the next is to define the core functionality and features of the job portal to ensure you produce a software solution that aligns with user needs and your personal goals as well.

Under this phase, highlight the core features for job portal users, i.e., employers and job seekers. Such features include messaging options, user profiles, matching algorithms, resume uploads, filter & search features, and job postings, among many other features. Focus on prioritizing core features to save on development time and costs.

  • Choose the right tech stack

At this point, you already have a clear overview of how you want your job portal app structured. Therefore, choose the right tech stack that will help you accomplish the process from the development stage to testing, then deployment, and finally, maintenance & support. The tech stacks includes frameworks, libraries, and programming languages, among other technical resources that will facilitate the job portal app development process.

The tech stack you select will depend on whether your job portal app is a cross-platform app, Android, or iOS solution.

  • Create wireframes and prototypes

Wireframes and prototypes will give you a perfect overview of your job portal app and the UI. Through wireframes and prototypes, you can create an appealing design for your software solution. Again, prototyping and wireframing make it easy to enhance the overall user experience, which will give you a streamlined process of developing your job portal app.

  • Create UI and the design

With wireframes and prototypes in place, you can now create an appealing user interface and virtual design. Make sure to blend well the colors and typography as they play a big role in enhancing user experience. Above all, the app should be responsive on diverse devices and user-friendly on an overall scale.

  • Develop the backend system

After the UI and design step, now focus on the backend of your job portal app. The backend handles the databases, servers, and APIs that facilitate the app’s functionality. The database system should hold key data such as job listings and user profiles, among other relevant data in this case. Don’t forget the concept of matching jobs algorithms to enhance a seamless user experience. Most importantly, include proper security measures to safeguard confidential user data.

  • Develop the frontend system

With the backend complete or still in progress, next you need to build the frontend system. The frontend of an app includes user interfaces in relation to the designs, wireframes, and other components of the system. Include the core features such as communication tool, resume uploads, and user registration & sign-up, among many other features under this step. Finalize this step by evaluating the app’s functionality and responsiveness across different devices.

  • QA and testing phase

With the backend and frontend development complete, you will need to perform QA analysis and testing to identify issues and bugs and then fix them before you deploy the job portal app. General app performance, overall functionality, and security of the app are among the priority tasks you should test. Beta testing is also crucial as it helps collect user feedback and modify the app for user satisfaction. Most importantly, perform usability testing to ensure the job portal app has an intuitive user interface.

  • Launching/deployment

After a series of testing and verifying that the app is fully functional and well-performing, you can now launch or deploy it, ready for the market. When deploying to the intended platform, make sure the app aligns with the platform’s requirements. Most importantly, use a deployment strategy that will attract target user attention.

  • Regular maintenance and updates

With the job portal app deployed to the market, that is not final. You need to put in place maintenance measures and regular updates that will ensure the app continues to perform well and deliver a seamless user experience. The process involves adding more innovative features, updating security measures, and modifying areas that need improvements. This step is vital as it will help your job portal app stay competitive in the market.

Note: active communication between the development team, i.e., designers, developers, testers, and any other team, if crucial in facilitating a successful job portal app development process. Finally, the developers should be flexible enough to adjust the development processes based on emerging technologies, demands, and user feedback.

Job portal app development challenges and solutions

Yes, a job portal app plays a major role in collecting job seekers and employers in a streamlined manner. However, the process of developing a solid and reliable job portal app comes with a set of challenges. The good part is that there are solutions to every challenge or limitation faced during or after the job portal app development process. These challenges include the following:

  • Stiff market competition

There are already many job portal applications already performing well in the market. This means that as a new entrepreneur, penetrating the market can become hard and filled with a lot of complexities.

Solution: In this case, you need to develop a unique job portal app that will attract the right audience. Do this by evaluating your competitors, identifying their ways of operations and limitations, and then designing a unique plan that will facilitate seamless penetration of your app into the market. Figure out new and advanced features that will attract more users.

  • Data privacy & security concerns

A job portal app stores user data that can be private and confidential. As a result, you need to ensure users are confident signing up on your app without having to worry about data privacy and security. What’s more, you need to ensure your job portal app aligns with the set GDPR, HIPAA, or any other guidelines. This can be challenging in a way. Of course, data breaches or security breaches have adverse repercussions on the overall functionality of your app.

Solution: prioritize data privacy and security issues from the very beginning to ensure you meet the set regulatory compliance and guidelines.

Most importantly, put in place techniques and measures that will facilitate data protection in all aspects. This includes secure identification and encryption techniques. Most importantly, update security standards more often to ensure your app is up-to-date with the updated security measures and concerns.

  • Scalability

Once you develop a job portal app, it will soon grow and expand to new heights because many users will be joining, hence an increase in data. In this case, it is easy for an app to crash and face downtime when many users are using it at the same time. This could lead to poor performance and, hence bad user experience.

Solution: you need to build a scalable job portal app to remain stable under all circumstances. Whether the traffic is high or low, the app should remain functional and reliable in delivering services. In this case, opt for cloud services and use a scalable architecture design to enable the app to accommodate the increasing demand. Above all, track and monitor the system’s overall performance and usage patterns for seamless scaling.

  • Matching algorithm accuracy

Job portal apps use a matching algorithm to match relevant jobs with those searching for specific jobs that are listed on the platform. To ensure a positive user experience, the matching algorithm must be accurate in all aspects, something which can be challenging to achieve.

Solution: collect user feedback and employ machine learning and data analysis techniques to keep adjusting and improving the algorithms based on the insights collected.

  • User retention and engagement

What if users keep leaving once joining your job portal app? This could attract negative reviews and an overall overview of your app, thus failing to achieve the intended purpose. Above all, keeping users engaged when navigating through your job portal app can be a challenge, leading to a higher bounce rate.

Solution: Include attractive features, services, and content that yourtarget audience can easily resonate with. The content should add value, educate, and entertain your audience at the same time. Badges, progress-tracking rewards, and gamification features are some of the approaches you can implement to keep your audience engaged. Most importantly, consider creating an active forum where users can discuss and share ideas through chat rooms and forums as you build an active community within your job portal app.

  • Cross-platform compatibility

Yes, there are cross-platform applications. However, the challenge is when they can’t access native features. This leads to inconsistency in user experience for users accessing your job portal app with different operating systems and devices.

Solution: implement a hybrid strategy when developing the app using cross-platform iOS tools and platforms for Android development. In this case, use a common code that supports cross-platform development frameworks and tools.

  • Law and regulations compliance

Based on your location, your job portal app must meet and align with the set guidelines for data privacy, anti-discrimination rules, accessibility compliance, and labor laws, among many others. Sometimes, these laws and regulations keep changing over time, and you could face harsh charges in case you miss any of the set rules and guidelines.

Solution: Keep reviewing and updating the legal requirements to ensure your job portal app remains safe and compliant in the market. Most importantly, engage legal professionals when drafting crucial documents such as terms of service, privacy policy, and user agreements, among other core documents touching laws and regulations.

  • Monetization approach

Once you have your job portal app in the market, you need to ensure user satisfaction. However, you also need to determine the perfect monetization approach that will work will with you and the users. Striking a balance between satisfying user preferences and implementing a monetization approach can be a big challenge.

Solution: There are diverse app monetization strategies & approaches you can use on your job portal app. The secret is to choose one that can provide value to users while generating revenue at the same time. Most importantly, let users know the benefits they will get out of the monetization strategy you choose. Freemium of a perfect approach, where users access the basic features for free but pay to use premium services for advanced service delivery.

How Much Does Job Portal App Development Costs?

Calculating the actual expense of designing a smartphone application is a time-consuming task. Often an app maker cannot provide an exact cost estimate at the outset since costs differ according to the number of features integrated. Additionally, developing an app is a lengthy and complex one that requires consideration of several variables.

The majority of software development companies bill on an hourly basis. The amount of hours required varies according to the application’s difficulty level. According to industry guidelines, a digital career search and recruiting application will cost between $40 and $60 per hour. This equates to about $45,000 to $60,000 for creating a straightforward work portal application. Additionally, the above price covers UI/UX architecture and testing of the smartphone application.

Now, it’s worth noting that the expense of product production is often affected by the app development company’s geographic position. For example, a corporation operating in the United States costs between $200 and $250 per hour, significantly increasing the total expense. Similarly, construction fees in Europe and other surrounding areas range from $125 and $170 per hour.

When it comes to India, one will quickly find expert software developers providing outstanding facilities at significantly lower costs. The majority of reputable software development companies in India bill between $20 and $25 per hour.

How to reduce job portal app development costs

Developing a powerful and reliable job portal application can be costly. However, you can implement some measures to reduce the costs incurred when developing such a software solution. Below are some of the proven hacks you can adopt to cut job portal app development costs:

  • Use open-source platforms – open-source platforms come with free or reduced-cost plugins and templates that simplify and reduce costs for the job portal app development. Drupal, Joomla, and WordPress are examples of open-source platforms you can use in this case.
  • Outsourcing the development team – instead of relying on your in-house team, you can outsource job portal app development services from Aalpha Information Systems and save on costs while getting top-notch results. When you outsource, you don’t need to spend on employee salaries, hardware expenses, and rent, among other related overhead costs. Besides, outsourcing allows you to get all experts under one roof. Be it designers, developers, and QA & testers. You don’t need to hire these talents separately, which is costly in many ways.
  • Develop an MVP – An MVP, a minimum viable product, is the simpler version of the job portal app you want to develop. It helps you collect user feedback and develop the app based on what users want, including adding the relevant features for the intended functionality. This will save you on initial development costs.
  • Choose cloud hosting services – Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform, and AWS are examples of cloud hosting platforms you can consider. In this case, you only pay for the resources used based on demand. This flexibility and scalability make it possible to save on more costs.
  • API Integration – with API integration, you don’t need to build all features from scratch, which is costly. Instead, you simply integrate your job portal app with already existing systems for simplified functionalities. This will save you on development costs and development time.
  • Adopt agile developmentagile development allows you to use resources well while prioritizing important features. This helps in eliminating unnecessary costs that won’t add immediate value to the job portal app. In short, the agile development approach focuses on the most relevant tasks in the app development process, thus saving time and resources.
  • Minimalist design – a minimalist design ensures the app is user-friendly and easy to navigate through. In this case, the focus is on the app’s functionality and not aesthetics, thus cutting down on development costs. In this case, you don’t focus on irrelevant plugins and animations, thus creating a highly responsive app with reduced costs at the same time.

How to monetize a job portal app

Once you build your job portal app, the next concern is how to monetize the software solution to generate more income. Below are some best approaches you can implement to monetize your job portal app:

  • Subscription fees – Here, users get to pay a subscription fee based on a predefined timeline to access the portal and connect with the right candidate. You can come up with different subscription plans that suit different users on your app.
  • Job posting fees – in this case, those posting jobs on the app pay a certain fee for the services they get. The fee can differ according to the type of job post and requirements.
  • Referral programs – this program aims at connecting you with the platform’s loyal users. In this case, you reward your loyal users with a specific commission. Once a user achieves the objectives of using your portal (either finding their dream job or hiring the needed talent) through your app, you ask them to recommend the app to others.
  • Advertisement revenue – this monetization strategy involves placing ads from other companies to generate more traffic as you make money. Some giant job portal apps, such as LinkedIn and Glassdoor, are already using this monetization strategy to earn more.
  • Career services fees – here, you put a predefined fee for offering professional consultation services to those looking for jobs. The career service fee can vary depending on the type of consultations you are offering.

Job portal app development ideas you can consider

Are you thinking of building a job portal app but don’t know where to begin? Below are some ideas that will make your dream of building a powerful job portal app become a reality:

  • A personalized career coach app for guiding job seekers
  • A freelance marketplace that connects job seekers and clients searching for freelancers
  • A virtual job fair app for connecting employers and job seekers digitally
  • Remote work hub for listing remote jobs
  • Skills & expertise assessment app for connecting the right talents with the right jobs
  • Blockchain-verified resumes for verifying and securing resumes
  • Part-time jobs for student app to allow students to work as they study at the same time
  • Employer branding app for showcasing what a company offers to attract the right talents
  • Niche industry job portal app to simplify the process for those searching for industry-specific jobs

Final Thoughts

The increasing importance placed on finding the proper work has increased the amount of smartphone recruiting applications accessible. As a result, there could be a substantial increase in the cost of production in the coming years. Therefore, it is prudent to contact a reputable mobile application development firm immediately to help you transform your market ideas and concepts into practice.

Additionally, to ensure the efficiency and profitability of your company, you must include certain exceptional functionality not present in previous software versions. This will offer you a much-needed competitive advantage.

Any queries about Job Portal App Development? Feel free to contact us today!

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Written by:

Stuti Dhruv

Stuti Dhruv is a Senior Consultant at Aalpha Information Systems, specializing in pre-sales and advising clients on the latest technology trends. With years of experience in the IT industry, she helps businesses harness the power of technology for growth and success.

Stuti Dhruv is a Senior Consultant at Aalpha Information Systems, specializing in pre-sales and advising clients on the latest technology trends. With years of experience in the IT industry, she helps businesses harness the power of technology for growth and success.