Like many companies starting out, Brazen has changed its path many times. The site launched in March 2008 as a compilation of Gen Y bloggers. It then reformed itself into more of a social network site, still aggragating blogs, but allowing features such as profiles and groups. Finally, Brazen began to transform the site into a career management tool for Generation Y.
Although Brazen isn't as popular as many social networks, it's growing every day. While the founders recognize that Facebook is "home base" and LinkedIn "is the dominant player in the online career network space," Brazen Careerist allows Gen Y to "meet new people, build a network, and have work related conversations" in ways that people do not actively engage on Facebook. And, unlike LinkedIn, where "profiles emphasize experience- something people in their twenties are a little short on," Brazen caters to the younger generation.
I learned about Brazen from Ryan Healy, COO, after meeting him in person in November 2007. For my Interviews and Profiles class at Fordham University, we had an assignment to interview someone "famous". Now, as you know, in the world of reality TV and stars like Heidi and Spencer, "famous" is a relatively subjective term.
I decided to interview Ryan after seeing "The 'Millennials' are Coming" on 60 Minutes. Generation studies-specifically the Millennial generation, also known as Gen Y-have always been one of my interests. At the time, he was in the process of launching Brazen Careerist. He described Brazen to me as a site where Gen Y would be able to interview future employers instead of the other way around. As the Millennial generation enters the work force, he told me, we have the opportunity to change the way things are done. We are entering the workforce in record numbers. There are 80 million of us to be exact. And as the Baby Boomers retire, Generation X will be about 30 million people short in replacing their positions. This means, in many cases, Generation Y will move up the ladder quicker.
As the company started out, Brazen Careerist experienced growing pains, but lucky for them, Generation Y is known to be forgiving- especially when the mistakes are transparent- and as members of Gen Y, its founders seem to understand this.
As Healy puts it:
You might be thinking, why does Brazen Careerist keep changing what they’re doing? My response to that question is, we didn’t really have a choice. Over the past six months we’ve listened to the community and we’ve listened to the marketplace. And what they both keep telling us is that young professionals (Gen Y) are looking for a professional home on the internet.
(Sound familiar? Listening to your audience? Isn't this what Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff have been saying all along in Groundswell?)
The site has all the basic elements of a social network. Users make their own profiles, create their own contact lists, join groups, etc. Brazen allows users to combine everything on the site- from blog posts, to group chatter, to profile updates. In addition, the site allows you to showcase your resume, but while Brazen Careerist is a career management tool, it emphasizes ideas over experience.
At its most basic element, Brazen is a site for Generation Y to connect with each other. Personally, I haven't experienced much with the site. Although I have a profile, I have almost no contacts on the site and don't know many others who belong. I do, however, turn to Brazen to read articles, and receive their newsletter updates that describe the progression of the site.
As Brazen catches on, and the conversations continue, it will be easier to connect with others and share your ideas with "the people who look for them", as Brazen puts it. Specifically:
- Employers and recruiters looking to hire
- Peers at work or in your field
- Entrepreneurs seeking collaboration
- Reporters looking for expert opinions
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1 comment:
I just spent some time playing around on the site. I think that, if it really takes off, it could be a really cool thing. It looks like those already using the site are very active.
What I liked best about it is that it could be very useful for employers. The site's target is passionate, tech-savvy and creative Gen Y-ers (the effort to use the site and take time to build a profile acts as sort of a filter).
The site has set up an environment that attracts a very specific kind of person -- so an employer looking for someone fitting that description would have a place to find them.
When we were trying to hire a replacement for me when I went to grad school, this site would have come in handy, because this site's audience is exactly who we were looking for. Instead, we posted on Craigslist, Monster, etc and had to do a LOT of wading.
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