Google is hiring an army of work-from-home employees. “Quality Raters” will help evaluate the quality of search results in various countries and act as a supplement to Google’s computerized Web crawlers.
The company’s got a number of listingson its jobs page requesting some rather vague qualifications, including the statement that “specific areas of expertise are highly desirable.”
Unless you’re looking for work, why is this interesting? A few quick things:
- Whatever it takes: Competition among the engines continues to get more fierce, this is a sign from Google that they’ll do whatever it takes to lure more users and the advertisers who want to reach them.
- Man vs. machine: When it comes to relevancy, computer-generated algorithms don’t always cut it. Says Charlene Li in this articlein the Miami Herald: “The only way that your search results are more relevant than others is if you have more insight into how the human brain works.”
- Backtrack?: Google’s always been pretty vocal about keeping the humans out of picture and relying on automation for projects such as Google News. This is a deviation from that approach.
- Dot com caste system: Google said in its March filing that it employs a “significant” number of temps. Regular employees get stock and the full range of benefits. These recruits will not. And, as the Temp Positions FAQ Page states, it’s 12 months and you’re out (gotta watch that budget!).
Search Engine Journal has more.
