How to Turn This Into a Business Opportunity?

Hi Warriors,

The WF is such a great brain trust/mastermind. Just for fun, I'm wondering if Warriors could come up with business opportunity idea for this problem:

There are a LOT of people out of work right now and spending endless days searching for a job. Being unemployed is humiliating and demoralizing and it's exacerbated by the employers' preference for hiring currently employed people (the assumption being that there's something wrong with you if you're currently UNemployed). Even worse, there are a lot of job and biz-op scams aimed at the unemployed which prey on their desperation.

However, one of the worst things about searching for jobs is the almost complete lack of professionalism from employers when it comes to responding to job seekers' applications for posted positions. A simple "Thanks, but no thanks" response would end the limbo hell a job seeker is in when waiting to hear back.

(I lost my job last Feb. The company I worked for was highly professional when dealing with their employees and I've been absolutely APPALLED by the lack of professionalism in the subsequent companies I've interviewed with.)

I'm not talking about responding just to an application. I DO understand that there is an overwhelming number of applicants for every posted position. But for those who have actually interviewed, been asked to take a test, do a spec project, etc. Well, they at least deserve the courtesy of a response. But a lack of response (and professionalism) seems to be the norm these days.

It's infuriating, but the "Oh well, suck it up" and "Just move on, they can't respond to EVERYONE"-type responses are standard.

I found a hilarious article (dated last Jan.) on a New York Times blog detailing how one job seeker responded to the interviewing company's non-response:

Complaint Box | The E-Snub - NYTimes.com

While I could certainly never do what the author did (lack of professionalism, etc.) I found myself cheering his actions. Go him!

There are over 300 comments to this blog post, some sympathizing with the writer and others criticizing him.

But opinions and morals aside.... Is there a business opportunity here?

I think all Warriors would agree that some simple autoresponders would solve the non-response problem nicely. But that's apparently beyond the capabilities of HR in corporate America.

Complaining does no good. Instituting an online smear campaign for revenge (writing negative customer reviews for example) has possibilities. Going even further with that idea, thinking like a black hat competitor and sabotaging their business/sales in some way sounds even better.

But we're above that. (Ahem.)

So... Aside from offering our opinions... Is there a viable business opportunity here?

Companies typically understand only one thing: sales. (Oh yes, AND they spend inordinate sums on PR and other reputation management-type services.)

I'm not looking for creative ideas to get a job with a company that's rejected you. I'm looking for ideas on either 1) how to create a business by solving the non-response problem for job-seekers and/or 2) how to create a business opportunity with a company that's rejected you -- and possibly even get MORE money out of them.

I can't think of anything at the moment myself. And I don't see how setting up a business which responds to job seekers' applications FOR the employers could be done. ???

Success in your own life is it's own sweet revenge. So I'm just wondering what ideas Warriors can come up with. IM offers so many opportunities...

Michelle