The argument for a new hiring approach
Skills-based hiring is changing the game, letting employers focus less on degrees, job titles or years of experience and more on practical ability.
Almost half (48%) of employers expect to use skills assessments to evaluate candidates between 2025 and 2030.
These assessments can help employers avoid overlooking candidates who gained relevant skills through alternative pathways rather than traditional degrees.
If you are growing your team, here are a few ways skills-based hiring could help you find your newest members.
Work out what you really need
Even the best teams can have invisible weak points. Pinpoint the skill gaps in your workforce before you start advertising for a role. Knowing what specific skills you want from a candidate and communicating them clearly will help bring in the right crowd.
Many fresh graduates are job hunting with strong teamwork skills, new ideas and fresh perspectives, despite having little professional experience. Building job descriptions around the skills you actually need, rather than qualifications and years of experience alone, may encourage people to apply who are a perfect fit but might otherwise have counted themselves out.
Look beyond the CV
A CV is helpful for seeing previous job roles and university courses, but focusing only on these aspects can exclude capable candidates, especially in roles and industries where adaptability matters.
Keep your eye out for transferable skills from people with different educational or career backgrounds. Communication, problem-solving and adaptability can be valuable across a huge range of roles, regardless of where they were developed.
Technical skills such as coding, data analysis or using specialist software are important too, but don't assume a candidate's qualifications or previous job title tell you exactly what they can do. Look for evidence of both technical and transferable skills before deciding which candidates to take forward.
Ask better interview questions
Update your interviewing technique by asking every candidate the same competency-based questions to get a better picture of how they would tackle the job.
With predetermined scoring criteria, you can ask situational “what would you do?” questions and make comparisons that are more consistent and focused on the abilities that actually matter for the role. For example, if teamwork is a key aspect of the job, you could ask how they would handle a disagreement with a colleague.
Their answers can reveal both the skills they already have and where they may be willing to learn.
Test the skills that matter
You don’t have to rely on just the words on a CV or a well-rehearsed answer in an interview. If you’re looking for practical, technical skills, test them before making your final decision.
Skills assessments and work samples are an invaluable step in skills-based hiring. Depending on the job, you can set a writing task, a spreadsheet task or create a realistic workplace scenario to allow candidates to demonstrate their ability.
Not only does this give you more confidence that you’re hiring the right person, but it can give the candidate a real taste of the job too. They can enter the business with clearer expectations of what the role actually involves, reducing the risk of surprises further down the line.
Get the job match right
35% of organisations that regularly use skills-first strategies reported exceeding their financial objectives, compared with 27% of organisations that don’t use them. There are benefits for employees too, which can bring further advantages for the business. Matching a candidate’s abilities to the job requirements can support performance, engagement and overall job satisfaction.
When employees feel capable and comfortable in their role, they have more reason to stick around. Better job matching could therefore help improve retention, reducing the need to recruit for the same position all over again.
Skills-based hiring doesn’t mean qualifications and experience don’t matter and should suddenly be ignored. It means shifting the focus and assessing the skills that make a difference.
Question which skills are genuinely necessary for each role and prioritise evidence of what candidates can actually do. Save yourself valuable time and money, and hire someone who is going to get the job done well.