University of Phoenix Career Institute released its latest installment in The Career Optimism Special Report Series: The Illusion of Progress in Skills-Based Hiring, finding that while skills-based approaches are gaining in momentum, many employers still lack clear standards and consistent tools to evaluate candidates’ skills effectively.
Although 82% of hiring stakeholders say their organization’s hiring process is shifting toward a more skills-based approach, 53% of employers report a lack of standardized hiring practices, and 57% of hiring stakeholders say they need better training to evaluate candidates’ skills—highlighting a gap between intent and implementation. The result is a hiring system in limbo, where an illusion of progress towards skills-based models is fueling dysfunction across the talent pipeline.
This comes as job applications surge—up 31% last year, far outpacing the 7% growth in openings—with AI tools making it easier to apply en masse, according to Workday’s Global Workforce Report. But with job openings flatlining at the end of 2025 (per the latest JOLTS data), both hiring teams and job seekers are feeling the squeeze: more résumés, less clarity, and mounting pressure on systems never built for this scale.
- Skills Lost in Translation: 22% of hiring stakeholders say poorly designed application systems may be filtering out good candidates—helping to explain why 58% of job seekers say they’re being rejected despite being qualified for a role. Even when candidates have the right capabilities, 48% of hiring stakeholders admit they can still miss out simply because these candidates struggle to demonstrate their skills clearly in the hiring process.
- Referrals Still Rule: Despite 3 in 4 hiring stakeholders (75%) saying personal connections aren’t important to the hiring process, 79% admit that final hiring decisions are influenced by personal referrals.
- AI Is Creating a Trust Divide: 57% of job seekers and 47% of hiring stakeholders believe AI introduces bias into the hiring process—yet just 1 in 3 companies (37%) audit their tools for this.
- The Manager Training Gap: 1 in 4 non-HR hiring stakeholders (24%) receive no training before interviewing job candidates—yet many own the final hiring call.
“Skills-based hiring can be a powerful driver of economic mobility and can help employers access overlooked talent—but only if intent and infrastructure are aligned,” says Alison Lands, VP of Employer Mobilization at Jobs for the Future. “That means measuring and hiring for what predicts success on the job, supported by clear standards and consistent evaluation.”
“The Illusion of Progress in Skills-Based Hiring reveals a hiring ecosystem looking to evolve while struggling to keep pace with rising expectations. Employers want to prioritize skills—but without consistent training, clear standards, or unbiased tools, the process risks becoming even more opaque,” says Cheryl Naumann, Chief Human Resources Officer, University of Phoenix. “At University of Phoenix, we’re at the start of that journey as well, which is why we launched this report – to understand the landscape where progress is being made, where critical gaps remain, and what it will take to make skills-based hiring work in practice. There’s a real opportunity for business and education to align on the frameworks needed to make skills-first hiring a reality, and we’re committed to continuing this important dialogue while preparing our students with the skills to thrive in today’s talent market, including how to market their skills effectively.”
- C-Suite: Redefine what ‘qualified’ means. Build hiring systems that match internal training—and avoid leaving talent behind.
- HR: Empower stakeholders with consistent tools and lead the charge on structure, not just compliance.
- Higher Ed: Hardwire real-world experience and adaptability into every program and help your grads articulate relevant hard and soft skills.
- Job Seekers: Lead with your hard and soft skills to demonstrate what you’ve built, learned, and solved—even outside traditional learning paths—to make sure you aren’t overlooked.
