Pivoting Macs List Job Board In The Time Of COVID-19 [Podcast]

Episode #189 – Marc Interviews Mac Prichard, Owner of Mac’s List, on How He is Pivoting his Business

Description:

Mac’s List is a Pacific Northwest job board driven by a simple idea: the hiring process should be more human. When we break down the barriers between employers and job seekers, everybody wins.

As the top career resource for Passionate Professionals in Oregon, and Washington, we focus on sharing high-quality job listings and actionable resources that help people find and land the jobs they deserve.

Mac Prichard is the Founder and Publisher of Mac’s List, where he writes regularly about job hunting, leads classes on job search skills, and hosts the Find Your Dream Job podcast. Mac also owns and operates Prichard Communications, a public relations agency that serves non-profits, public agencies, and foundations across the United States. When he’s not hard at work, Mac can be found watching classic movies, snapping photos during his travels, or walking around Ladd’s Addition with his wife Kris and Weimaraner Kai.

A Special Announcement

Gene Snider who was interviewing episode #184 passed away on August 6th of 2020.

Gene was such a valuable member of the Career Pivot community, he was a generous soul who lovingly donated his time, expertise, and experience. This has shaken me as well as others in the community. Gene attended the Start a Business or Entrepreneurship mastermind group meetings over zoom every Tuesday. It was the highlight of his week and we loved him dearly for his support. Gene was 71 years old.

This episode is sponsored by Career Pivot. Check out the Career Pivot Community.

Now on to the podcast…

What is Mac’s List?

Mac runs a business call Macslist.org based in Portland Oregon, and they sell job listings.

It started out with Mac just sending out job listings to his list as a free service. This was turned into a business about 10 years ago. What makes Mac’s List special is all they do to help job seekers find jobs and employers make better hires. They want to make hiring more human.

Keeping Mac’s List Afloat

Since the pandemic began business is down 80%, which is up from the original 65%.

Mac’s first step was to get as much government money as possible. This included getting a loan from the Paycheck Protection Program. He was also able to get some small grants from the small business administration. He was fortunate that the business checked off all of the boxes.

The next step was to control expenses. He was able to renegotiate his office lease and went from having 2000 sq. ft. of office space to 200 sq. ft and transition all of his employees to work remotely. Only Mac goes into the office. Even though Mac’s staff is working 3 days a week he has not cut back on marketing.

The state of Oregon has a program called Work Share Oregon which allows employers with 3 or more employees to furlough employees 1-2 days a week while still receiving full benefits.

Trends that Mac is Seeing

Employers are still hiring. Mac’s List has gone from 225 listings to 75. New listings are still coming in.

Almost half of the listings are from non-profits. What has changed is things have slowed down. Employers are not in a hurry anymore.

Everything in the hiring process has become virtual.

Pandemic is teaching us that it is possible to work remotely but it requires a lot of effort.

What is the Future for Mac’s List?

Mac is enthusiastic about the future as there will be a need for a specialty job boards like Macslist.org.

Mac works more than the 3 days he is paid for. He puts in a full 40 hours.

Mac’s List is now virtual and that will not change when the pandemic is over. He is looking at diversifying revenue streams by leveraging affiliate marketing.

Mac has learned to make decisions faster.

He is looking at all of the business processes.

His company is only as good as his people. Mac’s people are his best assets and he wants to retain them.

Connect with Mac on LinkedIn and say you found Mac on this podcast.

You can also find Find Your Dream Job podcast on all of the popular platforms and on his website.