Quote: “We’re not a static job board, we are not a static list and we’re not like LinkedIn.”

In this episode of the Ignite Podcast, Michael Waitze is joined by Marc Wohling, the co-founder of !Kontakte,  a web-based platform and mobile application that helps link employers to potential candidates. As a free talent marketplace, !Konttakte is dedicated to solving recruitment problems through offering a more targeted, immediate and flexible service that’s unique to the recruitment industry. In this podcast, they discuss Marc’s unusual path to foundership, the conceptualization of their operating system for global contingent and the Fourth Industrial Revolution. 

 From Techno to the Tech Industry

Born and raised in Southern Australia, Marc has had quite a unique journey on his path to foundership. His family all had working backgrounds so it was no surprise that he followed in their footsteps, leading him to work in the trade construction industry. 

Marc explained that during that time, he had fallen in love with music, so much so that he decided to study it whilst doing his apprenticeship in construction. He revealed that his love for the arts and music grew over time and led him into the world of electronic music. This was his beginning in his interest in technology. 

His new journey into the tech industry, through his degrees in Environmental Science, led him down a path in the global consulting industry. He tells Michael about his experience doing work with sustainable livelihoods, organisational development, UX/UI design and how he adopted technology into !Kontakte. 

Fusion of Digital Technologies and Humans

“The enormous computing power that we’ve seen is going to push us into a society that’s augmented by machine learning and Artificial Intelligence,” said Marc. 

As the boundaries between technology, in the physical, digital and biological world, become increasingly blurred, it has paved the way for more digital transformations and disruptive technologies in almost every industry around the world. 

However, as a result of this, there is a level of hysteria brewing, with some arguing that this new age could lead to an increasingly segregated society. With some low-skill/low-pay jobs slowly fading into the background, there could be a potential risk for social tension - which is where !Kontakte comes in. 

Marc discusses his motivations behind !Kontakte, and how he believes !Kontakte plays an integral role in helping people of all backgrounds and ages adapt to the rapidly changing working environment as they transition to the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

On-demand  Connections

“We’re not a static job board, we are not a static list and we’re not like LinkedIn.”

Whether you’re applying for a job or trying to recruit someone for it, the anxious wait while you’re in limbo waiting for a response can be excruciatingly stressful. And with our current on-demand economy, speed and efficiency is highly sought after. 

Marc explains the common recruitment problems for businesses, such as slow response times, high recruitment fees and wasted time rummaging through applications that aren’t even suitable for the job offer. He then goes on to detail how his platform mitigates these issues by operating in real-time. 

As a result, Kontakte has become an efficient and intuitive platform that has been layered on top of already existing infrastructures, successfully adding value to a common problem everyone experiences. 

To learn more about Marc Wohling and his insight on the Fourth Industrial Revolution,