New Apps Can Help You Look For Jobs Under The Radar

BOSTON (CBS) - One of the hardest parts of looking for a new job is making sure a current employer doesn't know about it. A new family of apps is now helping people search for a new career more quietly.

Erick McCloe used SwitchApp to help him look for a new position in sales.  He was very concerned about not sabotaging the job he held at the time.

Other sites include PoachtApp, Poachable, and Whitetruffle.

These sites are often best for someone who is a 'passive candidate'.  This means the person is not actively looking for a new job, but is open to new opportunities.

The sites work in the same manner as a dating app.  They use algorithms and assessment tools to make matches.  Recruiting specialist Tony Beshara believes they offer the job seeker many benefits.  "The candidate doesn't run the risk of looking for a job, or go to the trouble of having to interview very often, or put his resume out on job boards, or things like that.  So in other words, the jobs come to them."

To get started, a user creates a custom profile.  Most tools allow credentials from LinkedIn to be imported, although they are disguised and abbreviated.

Some sites also allow a user to list what it would take for them to be poached from their current position.  "A lot of the preliminary issues of whether or not you'd be a good fit are out of the way," said Beshara.

When a match is made and the company wants to talk, the user decides whether or not to move forward and reveal their identity.

Yarden Tadmor of Switch explained, "Then the two sides can go into a direct chat communication, and can start sending messages to one another.  It's a very efficient and quick way to directly talk to companies."

While each site works differently, they all say they take precautions so a user is not matched to their current company.

Certain fields like technology, digital media, and finance offer the most opportunities right now.