By Andy Owens
aowens@scbiznews.com
Published Oct. 9, 2012

A Charleston-based software development company launched an application this week in Chicago aimed at human resource professionals.

Chad Norman, director of marketing for Sparc LLC, said the company’s interview management system, Sparcin, debuted a live interview application at the HR Technology Conference & Expo in Chicago to help recruiters conduct interviews on a mobile device or desktop computer.

“The basic layout shows high-level candidate information, the current question with suggested answers, user ratings, notes and a queue of upcoming questions,” Norman said in email. “With the tap of a finger, interviewers can add, delete or swap questions based on the direction and natural flow of the conservation.”

Sparcin launched in June at the Society for Human Resource Management conference, he said, and was well-received by HR professionals at the conference. More than 60 companies have registered for the software, Norman said.

The Charleston region has several technology-based companies focused on human resources, recruiting and benefits management. PeopleMatter, whose CEO recently referred the region as Silicon Harbor, provides hiring, scheduling and other HR tools, and Benefitfocus, which just opened a location in San Francisco, provides online benefits tools for companies and their employees.

Both PeopleMatter and Sparc’s software tools include employee engagement features, something that builds on the prevalence of mobile devices and social media.

“Sparcin is designed to be used (by) any company in any industry that’s hiring, but it’s most useful for HR professionals or recruiters who experience high volumes of interviews,” Norman said. “The system is designed to support the interviewer, so anyone who is conducting an interview can benefit from using the application.”

Sparc jumped into the HR sector in February, Norman said, when the company launched Sparcet, a free recognition application that provides “unfiltered employee recognition across an organization.” Sparc now has three human resources-related products in the market.