Content Auditors: who are they and where do you find them

The more GP Solutions grows the more talented specialists we attract. These include and is not limited to developers, testers, managers and analysts – all the usual IT specialties that can be found on any career website. Recently, GP Solutions has begun actively hiring Content Auditors, without requiring any IT experience whatsoever. As a result, we decided to further discuss this atypical specialty with the PropertyView project.

– Hi, colleagues.

Thank you for agreeing to share with the GP Solutions blog about Content Auditor – who are they and where do you find them.

To begin with, please tell us about the PropertyView project.

Kate: PropertyView appeared as a technological solution to the initially manual process of hotel audit. Audit means checking the data that is provided on third-party sites and adjusting it in accordance with the reference information. The goal of PropertyView is to automate and optimize these processes in order to organize efficient and high-quality work with a large number of clients.

Antonina: Our first step was to create a system of auditing and updating data for hotels. Today we also work with spas, restaurants and this is only the beginning.

– Antonina, Kate, as managers, how does this project differ from others?

Antonina: First of all, PropertyView is a product development, which means we decide on our own how the project will go. The fact that everything we do is used in real work immediately gives us the chance to receive feedback from our users.

Kate: I agree with Antonina, there is freedom to innovate and optimize work. Plus, it’s a very interesting experience in managing non-technical teams. It has its own peculiarities, its own approaches.

– Recently PropertyView has been growing at a record pace precisely due to the recruitment of Content Auditors. There are plans to increase the team in February to 50 people, is that true?;)

Kate: Yes, we are already close to that goal!

Antonina: And our future plans are ambitious. Lookout for it in world news;)

– Is there some kind of mentoring system on PropertyView? We believe it must be difficult to adapt such a large number of newcomers to the project and its processes.

Antonina: Mentoring is the basis of the project, both from the content auditors’ and developers’ points of view. Developing the knowledge needed for this work is a huge undertaking, which is why beginners work under the strict guidance of more experienced staff members.

Kate: The training begins with a two-week internship with personal feedback and carries on when working in a team. The content auditor is responsible for improving the information provided about various properties, therefore, the quality of work should be at the highest level.

– So, that’s why HR jokes that, despite content auditors not requiring IT experience, they’re training is as of astronauts;)

Kate: Yes. At first glance, it seems that this work is simple and does not require special training, but in actuality, that is far from the truth. A good content auditor must have a certain set of qualities, e.g. soft skills, in order to do his job efficiently and grow professionally. It is also very important for our employees to enjoy the work they do and strive for excellent results.

Antonina: That’s why we choose candidates thoroughly and conduct a 2-week internship. During this time, the individual receives a steady stream of information and actually learns what the profession entails (building the foundation). Meanwhile, we evaluate whether that individual is right as rain, hereby preventing high staff turnover.

– Anna, you have been working on the PropertyView project for more than a year, what qualities and soft skills, in your opinion and experience, are important for the role of a content auditor?

First of all, high learning ability is crucial. There are no similar professions in other companies, there are no training courses, so beginners have to learn everything from scratch. And only those who quickly grasp the material and the essence of the work will succeed.

Equally important is – attention to details. During my career as a content auditor, I have developed this skill quite graciously. And today, it has come in handy not only at work;)

And finally curiosity, of course. It is important for newcomers not just to learn how to push buttons according to the instructions, but also with an understanding of what, where and why. To do this, during the training process, colleagues should have a desire to thoroughly study everything, understand and delve into the processes of the project system.

– Why did you choose this position to start your career in IT?

This job found me itself;) I saw a LinkedIn post from Anastasia, PR Head, that GP Solutions are looking for people with knowledge of English for the position of Content Auditor. At first I, like everyone else, didn’t understand what kind of position this was and tried to Google it;)

Then, when I got acquainted with the job description, I was very attracted by its travel specifics and need to work in English, since I love learning languages and the travel industry. Even on YouTube travel reviews are my favorite ones. After the test task, I caught the essence and wanted to try my hand at this work.

And, after a couple of weeks of work, I matched exactly with the project, the team and GP Solutions itself.

– Tell us what your working day routine looks like.

As a mentor, the first thing I do is write to my mentees. I find out what issues they have in order to plan communication for the day. Then I always contact the team lead to determine the tasks and discuss any blocking issues.

Then we have a traditional daily meeting with the manager, where the whole team discusses the progress of the previous day and new tasks, as well as audit policy issues. Then, together with the lead, I set priorities and get to work, simultaneously supervising interns and newcomers, helping to iron out any trouble they might be facing.

My job as a content auditor primarily consists of standard projects. The essence of a typical project is to introduce a new hotel/restaurant/spa into the system and enter or update the existing information about it as fully as possible. Based on this “benchmark” from the system, track the relevance of information across all travel resources that we work with (I believe you are  familiar with them: Booking.com, TripAdvisor, Expedia, etc.) and, if necessary, correct any incorrect information or complete any other missing information.

In general, there are many tasks of different natures: 

• extranet tasks (this is when we correct information in the admin areas of client sites), 
• tickets (processing requests from customers, sometimes very challenging ones),
• helping other auditors, mentoring,
• working on special requests from the team in the USA,
• also, during the working day, content auditors are in touch with the development team, as the system needs regular technical support, and auditors always have ideas for improving it;)

Dear colleagues, thank you for shedding more light on and educating everyone interested about the position of the Content Auditor. We wish you speedy development, successful cases and we are looking forward to seeing PropertyView on the pages of the world media.

Finally, the regular column “Blitz”. Answer quickly and without hesitation;)

1. Quality or quantity? Give one reason.

Kate: Quality. This is the key to success.

Antonina: Quality. In my opinion, it is better to do something well once than many times badly.

Anna: Definitely quality. It is better to take longer, but do things properly, than to lose a lot of time to correct previous mistakes.

2. How many alarms do you set for the morning?;)

Kate: One.

Antonina: Only one lately (we wonder how many there were before;))

Anna: A lot, from 5 to 10;)

3. Cats vs dogs. Who will you choose?

Kate: Children, there is no time left for dogs;)

Antonina: Cats, if I need to choose, but I like them both;)

Anna: I love all animals! But in my Instagram recommendations cats have a stronger presence;)

4. Favorite day of the week? Why?

Kate: Thursday, the weekend is almost here.

Antonina: I don’t have such a day, every day is special and comes just once.

Anna: Wednesday. It’s not the beginning anymore and there’s not much left, but it’s not the end yet and it seems that you have enough to do everything;)

5. “IT’s stereotypes”. Have you ever been on a call with a client, at home in your pajamas and with the camera turned off?;)

Kate: No, never. I stick to the rule of calling with the camera turned to enable eye to eye contact with the other perso;)

Antonina: Once I participated in an online meeting while on a bench in the city center, watching my daughter’s dance course.

Anna: To be honest, I had such a habit: I’d be in a bathrobe, with a towel on my head and a mask on my face;) But since Kate joined the project, I’ve inculcate the habit of always turning on the camera and now I can’t communicate without eye contact myself.