How would you like to quit your day job and go in search of adventure on the other side of the world?
To many, it may sound like the stuff of dreams — but with potentially nightmarish financial and professional repercussions.
Well, how about if you could do so while earning a living and advancing your career?
That’s exactly where recruitment site Jobbatical is trying to help. Listing tech, creative and business positions with start-ups in far-flung locations, the company aims to satisfy young people’s wanderlust while enabling them to boost their resumes, according to founder and CEO Karoli Hindriks.
“We’re establishing a global marketplace for career adventures,” Hindriks told CNBC Make It.
According to Hindriks, her site is a way of addressing the realities of the modern workforce.
It’s no secret that employee preferences are changing — especially among millennials. Studies point to the growing number of people who would trade traditional workplace benefits for greater flexibility and more career experiences. Meanwhile, the advantages of hiring staff with international experience are becoming increasingly recognized by employers.
But Jobbatical wants to make it easier for employees and employers to be “upfront” about that exchange, said Hindriks.
“We’re tackling the lie that a job is for life,” she said.
The majority of Jobbatical’s positions are considered permanent, lasting for a year at least. But Hindriks said the emphasis is on helping individuals find rewarding overseas work that allows them to justify taking time out — for the short or longer term — while also helping businesses access skilled international talent.
The idea was born out of Hindrik’s experience working for a stint with a start-up in Silicon Valley.
The concentration of top start-ups in the region has caused it to become the destination of choice for top talent, both domestically and internationally. But, in the process, it has led to escalating living costs and a shortage of talent in growing tech hubs like Hindriks’ native Estonia.
“I thought: Why don’t we collect these knowledgeable people in a cloud and build a digital country?” said Hindriks.
“This is the group of people that every country will be fighting for,” she told CNBC Make It, noting the growing international demand for skilled technical and creative workers. “So why not make it easier for them to connect with each other?”
Currently, Jobbatical works with businesses in approximately 50 countries, from Norway to Malaysia, and provides full immigration support and other relocation services in 42 of those.
It does not offer immigration support in the U.S., due to visa restrictions. However, the States represents Jobbatical’s largest talent pool, followed by Brazil, India, Russia and Ukraine.
Job positions range from those at young start-ups to more established businesses like Uber and, increasingly, government positions, according to Hindriks.
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