The Build Shift - AI Career Tools for Tech
Product Strategy
AI Integration
Career Development
UX Design
Community Building
Solo Entrepreneurship
Project Overview
The Build Shift is an AI-powered career platform designed specifically for tech professionals navigating the broken job market. Built to address the 'entry-level: 5 years required' problem, it provides smart CV analysis, personalized career guidance, portfolio project ideas, and job description decoding to help juniors and career shifters succeed.
Problem Statement
The UK tech job market is broken for new entrants and career shifters:
- “Entry-level” jobs requiring 5+ years experience - making it impossible for juniors to get their first role
- Generic career advice that doesn’t understand tech - CV reviewers suggesting “synergize” instead of highlighting relevant projects
- ATS systems filtering out qualified candidates - especially those with non-traditional backgrounds
- Portfolio paralysis - endless “build projects” advice without specific guidance on what actually gets hired
- Job description confusion - unclear requirements and unrealistic expectations that don’t match reality
Solution
The Build Shift addresses these problems through four core features:
- Smart CV Analysis - AI that understands tech careers and gives specific, actionable feedback like “highlight your TypeScript project for this role” instead of generic advice
- AI Career Advisor - Remembers your goals and journey, provides personalized guidance for pivots and career progression
- Portfolio Project Ideas - Specific project suggestions based on what employers actually want to see, not another to-do app
- Job Description Decoder - Real match percentage analysis and exact skills to highlight for specific job applications
Approach
- Rapid Prototyping - 3-hour MVP built with Lovable to validate core concepts
- AI-First Design - Leveraging AI to level the playing field rather than make it worse
Impact
- Early Beta Success - 50+ users in first week
- Real Problem Solving - Addressing actual pain points rather than creating solutions in search of problems
- Inclusive Approach - Designed for bootcamp grads, career switchers, and non-traditional backgrounds
Key Learnings
- AI Should Empower, Not Replace - Using AI to help humans succeed rather than filter them out = The Power of Prototyping - Using Lovable the Build Shift went live to users in 3 hours
Technology Stack
- Frontend: Vite (built with Lovable)
- AI Integration: Gemini
- Backend: Supabase with Edge functions
Future Plans
- Scale the Beta - Expand to help 1,000+ job seekers
- Enhanced AI - Deeper integration with job market data and hiring trends
- Community Features - Peer support, success stories, and mentorship connections
- AI Credits - Using the user system, integrate a credit based system associated with accounts.
The Mission
Every senior developer started as a junior. The Build Shift exists to ensure that talented people don’t give up on tech careers because of a broken hiring process. Your first tech job should be exciting, not soul-crushing before you even begin.
3 hours
Initial MVP Build
100%
Free for Job Seekers
AI-Powered
Career Intelligence