Behind Jobstreet's #NextMillionJobs initiative in Indonesia

When Jobstreet by SEEK launched #NextMillionJobs in Indonesia, it wasn't just another corporate initiative - it was a strategic marketing play designed to capture both employer and jobseeker attention in a fiercely competitive market.

With free job postings at its core, the initiative aims to fuel employment growth across Indonesia. But beneath the surface, #NextMillionJobs is a bold marketing strategy that amplifies brand authority, fosters deep audience engagement, and reshapes employer perceptions.

The marketing team, led by Sawitri Soedarno (pictured), country head of marketing for Jobstreet Indonesia, has positioned #NextMillionJobs as more than just a job-matching initiative - it emerges as a solution to a national problem. MARKETING-INTERACTIVE sat down with Soedarno to discuss the campaign's inception, the methods that have fueled its reach, and how Jobstreet is changing Indonesia's employment landscape.

Labour puzzle and the 'freemium' model fixing it

Indonesia, the world's 16th largest economy, faces a unique labour challenge: a vast pool of jobseekers juxtaposed with employers struggling to find quality talent. According to Indonesia's manpower ministry, over 463,000 job vacancies were available nationwide in 2023, yet many positions remained unfilled due to inefficient hiring processes and limited access to quality candidates.

The lack of structured recruitment is also evident in the fact that just 42% of SMEs have gone digital. According to Indonesian chamber of commerce and industry, only 27 million out of 65 million SMEs are digitally connected.

On the other hand, the Indonesian government aims for the country to rank as the 5th largest global economy by 2045, as part of its "Indonesia Emas" vision, which will require 20 million more jobs to support a growing working-age population.

"We, as one of the biggest players in the employment market, have a role," Soedarno said. "We cannot wait until 2045; we need to start now. That's why we have this #NextMillionJobs movement. It's a cause with a big purpose in Indonesia."

Offering unlimited free job postings is a strikingly aggressive move, but it's also a classic growth marketing tactic. By removing the cost barrier, Jobstreet is significantly broadening its user base and inviting more businesses to engage with its ecosystem.

But free doesn't mean charity; it means conversion. Once businesses experience the platform's efficiency, they are more likely to explore Jobstreet's premium recruitment solutions, Soedarno said. It's a "freemium" model in action - one that has already driven a 60% increase in job postings outside Java within just five months of the campaign's launch in mid-2024.

This strategy also creates a network effect. The more job listings on the platform, the greater the number of jobseekers engaging with Jobstreet. Increased engagement boosts data quality, allowing the company to refine its job-matching algorithms, improve search results, and enhance overall user experience - all of which contribute to long-term retention and monetisation.

"#NextMillionJobs is the overarching initiative, but Jobstreet's real contribution to Indonesia lies in its free job postings. Any company can post jobs for free, but if they need better performance for hard-to-fill roles, they can pay," concluded Soedarno.

Hyperlocal expansion: reaching beyond Jakarta

Jakarta has long been the epicentre of Indonesia's employment landscape. Through #NextMillionJobs, the company is aggressively expanding into Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Maluku, Bali, Nusa Tenggara, and Papua, prioritising areas where digital hiring platforms remain underutilised.

"We saw a disparity in job opportunities, where 78% of job listings registered online are concentrated in Java. So when we launched #NextMillionJobs in Indonesia, we prioritised regions outside Java," Soedarno said.

To penetrate these markets, Jobstreet deployed hyperlocal marketing strategies: digital marketing tailored to regional business needs, employer education workshops, and collaborations with government agencies and HR practitioners to raise awareness and drive adoption.

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Jobstreet also places significant emphasis on engaging jobseekers through digital marketing and campus outreach, with 71 campus ambassadors across 17 universities. These ambassadors undergo a rigorous selection process and work to connect jobseekers with job ads.

Since July 2024, #NextMillionJobs has helped increase job listings outside Java by 2.4 times, Soedarno said. This year, Jobstreet will continue the initiative, extending its free job posting offering to businesses across Indonesia.

"It has to be constant, new, and ever-growing. We're not eCommerce, we're not ride-hailing. Once a candidate secures a job, they're unlikely to return to Jobstreet within a week or a month. What matters most is reaching jobseekers who have never searched for work online," she added.

Empowering job matching with AI

Under Jobstreet's freemium model, job ads are categorised by how many applications they can access. Free listings get up to 10 applicants, while premium options can access more. The platform also includes a library of 30,000 candidate questions that help companies filter applicants more effectively, reducing hiring time.

Soedarno said that Jobstreet has been leveraging AI to match jobseekers and employers more efficiently, improving the hiring process. "A lot of product development, powered by AI, is happening to improve job matching. Since the platform is unified across APAC countries, all AI-driven product developments and features have become top priorities," she said.

AI is instrumental in matching jobseekers with jobs by analysing "signals" such as keywords, job content (skills, requirements, benefits), language translation, ad freshness, and more. It also ranks job ads based on behavioral data accumulated over 25 years. Success stories, like M Mart in Bali reducing its hiring costs by 15%, highlight the platform's impact, Soedarno emphasised.

Additionally, Jobstreet's app includes "KarirKu," which offers short learning videos for upskilling and access to communities with experts. The company collaborates with HR influencers like Vina Mulyana to provide free CV reviews and coaching sessions.

Ultimately, the #NextMillionJobs initiative aims "to build a strong ecosystem through partnerships with the private sector, government, trade, and media," Soedarno said. Helping SMEs succeed aligns with her personal goal, while also embracing the rapid technological changes in marketing and recruitment.

She described the employment market as "brutal," noting that "people can find jobs anywhere if they're desperate." However, some things remain constant: "universities will always need help from job platforms to educate students, and companies will always seek promotions. The key is to focus on enhancing hire satisfaction," Soedarno said.

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