For decades, résumés and degrees have acted as shorthand for capability. Today, employers across industries are signaling that those proxies are no longer enough.
Hiring leaders are increasingly adopting skills-based hiring, evaluating candidates based on what they can actually do — not just where they’ve worked or which credentials they hold. This shift reflects a deeper change in how organizations define readiness, assess talent, and plan for future workforce needs.
Recent research shows that nearly three-quarters of employers now use skills-based assessments in their hiring process. Employers report that this approach reduces mis-hires, shortens time-to-hire, lowers hiring costs, and improves retention — because testing real skills mirrors real work.
At the same time, degree requirements are quietly disappearing. Employers like Google, Microsoft, IBM, and Apple have removed four-year degree requirements for many roles, prioritizing demonstrated skills, adaptability, and potential over pedigree.
The challenge isn’t employer demand — it’s demand signaling.
Employers know which skills they need. Learners and workers often don’t. Job descriptions still rely on titles, while education systems organize learning around courses, not capabilities. This disconnect leaves skills hidden, talent underutilized, and pathways unclear.
Where Journeys Map fits:
Journeys Map is a skills-based workforce and career navigation platform designed to make skills visible across learning, work, and opportunity. It helps employers, educators, and workforce leaders translate roles into skills, surface existing capability, and align training pathways with real job requirements.
Skills-based hiring isn’t just changing how people get jobs — it’s changing how organizations define potential. The question is whether our systems are ready to respond.
Request a demo or connect with us to see how Journeys Map supports skills-first hiring, training, and workforce readiness.