How to convince your C-suite to move away from a campus- and to skills-based hiring

For decades, the conventional wisdom, especially amongst enterprise-level employers, has been that they need to send teams of recruiters, hiring managers, and others to college and university campuses in order to recruit interns, recent graduates, and other early career professionals. Thankfully, it has become clear to many that on-campus recruitment is a good avenue to reach those candidates, but far from the only avenue.

One of the problems with a campus-based hiring approach for employers who want to hire students and recent graduates is that it prioritizes the schools that the candidates happened to attend, which is poorly correlated with their likely work performance, over an evaluation of their skills, which are highly correlated with their likely work performance. But it is one thing for the recruiters and other talent acquisition leaders involved in the hiring of early career candidates to understand this and want to shift to a more skills-based hiring process and another thing for them to convince their C-suite.

To uncover compelling arguments for a shift towards skills-based hiring, we’ve gathered insights from eight industry experts, including a Chief People Officer and a business development manager. From showcasing productivity gains to linking skills hiring to performance excellence, these leaders provide eight strategies to convince the C-suite of the value of this more data-driven hiring approach.

Showcase Productivity Gains

Speak the C-suite’s “language” and show them the numbers. Skills-based hiring increases team diversity, which studies show increases productivity by 35 percent and helps teams make better decisions 87 percent of the time.

There’s also the labor strategy to consider, especially as teams struggle to fill highly skilled roles because of industry-wide talent shortages. When you loosen the impractical candidate restrictions and hire for skills alone, you don’t discount otherwise viable professionals who could make great new hires. 

You can also decrease your business’s time to hire and improve candidate fit, both of which have significant financial and functional payoffs. Give your leaders the numbers that prove your point, and they’ll have a very hard time saying “no” to skills-based hiring.

Robert Kaskel, Chief People Officer, Checkr

Highlight the Ecological Fallacy in Hiring

The C-suite should be made aware that experience-based hiring approaches are a classic example of the ecological fallacy.

The ecological fallacy involves judging individuals based on their group. For example, assuming a candidate’s skills based solely on their school, or the organization/role they previously worked at.

It could well be true that, on average, students at prestigious universities are smarter than those from less prestigious universities, but that is group-level data only; it cannot be applied to individuals.

There are millions of extremely smart, skilled, high-potential applicants without a degree at all. Likewise, there is a tremendous cohort of very poor hires from prestigious universities; the distribution of potential is extremely wide.

Therefore, you must convince the C-suite that hiring for experience is simply flawed logic and instead to just hire directly for the skills that matter most.

Ben Schwencke, Business Psychologist, Test Partnership

Present Direct Benefits to Company

To persuade your C-suite to adopt a skills-based hiring approach, focus on the benefits this approach will bring to the company. C-suite individuals are focused on real benefits for a company, and that means laying those out clearly and comparing the benefits of skills-based hiring to those of school- and experience-based hiring is essential. Be realistic in your discussion, too. You don’t want to come across as not seeing the benefits or downfalls of each type of hiring approach.

When focusing on the benefits of skills-based hiring, show how this hiring method fixes a specific challenge that your company is facing (if there is one). This will be the cherry on top of your argument that will really help drive your point home.

Lauren Carlstrom, COO, Oxygen Plus

Use Data to Support Skills-Based Hiring

When it comes to selling new concepts to the C-suite, I always suggest that people turn to the data. Presenting your argument in the form of facts and figures adds weight to your claims — this isn’t just something that you feel will be the case, but it is a legitimate claim that has been backed by verifiable data.

There are a few ways you can go about this. There are published studies showing that skill-based hiring is more effective, such as those recently published in Forbes and Harvard Business Review. You can cite these kinds of studies as evidence to secure executive buy-in for this switch.

You can also create your own data from within your organization if you have the time and resources. Have your current employees take the same skill tests that you want to administer to applicants, then compare their performance on these assessments to their performance in the workplace. It is very likely that you will see a strong correlation between certain skill competencies and their efficacy in the role.

Rob Boyle, Marketing Operations Director, Airswift

Future-Proof with Skills-Based Strategy

I believe we should shift our hiring approach from school and job titles to a skills-based one because it’s the smartest way to future-proof our organization. By focusing on skills, we open the door to a diverse talent pool, including those who may not have followed traditional paths but possess the expertise we need. 

This approach enhances innovation, agility, and adaptability—crucial in today’s rapidly changing business landscape. Additionally, it reduces biases and fosters a culture of continuous learning, ultimately driving long-term success.

Simranjeet Singh, CEO, Search My Expert

Feature Cost Savings with Skill-Focused Recruitment

In today’s digital age, having a degree doesn’t always guarantee that a candidate has the necessary skills for the job. A skills-based recruiting strategy can save costs on training and onboarding. Candidates hired based on their skill sets often require less training, leading to quicker productivity.

Additionally, skills-based hiring practices can contribute to improving diversity. They serve as a crucial first step in breaking down potential barriers and create a more inclusive organization. Shifting the focus to job seekers skilled through alternative routes (STARs) allows companies to explore an underutilized talent pool. With this, they can enhance the overall environment in the workplace.

James Koskela, Founder and Owner, Zero Day Gear

Promote Diversity with Skills-First Hiring

When we hire based on school and previous job titles, we tend to hire people who look and think like us. This leads to a lack of diversity in our workforce, which can impact our business in many ways.

For example, a lack of diversity can lead to a lack of innovation and creativity. Therefore, one argument that talent acquisition leaders could use to persuade their C-suite to adopt a skills-based hiring approach is that it can lead to a more diverse and inclusive workforce. Hiring based on school and previous job titles can often result in a homogenous workforce, with candidates from similar backgrounds and experiences. 

By focusing on skills and abilities, companies can open up their candidate pool to a wider range of candidates, including those from underrepresented groups. This can help to create a more diverse and inclusive workforce, which has been shown to have numerous benefits for businesses, including increased creativity, innovation, and profitability.

Luciano Colos, Founder and CEO, PitchGrade

Link Skills Hiring to Performance Excellence

In a quickly changing job market, advocating for a skills-based hiring technique can empower talent acquisition executives to link organizational performance with individual strengths. Leaders can emphasize the efficiency gains of matching individuals’ specific competencies with job needs by emphasizing that skills transcend educational backgrounds and job designations. 

By emphasizing merit, this method not only broadens the talent pool but also promotes diversity and inclusion. Adopting a skills-based strategy, in turn, allows the C-suite to strategically position the firm for innovation, adaptability, and long-term performance excellence. It engages collaborators and builds a robust framework for navigating challenges together.

Michael Branover, Business Development Manager, Branover Contractors Inc.