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(Translated version in English) 

 

Career mentoring anchored in real experience and personalisation, with AI technology as a supporting tool

 

Reported by Xiang Xue evaxiang@sph.com.sg

 

In this era of rapid digital development, the career mentoring industry is also experiencing an unprecedented revolution. More and more platforms are beginning to use artificial intelligence (AI) technology to provide job seekers with interview guidance, from resume analysis to simulation. For interviews, these tools undoubtedly have the advantages of speed and efficiency.

 

However, in an environment where humans and machines coexist, a local online career mentoring platform Jump Mentors still adheres to providing a one-on-one personalized service. Anchored by an experienced mentor team, Jump Mentors supports job seekers with holistic career guidance, workplace coaching and interview preparation.

 

Jump Mentors founder Lindy Heng (38 years old) pointed out in an interview with Lianhe Zaobao that generally artificial intelligence-based interview coaching tools can simulate interview situations, help predict three to five common questions, and predict how job seekers will answer. Body language may also be analyzed in real time to provide instant feedback and suggestions.

 

This technology can help job seekers better master interview skills, and it is also the service direction that the company plans to expand in the next step. However, only when artificial intelligence technology is combined with the actual experience of mentors can job seekers be provided with more comprehensive guidance and support. .

 

"Jump Mentors not only focuses on helping job seekers improve their interview skills, but also focuses on providing career planning and workplace guidance for job seekers from a long-term perspective. Our mentors all have 15 to 30 years of work experience, covering finance, technology, FMCG as well as other industries. Their work experience, especially the insights accumulated during the recruitment process, will be of great help to job seekers.”

 

Before starting her own business, Lindy worked in government departments and private companies. She revealed: "When I was working in the private sector, I often volunteered in mentoring activities, such as those organized by the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women to help female entrepreneurs in developing countries formulate business development strategies and expand their business. This inspired me to combine my passion for career mentoring with my desire to also become an entrepreneur.”

 

Jump Mentors was founded in early 2024. It is a start-up company and has not yet received financing. Lindy pointed out that fundraising is not the company's current focus.

 

"Compared with Europe and the United States, there are fewer professional career mentoring platforms in Singapore, and this business model is still in an emerging phase. The original intention of establishing Jump Mentors was not to become a "unicorn", but to enable more people to benefit from career guidance to jumpstart their careers.”

 

Lindy believes that many career guidance programs now focus more on students. For a wider group of working professionals, there are few similar platforms. She also pointed out that Asians also need to adjust their mindset with regards to career development.

 

She said: “In our discussions with working professionals, we found that many people may be willing to spend $300 to $400 a month to hire a fitness coach for themselves, but they are not willing to invest the same time and money in career guidance opportunities. In addition, many people tend to feel embarrassed when seeking career ADVICE, especially when the mentor is a stranger, and they do not dare to ask for help OR do not know what questions to ask. This mindset shift will take time."

 

To help address this, Jump Mentors has actively participated in various activities organized by the government initiative Mentoring SG since its inception, and has partnered with the Singapore National Library to organize career development-focused talks featuring mentors from Jump Mentors. 

 

Regarding Jump Mentors’ future development plans, Lindy said that in addition to exploring how to incorporate artificial intelligence technology, the company will also expand its mentor team, especially recruiting more mentors with backgrounds in artificial intelligence and advanced technology fields, because this is a popular career development topic at the moment.