We’re seeing large tech companies begin to take a more holistic approach to candidate sourcing and recruiting by applying their innovation mindsets to finding people with the raw skills, intelligence, and drive. This shift is also gaining momentum across other industries, as employers grapple with skilled talent shortages and ever-evolving demands for new capabilities.
Summary
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In 2023, 77% of companies in a global survey reported talent shortages and difficulty hiring, a 17-year high. By 2025, this figure remains concerning at 74%.
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To expand their talent pools, firms are easing or eliminating the degree filter in online job applications, looking instead at skills gleaned through prior work and life experience natural leadership qualities and even work testimonials from peers or past managers.
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Giving workers from all backgrounds equal access to opportunity, while meeting the demand for skilled talent, begins by reimagining the criteria used to source and hire the best people; university degrees are important, but only one consideration among many.
The hiring landscape has never been more dynamic. Companies around the world are finding creative and innovative ways to adapt to the new demands of the post-COVID-19 talent marketplace. One of the more interesting developments is in the area of degree requirements or, as some would have it, degree bias. In 2023, 75% of companies in the ManpowerGroup global survey reported talent shortages and difficulty hiring, a 17-year high. To expand their talent pools, more and more firms are easing or eliminating the degree filter in online job applications for certain positions, looking instead at skills gleaned through prior work and life experience, natural leadership qualities and verified work testimonials. This increases candidate flow and the ability to achieve diversity and inclusion goals — the 'S' in ESG.
Focusing less on degrees (tearing through the paper ceiling) and more on ability is a win-win for employees and employers. As Adam Grant said: “The mark of higher education isn't the knowledge you accumulate in your head. It's the skills you gain about how to learn.”
We must become creators of talent
Only 11% of business leaders strongly agree that graduates from higher education have the necessary competencies to work in their companies. And, many employers now acknowledge that degree requirements can block access to the right talent.
With the skills needed to succeed changing faster than ever and the need to unleash dormant potential becoming more urgent, taking a more expansive view of a candidate’s skills and capabilities is imperative. Employers can use data analytics, science-based assessments and authentic work testimonials to make better choices and unearth rich talent that they otherwise might have missed — which is good for them, the economy and our society.
Here are three definitive, but not exclusive, steps organizations can take to become creators of talent:
1. Hire for learnability
We must fast-track training and reskilling of existing employees to ensure we have a future-ready workforce, while also attracting those who are not currently participating in the labour market. Thinking about 'learnability' when hiring is the best way to prepare for whatever new jobs and skills will be needed in the next year or the next decade. Asking for work testimonials as part of the application can reveal how individuals adapt to change, learn on the go, and overcome challenges in real-world settings.
2. Promote based on what you can do, not what you have done
By hiring based on potential versus past performance, businesses can fill talent shortages while accessing experience, unique skills and innovative thinking. Incorporating a work testimonial into the hiring process can further highlight an individual's potential and strengths. In doing so they can develop talent and advance people internally, saving time and money on external recruiting.
3. Have regular career conversations with employees
This helps to enable a learning culture and there is a direct correlation with higher employee engagement and productivity. Employees regularly say they would be more engaged at work if their managers have ongoing career conversations with them. By encouraging and focusing on development, organizations foster a workplace where people are more involved, productive and focused on career development.
The tech industry leads the way
In recent months, we’ve seen the likes of Google, Microsoft, Apple, and others begin to take a more holistic approach to candidate sourcing and recruiting. They’re applying their innovative mindsets to finding people with the raw skills, experience, intelligence, and drive to help them continue to lead in their respective categories. In some cases, they also collect structured work testimonials during the screening process to uncover character, team collaboration and values alignment.
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Create equal opportunities for workers regardless of academic degrees.
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Address the urgent need for skilled talent at all levels.
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Start by redefining hiring criteria, focusing on skills rather than qualifications alone.
University degrees are important, but only one consideration among many.
