• Skills Scoop
  • Posts
  • Smarter hiring with AI + 5 whitepapers that matter

Smarter hiring with AI + 5 whitepapers that matter

Inside: how to use AI to reduce bias, the 5 whitepapers shaping the future of work, and what 63% of grads are saying about work.

July 10, 2025

⬇️ Inside this issue:

  • How to use AI to supercharge hiring, remove bias, and focus on skills

  • 5 whitepapers you should read

  • Learn the number of college grads who say they aren’t ready for the workforce

INTERESTING READS

🏢 Five companies that rewired their hiring with a skills-first approach—and saw big results.

🎓 Microcredentials can boost starting salaries by up to 15%.

🧪 New research shows HR practices can unlock creativity, especially in technical roles.

PRODUCTIVITY

How to Use AI to Supercharge Your Skills-Based Hiring

AI has earned its fair share of side-eye from the HR and workforce world. From discriminatory algorithms to robot recruiters ghosting applicants, the skepticism is real. But like it or not, AI isn’t going anywhere.

The truth? AI is a tool, just like any other. What if, instead of fearing AI, we leaned in and made it work for us?

Because when used thoughtfully, AI can be a powerful asset, especially for small teams juggling a million things.

Here’s our recommendations to help you move faster, reduce bias, and focus on what really matters: what someone can do, not just where they went to school.

Six Simple Steps to Use AI for Skills-Based Hiring

1. Interview your team about what success really looks like in the role

Start by gathering insights from the people closest to the work. Use AI to summarize transcripts and extract the key competencies, behaviors, and outcomes that define success—beyond what’s listed on a traditional job description.

💡Prompt example: 

Here’s a transcript from a team conversation about the [Job Title] role. What are the core hard and soft skills this role needs now and over the next year?

2. Use AI to pressure-test the role. Is it what you actually need?

Sometimes, we hire for yesterday’s problems. Ask AI to interview you about the role’s purpose, future needs, and business value to make sure you’re hiring for where the company is headed, not where it’s been.

💡Prompt example: 

Act as a hiring strategist. Ask me questions to help clarify whether this role needs to exist, what business problem it solves, and which outcomes matter most.

3. Map the right skills using real labor market data

Don’t rely on guesswork. Use AI to pull insights from sources like the WEF Future of Jobs Report, national or regional job boards, and BLS data to understand which skills are most relevant, emerging, and in-demand.

💡Prompt example: 

Based on U.S. labor market trends and the WEF Future of Jobs Report, what are the top 10 in-demand skills for a [Job Title] in [Location]?

4. Write a job description that focuses on skills, not pedigree

Ask AI to write job descriptions that strip away degree requirements and boilerplate fluff. Instead, highlight the real capabilities, soft skills, and measurable outcomes you expect from candidates.

💡Prompt example:

Write a job description for a [Job Title] that removes degree requirements and prioritizes outcomes, skills, and impact. Add a note welcoming nontraditional applicants.

5. Structure your interviews to assess both hard and soft skills

Use AI to generate interview questions tied to the actual competencies needed for the role. Build a consistent rubric that allows hiring teams to fairly assess candidates across skill areas like communication, adaptability, and technical ability.

💡Prompt example:

Generate 10 interview questions that assess both technical skills and interpersonal strengths for this role.

6. Use AI to detect bias and evaluate candidates equitably

Have AI review resumes and redact personally identifiable information like names, schools, or locations. You can also run interviewer transcripts through AI to flag biased language or overly subjective evaluations—ensuring decisions stay focused on skill, not status.

💡Prompt example:

Analyze this interview transcript and rubric. Where are hiring managers relying on gut feel instead of observable skills? Suggest improvements to reduce unconscious bias. Review these resumes. Strip out names, schools, and personal info. Rank candidates based on verifiable skills alone.

AI isn’t perfect, but it’s powerful when pointed in the right direction. With a skills-first mindset and the right prompts, you can make hiring faster, fairer, and more focused on what actually matters.

THANKS FOR YOUR OPINION

You voted, we printed

We’re heading to the 2025 Badge Summit in Boulder, CO, later this month—and last issue, you cast your votes for the official Skills Scoop mugs.

Here are the final two designs we’re bringing to life!

If you’re attending, stop by our table and grab a mug!

And, be sure to catch our co-founder, Robert’s session where he’ll unpack the wild world of skills-based learning, hiring, and AI—and help you map your place in it.

KNOWLEDGE

5 Must-Read Whitepapers for LER & Workforce Innovators

There’s no shortage of think pieces on “skills” these days. But if you’re serious about digital credentials, career mobility, and building an actual ecosystem around Learning and Employment Records (LERs), you need more than just vibes.

We curated five whitepapers that every LER practitioner, workforce leader, and education policymaker should keep on their radar. Covering future-of-work predictions, implementation strategies, and employer behavior insights, these reports link real-world data with practical and valuable insights.

Macro trends, changing roles, and the top 100 skills expected to increase or decrease by 2030. Supported by global employer surveys covering over 14 million workers.

Playbooks and frameworks from HR leaders, career development champions, and LinkedIn's global data. Includes the new Career Development Index and tactics to enhance internal mobility.

Survey-driven insights from over 500 hiring leaders on the awareness gap, credibility concerns, and the co-design opportunities that could influence the adoption of microcredentials.

Supported by case studies from Amazon, GM, and DoorDash, this report outlines the risks, rewards, and responsibilities of AI in today's workplace.

A must-read for anyone invested in equity. Explains how digital credentials can increase access and visibility for nontraditional learners.

👀 Have a whitepaper, research article, or policy paper we should feature or know about? Reply to this email and share it with us!

OTHER NEWSLETTERS TO CHECK OUT

The Job by Workshift

What it’s about:

The evolving relationship between education and work—what’s working, what’s not, and what’s next.

Who it’s for:

Anyone exploring whether our education and training systems are truly delivering on economic mobility and workforce needs.

Why we like it:

Thoughtful analysis, no fluff, and a sharp curation of education-to-employment news.

The Assist

What it’s about: A punchy, 5-minute read packed with leadership tips, productivity hacks, and work-life wins—written by and for women professionals.

Who it’s for: The modern professional woman who’s juggling meetings, milestones, and maybe a meme or two.

Why we like it: Relatable stories, real subscriber questions, and just the right dose of inspiration.

BY THE NUMBERS

👀 58% of recent college grads say they’re not ready for the workforce and 63% say they can’t handle their workload.

FOR FUN’SIES

💌 Have more feedback? Reply to this email and tell us. We read each one.

🗣️ Want to be featured as a contributor? We’re looking for industry people to write editorials. 

✊🏼 Want to sponsor or partner? Connect with us about advertising opportunities.