Submit.com has designed a new Innovation Portal which is being used by KAUST to track data to help with the Covid-19 fight.

This news comes as the Cork company is putting plans in place to scale significantly over the next two years and grow their team.

Submit.com was founded in 2013 and set out to disrupt the world of traditional online form submissions. Instead of building yet another form building and management software just for tech-savvy applicants and users, they wanted a platform that was made for the end-user first—fast to deploy, easy to use, and versatile enough to work around existing workflows that organisations rely on every day.

The idea for the business came about when the CEO, Pat Dinneen in a previous role, was attempting to place engineers in construction jobs but found it difficult to get candidates accepted based on traditional CVs alone. So, he decided to use video interviews to bring candidates to life. He wanted the potential employers to get to know the person behind an application form.

Pat said: “From there, we quickly realised that what we had built applied across multiple sectors. Anyone anywhere with a need to collect, manage and evaluate data online could use our platform.

“Fundamentally, we believe that collecting information online should be as simple as a conversation with a real person. Conversations aren’t boring — so why should online submission software feel dull.”

Paul McGuirk, Head of Enterprise at the Local Enterprise Office, Cork City said: “We have been working with Submit.com for many years now and have nominated them for this year’s National Enterprise Awards. Most local enterprise offices use their services too for their grant applications.

“Many local authorities, including Cork City Council, are also using their services for their online application process for Restart grants.”

Roberto Ciaramaria, Head of Innovation at KAUST, pointed out that in order to stay ahead of the curve, the university had invested in creating different online programs to foster innovation for creators worldwide, like their Covid Innovation Portal shifting collaboration and operations online so that the pandemic would not hinder creativity in science and technology.

KAUST is currently using Submit’s innovation portal for their accelerator applications and the Covid-19 innovation challenge KAUST teamed up with a global taskforce called The Covid Compass Taskforce.

The taskforce consists of experts in data science, location intelligence, code, economics, journalism, public policy and media, and it is committed to quickly publishing relevant, relatable and actionable data around the Covid-19 pandemic.

The main objective of the taskforce is to develop a real-time data dashboard that maps the most critical trends, events and impacts around the world in an easy-to-digest format with robust, timely data on a platform that is nimble and scalable and uses AI-drive sentiment analysis, trend modeling and real-time media monitoring. Covid Compass provides a simple, credible and authoritative roadmap that shows where we are and where we are headed in four critical areas:

Spread: Where we are on the curve of the pandemic—both globally and local Healthcare System: What is the capacity of the healthcare system globally and locally?

Intervention: How is government intervention working on slowing the pandemic?

Socio-economic Impact: What is the economic and social impact of the pandemic?

Other companies that work with Submit include Coco, which is a leading television and media production company based in Dublin.

They have a massive slate of diverse programmes broadcasting in Ireland, the UK and abroad with shows such as First Dates Ireland, Room To Improve and Don’t Tell the Bride Ireland. They use Submit.com to cast talent for these shows and more.

First Dates Ireland COCO produce the Irish version of the international reality television series. The programme is filmed at The Gibson Hotel in Dublin and shows people from different backgrounds on blind dates.

Four casting producers work on First Dates. They can spend months talking to people, understanding them and considering their matches, before bringing them to the restaurant in the Gibson Hotel.

They receive thousands of applications each year.

While the programme is entertainment, COCO takes its role in matching couples very seriously. They make full use of Submit’s feature suite, including auto-tagging.

An issue COCO had recently was with age-based questions. Before they asked it as a standard text question where people would fill in their age, but this had its drawbacks.

“People would maybe take a few years off themselves, so instead we have the question as a multiple-choice question with age ranges,” said Paul.

“We’ve seen a massive improvement since then.”

COCO implement a multi-phase approach to the application process for First Dates Ireland. A phone interview usually follows a completed application form, and if they’re successful, the applicant is invited to submit a three minute Q&A video clip.

“I know having the information on a screen in front of them as they’re speaking to the person is beneficial for the casting producers,” said Paul.

Dee Butler, Marketing Manager at Submit, said the company is now looking towards the US market as an area for expansion.

“Submit.com has set its sight on the US market, initially focusing on the innovation sector within organisations and universities using the success of existing collaborations like with The King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, otherwise known as KAUST and the Ignite innovation hub at University College Cork.”

“This is a very exciting time for Submit.com and we have a number of potential developments in the works.”