St. Louis entrepreneur Rich Dredge claims most job postings online are devoid of substance. They don’t provide much insight into a company other than the job they are seeking to fill and the qualifications needed to apply.
Dredge is providing an alternative. Through a new product and brand, called Largely, Dredge is offering companies a new format for job postings for companies, with a focus on using video to provide job candidates with a posting he contends offers an authentic look into a company.
Largely provides “job postings that really tell a story and emotionally connect with job seekers in a way that moves beyond the legal document aspect of what a job posting is and really make that job posting experience feel more like a marketing landing page that tells a story,” Dredge said.
Launched in the fourth quarter of 2021, Largely’s job posting software is being used by several local companies, including notable names like Anheuser-Busch and Medical Transportation Management.
Largely is part of Thumbraise Inc., a St. Louis-based startup that has developed an app to virtually connect investors and startup founders for venture capital funding deals. Largely was developed out of Thumbraise’s technology.
Key to the Largely platform is the use of videos that allows company managers, as well as rank-and-file employees, to record videos that speak to topics regarding the business. For example, at St .Louis-based Keeley Construction used Largely to create a job posting that includes videos of an employee talking about his career path at the company and an executive discussing the business’ culture. The videos, Dredge says, can help prospective candidates get a better understanding of the company before they move forward in the hiring process, giving individuals more comfort before a job interview.
Dredge says the videos and additional information included in Largley’s postings is paying off, according to internal data collected by the company. He says the data show prospective job candidates spend about four to 5.5 minutes per job posting and that individuals are two to three times more likely to apply for the role, compared to traditional job postings.
Largely’s platform involves employees recording videos for the job postings using their cell phones. Dredge said doing that makes the videos more casual and authentic.
“We actually prefer people not have to be like incredibly, perfectly polished,” Dredge said. “We want people to just be themselves, because that drives the highest impact on the candidate's side when they are viewing these videos. It translates to so much better outcomes.”
Largely’s platform is currently used by companies on their “owned and operated” channels, such as their own job boards, social media platforms and in direct outreach with candidates. Its talent recruitment platform is currently used by 19 companies, Dredge said. In addition to Anheuser-Busch, MTM and Keeley Cos., other brands using Largely are Tacony Corp., Busey Bank and GardaWorld.
Largely has a team of eight employees, with plans to double or triple the team over the next year as it seeks to add sales, marketing and engineering employees. One key hire for Largely has been the addition of Allison McCutcheon Barcz as chief strategy and people officer. Barcz previously was head of talent acquisition and partnerships at Anheuser-Busch.
Dredge said Largely hasn’t marketed its product much since its launch last year, relying on word of mouth and relationships to deploy the technology. As it seeks to add to its sales and marketing operations, Dredge said he feels confident Largely is entering the market at the right time, as companies grapple with talent shortages and the Great Resignation.
“It’s a perfect time to go into the market with this product, because companies are struggling to fill roles and this has been a great fit for companies to be able to do that,” he said.
