Michigan Planning Virtual Career Fair For IT, Tech Talent

LANSING -- The state of Michigan will sponsor the first state-sponsored virtual career fair Feb. 15 to connect talented IT and high tech professionals with employers.

"MiVirtualCareerFair: IT and High Tech" will provide a platform for Michigan businesses to interact with and recruit highly skilled job seekers from anywhere in the world within a live, 3-D virtual environment.

"Michigan employers have an urgent need for high tech and IT talent, but people with those specialized skills remain hard to find," said Amy Cell, vice president for talent enhancement at the Michigan Economic Development Corp. "By extending a company's recruiting reach with this virtual tool, we can help Michigan employers staff up and ramp up much more quickly and efficiently."   The MiVirtualCareerFair follows the December 2011 launch of Pure Michigan Talent Connect, an online talent marketplace bringing together thousands of jobs, unique career calculators and resources for employers seeking talent.

The MiVirtualCareerFair platform will provide the opportunity to:

* Connect and interact with recruiters and candidates from wherever you are, avoiding the time and expense of traditional career fairs.
* Upload and submit resumes for multiple job listings.
* Meet other job seekers or employers in the Networking Lounge.
* View informational videos in the Auditorium.
* Use Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to search for connections and update your status from within the event.

The online event will be live from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 15.  Employers have the option of either a standard ($500) or premium ($750) booth in the Virtual Exhibit Hall where they can post up to 100 job openings.

Booths can be easily customized with company branding, logos, graphics, video, and details such as company history, employee benefits, and contact information.  Post-event, exhibitors will receive in-depth analytics including candidate resumes, applications, chat transcripts, and booth visit data.  All openings posted during the fair will be accessible to job seekers for 30 days after the live event.

job seekers and employers will find informational videos at  www.MiTalent.org/VirtualCareerFair. Job seekers also can pre-register to attend and employers will find links to exhibitor rates and a form to request more information.

Michigan will host additional MiVirtualCareerFair events in 2012 aimed at finding the specialized talent Michigan companies need to grow and thrive.