Career Guide

Career Guide is a modern web application for career decision-making that we custom-built for the Moravian-Silesian Employment Pact (MSPAKT). The project's goal was to connect self-discovery, labor market information and practical employment tools — all in one clear and interactive platform.

The application targets a wide audience: from students and recent graduates to people considering a career change or returning to work.

About the client and the public procurement context

The Moravian-Silesian Employment Pact has a long-standing focus on supporting employment and career development in the region. The project was funded from grant sources and builds on MSPAKT's previous activities (e.g. mujzivotposkole.cz, cestakzamestnani.cz). However, Career Guide is the first comprehensive application that combines self-discovery, labor market orientation, self-presentation and career planning in one environment — with the option of consulting a career advisor.

Before our collaboration began, there was no unified tool that offered users in one place:

• clarification of strengths, interests and values,
• mapping of skills and experience,
• an overview of professions that may be a good fit,
• practical tools for CV creation and interview preparation,
• inspiration for planning a career change and the ability to connect with a counselor.

Based on the brief, our goal was to create a clear, understandable and interactive application that:

• works without registration (registration is optional and allows saving results),
• guides the user step by step without overwhelming them,
• offers real value from the start: from exercises through a profession database to specific guides
• is engaging not just for the results, but also for the journey

How did the development of the application proceed?

• initial UX analysis with target user and scenario definitions,
• iterative design of information architecture and user flows,
• prototyping and testing with real users,
• ongoing feedback implementation until finalization.

Key features and application content

1. Self-Discovery

This section helps users clarify their career direction through interactive exercises and quizzes. They can discover suitable professions based on their interests, explore work values or map their experience using a personal SWOT analysis. Each section ends with a clear summary to help organize insights.

2. Labor Market Information

This section offers an overview of statistics and a database of profession cards, helping users navigate the labor market. It also includes links to relevant resources and other useful directories.

3. Self-Presentation

In the Self-Presentation section, users find practical tools for creating a CV and preparing for interviews. It includes quizzes, interview recommendations and basic labor law essentials.

4. Career Plan Creation

This section offers a simple and clear tool for building a career plan, especially during a job change. Users can set goals, steps and a timeline for their further professional direction. It helps turn thoughts about change into a concrete plan.

5. Career Counselor Consultation

If a user needs individual support, they can easily book a consultation with a career counselor. The application includes a direct link to an external booking system where they can choose a suitable time slot.

Technical solution and content management

The Career Guide application is built on the Next.js framework, providing the flexibility the application required. We chose PostgreSQL as the database.

As a standard practice, we always provide a content management system. In this case, due to the highly custom architecture, we chose PayloadCMS.

Responses from unregistered users are stored in the browser's local storage. Registered users' data is securely stored in the database.

For client-server data synchronization, we use a custom-built sync engine powered by the Zustand library.

User accounts are always secured with a strong password.

The entire application is designed in full compliance with GDPR principles, and all personal data processing occurs only with user consent.

The application is fully accessible to blind and visually impaired users. It is fully keyboard-navigable and we average a Lighthouse Accessibility score of 99+ out of 100.

Implementation process and team

• Timeline: October 15 - February 5 (accounting for winter holidays).
• Team: 4 key members – 2 developers, UX/UI designer, production oversight.

Process:

• analysis and design,
• core application and content module development,
• prototypes and user testing,
• ongoing approvals and iterations,
• final testing and launch preparation.

Client reference

We are very satisfied with the collaboration with TD Productions on the web application development. We appreciate the fast communication, creative approach to our brief and proactive suggestions for improvements. The resulting application looks professional and we gladly recommend the company.

What makes Career Guide unique

• One place for the entire process: from self-discovery through labor market orientation to concrete steps for employment.
• Full functionality without registration (with the option to sign in to save results).
• Practical tools, not just information: CV creation (including an interactive form and chat), quizzes, guides, interview preparation.
• A database of profession cards with search and filtering capabilities.
• Clear structure and understandable step-by-step user guidance.
• Ready for content and feature expansion through CMS.

Frequently asked questions