Four predictions for learning and employment records in 2024

Pivotal shifts continue to take place in the skills-based hiring movement in the United States —  including increased interest and investment in learning and employment records (LERs). 

Simply put, LERs are digital records of an individual’s learning and work experiences — though their potential impact is far from simple. If implemented successfully, LERs can create new opportunities for more workers and learners while building a more efficient workforce based on skills.

The potential implications of LERs are broad. They can serve as a tool to combat degree inflation. And, by giving individuals more power to showcase and leverage diverse experiences, LERs can provide new avenues to upward mobility and fulfillment in the modern economy.

Here are four areas worth watching that will impact this evolving ecosystem in 2024 and beyond.

Artificial intelligence

New AI technologies, and particularly generative AI, has already shown its ability to transform the future of work, from entire industries to individual job roles. As these technologies continue to grow, they will no doubt impact all aspects of our working lives. 

LER implementation is no exception. We will likely see solutions that incorporate AI sooner rather than later as stakeholders address challenges to adoption and interoperability. For example, AI could be used to match individuals with effective training programs or provide job-matching assistance based on verifiable skills. 

Additionally, LERs can be leveraged as part of efforts to upskill and reskill workers and learners for an AI-driven future of work. LERs can help illustrate AI-related competencies and skills to current and future employers.

Federal legislation

The federal government began its foray into skills-based hiring with a 2020 executive order overhauling federal hiring practices. Since then, this has been one of very few issues to generate bipartisan support in Congress — the Chance to Compete Act passed the House of Representatives in 2022 with a unanimous vote.

And these efforts aren’t slowing down. In December, the director of the Office of Personnel Management, Kiran Ahuja, said, “We are fundamentally rethinking hiring in government.” Existing and future government action will have an outsized impact on how skills-based hiring and LERs develop and what direction they take in the years to come.

Ongoing momentum around skills-based hiring

Since 2018, major companies, including IBM, Walmart and Google, and as many as 18 states have removed college degree requirements from their hiring processes. Expect the momentum around skills-based hiring to continue in 2024, particularly in industries facing talent shortages. At the same time, employers that have already made the shift to skills-based hiring will begin to address common complications, such as redefining roles, rewriting job descriptions, and developing new methods for training and evaluating candidates.  

Collaborative efforts to address challenges to LER adoption

The skills-based ecosystem will see a greater emphasis on collaboration in 2024 when it comes to LERs — from the development of funder collaboratives like SkillsFWD to increased communication between stakeholders across the ecosystem.

While there has been employer momentum in moving to skills-based hiring, barriers remain that prevent employers from widely adopting the use of LERs. A major challenge is integrating LERs into human resources information systems (HRIS) — a focus area we anticipate will receive greater attention in 2024. HRIS software is ubiquitous and integral to the development and adoption of LERs, and stakeholders across the ecosystem have begun working together on these challenges but increased collaboration and advancement is critical to advance systems.

The skills-based hiring movement is growing and changing rapidly. It is essential that we understand the forces shaping this ecosystem as we build a stronger and more equitable future of work. We look forward to partnering with others working on these issues and we will continue to share our progress and learning here.