Future Of TA: From Gut-Feels To Data-Driven Decisions

Skills-based hiring is shaping the future of talent acquisition

Last year we surveyed over 2,000 employers and employees about skills-based recruitment practices. The results, detailed in The State of Skills-Based Hiring 2024, showed that 81% of organizations are using skills-based hiring – up from 73% in 2023 and 56% in 2022.

I’d be surprised if skills-based hiring is new to you – it feels like everyone’s talking about it – but I’ll introduce it quickly just in case. Skills-based hiring refers to any hiring strategy that focuses on selecting candidates based on their demonstrated skills rather than experience or education. This approach values both technical role-specific skills and human (‘soft’) skills, such as adaptability and problem-solving, aiming to match candidates' abilities with job requirements.

With 94% of employers agreeing that skills-based hiring is the future of recruitment, it’s clear it’s here to stay. Personally, I’ve never been more excited about its potential and impact. But I want to take this opportunity to paint the bigger picture and look ahead. How exactly is skills-based hiring shaping the future of talent acquisition? And what’s the next step towards that future?

How Is Skills-based Hiring Shaping the Future of Talent Acquisition?

Let’s spend a second on the past. Traditional hiring methods are failing us more than ever. Resumes fail to tell employers anything objective about the job-relevant skills their candidates have, and our awareness of just how biased these methods are has been steadily increasing for the last decade or so. From White-sounding names to masculine language, to experience at a FAANG company, we know that even the most well-intentioned recruiters hold biases. 
By relying on resumes, we’re blocking equality of opportunity. We’re also missing out on fantastic candidates – your perfect job fit could be someone from a background you’d never expect. 

This is what skills-based hiring accounts for. It puts your demonstrated skills before your education or experience. It’s a direct departure from the ways of the past. It’s shaping a future where those initial screening decisions are data-driven, not driven by gut-feels and hunches.

Looking Ahead: What’s Next for Skills-based Hiring?

I’ll briefly diagnose the state of things as I see them. 

Many employers are now practicing skills-based hiring in some way, shape, or form, and they’re seeing impressive benefits. Whether they’re simply removing degree requirements from their job descriptions, or have a comprehensive skills assessment process in place, the impact so far is positive. But it’s still a fairly new way of doing things – and like any shift to the status quo, that comes with a learning period. 
I’ll be clear: I don’t think that, out of the 81% doing skills-based hiring, there are many doing it effectively. Our research found, for example, that only 33% of skills-based hiring employers are screening resumes before turning to a skills evaluation tool. We also found that only 40% of skills-based hiring employers are using multi-measure testing – which is the most scientifically valid way to predict job success.

Skills-based Hiring: Doing it Well

The big theme for the next stage of the skills-based hiring movement is implementation. Skills-based hiring is being implemented in a variety of ways, and we need to build awareness and education around how to do skills-based hiring effectively and fairly.

An important part of that is having stellar skills measurement tools. At TestGorilla, we’re committed to providing this. As we continue to evolve our product to accommodate a rapidly changing skills landscape (hello, AI!), we’re looking at what employers will need to look for. We’re also coming up with ways to test for the fundamental human skills that will be enduring – and increasingly important – regardless of the technological and workforce changes undoubtedly ahead.

You can also count on us for continued research into skills-based hiring – how it’s being adopted, the challenges employers are facing, and what works best. Keep your eyes peeled for ‘The State of Skills-Based Hiring 2025’ – we’ll be launching that in the summer. Here’s to getting better at doing skills-based hiring together.

TestGorilla is a talent discovery platform that is shaping the future of work through skills-based hiring. Our library of over 400 scientifically validated, skills-based tests offers a scalable way for companies to hire better, faster, and without bias. Meanwhile, candidates use TestGorilla to discover and showcase their skills and potential, ensuring all talent gets a shot at landing their dream job. TestGorilla is ranked number 1 on G2 for talent assessment software and has been recognized globally for its growth and impact.

Olive Turon is the Head of People and Culture at TestGorilla, where she leads cross-functional efforts to build a high-performing, inclusive, and purpose-driven organization. Olive has managed innovation, growth, and transformation programs at the heart of Google, as a freelance consultant to start-ups, and in Chief of Staff roles in FinTech and HR tech scale-ups. She’s been at TestGorilla since 2022 and has been leading their People & Culture function since 2024.