How Alex Lockey Built Boltjobs: A Job Board for the Education Sector

Boltjobs is a specialized job board designed to make it easier for people to find opportunities in further education, skills, and learning sectors. Founded by Alex Lockey, a former recruitment consultant, Boltjobs is the result of Alex's desire to productize his deep industry knowledge. He recognized that traditional job boards often fell short when it came to the specific needs of the education sector. He envisioned a platform that could bridge this gap, offering job seekers a tailored experience and providing employers with access to a pool of qualified candidates.

With his expertise in recruitment but limited technical skills, Alex turned to the MVMP program to build his vision without needing a developer.

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The Challenges

Before joining the MVMP program, Alex encountered several challenges:

• Translating Industry Knowledge into a Product: Alex knew the education sector inside out but needed guidance on how to build a digital product that would serve both job seekers and employers effectively.
• Building a User-Friendly Platform: Creating a job board that provided a smooth experience for users and allowed for easy job posting, searching, and applications was essential.
• Resource Constraints: As a bootstrapped founder, Alex needed a way to build and maintain the platform without incurring high costs.

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The MVMP Approach

The MVMP program provided Alex with the roadmap and tools needed to bring Boltjobs to life using no-code tools. Key aspects of the program that helped Alex included:

• No-Code Playbooks for Job Boards: The MVMP program’s playbooks guided Alex through building a job board using Webflow for the front end, Airtable for managing job listings and candidate data, and Make.com for automations.
• Personalized Roadmaps: Alex received a tailored roadmap that broke down each step of building his MVP, from setting up automated job postings to creating a user-friendly search experience.
• Community Feedback: Input from the MVMP community helped Alex refine Boltjobs’ features, ensuring that the platform met the needs of job seekers and employers alike.

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Building the MVP

With the MVMP program’s support, Alex built Boltjobs into a fully functional job board in just over two months. Here’s how the process unfolded:

• Designing the Platform with Webflow: Webflow allowed Alex to create a sleek, responsive website that catered specifically to the education job market. The platform enabled employers to post jobs and job seekers to create profiles and apply directly, without needing custom code.
• Managing Job Listings with Airtable: Airtable served as the backend for storing job listings and candidate profiles, making it easy to update and manage the data. Alex set up custom views for employers and job seekers to access the information they needed.
• Automating Workflows with Make.com: Alex used Make.com to automate critical processes, like notifying job seekers of new listings that matched their preferences and sending reminders to employers about candidate applications.

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Results & Impact

Boltjobs quickly gained traction in the niche job market, delivering measurable results:

• User Growth: Within three months of launch, Boltjobs attracted over 500 active job seekers and over 100 employers, all through organic marketing efforts.
• Reduced Time-to-Hire: Employers using Boltjobs reported a 25% faster time-to-hire compared to traditional job boards, thanks to targeted candidate matching and a streamlined application process.
• Cost Savings: By using no-code tools, Alex saved over $12,000 in development costs, allowing him to focus on building partnerships with training providers and further education institutions.

One employer shared, “Boltjobs made finding qualified candidates for our roles in education much easier. It’s a game-changer for niche recruitment.”

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What’s Next for Boltjobs?

With the MVP up and running, Alex is focusing on expanding Boltjobs’ reach and functionality:

• Advanced Search Features: Alex is working on adding more filters to help job seekers find the right roles quickly using Airtable’s API.
• Partnerships with Education Providers: By collaborating with training institutions, Alex aims to offer exclusive job listings and career resources to job seekers.
• Ongoing Iteration: Alex continues to gather feedback from users and make improvements to ensure that Boltjobs remains the go-to platform for jobs in further education, skills, and learning.

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