We are thrilled to share that SmartResume is part of two of the six winning SkillsFWD proposals announced today in Bentonville, Arkansas. The SkillsFWD initiative is designed to catalyze a skills-based future powered by Learning and Employment Records. SmartResume is a core team member of both the Accelerate Montana and Arizona State University winning proposals. This is validation of our approach to connecting recipients of learning and employment records with a tool to showcase their skills and credentials to employers, and a marketplace to match learners to job opportunities.

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“We are grateful to the SkillsFWD selection committee, Arizona State University, and Accelerate Montana to have the opportunity to implement SmartResume and our Talent Community product in new settings,” said Dave Wengel, CEO of SmartResume. “Our mission is closely aligned with each of our new partners with whom we will focus on creating equitable outcomes for learners and employers alike while implementing skills based hiring practices at scale.”

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Arizona State University will integrate SmartResume into their Trusted Learner Network LER issuing platform and into their digital wallet app called ASU Pocket. From each platform students will be able to push work based learning records to SmartResume to create a robust skills-first profile and resume. Employers affiliated with ASU’s Work+ program will post “Talent Profiles” to the ASU Talent Marketplace advertising open positions articulated in terms of the skills that will best position learners to successfully execute the responsibilities of the job. Learners who engage in this pilot will join the marketplace where they can browse these opportunities; identifying those that align best with their current and aspirational skill sets. This skills-forward matching experience between job seekers and employing departments is enabled by SmartResume. Once hired, students will earn additional credentials reflecting the skills they demonstrated and learned on the job. ASU students and employers will also be protected from unconscious bias as skills based matching will obfuscate the students name and profile picture from an employer’s review of their qualifications and focus attention on abilities and interest.

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“The majority of learners, not just at ASU but nationwide as well, work while pursuing a degree. As an institution committed to providing learning experiences both through formalized curricula and intentionally designed work opportunities, we look forward to testing skills based hiring practices within our student employment ecosystem,” said Sukhwant Jhaj, Vice Provost for Academic Innovation and Student Achievement at Arizona State University. “In support of the nationally renowned Work+ program, this pilot with SmartResume will contribute to the transformation of student employment, at a national scale, fostering more equitable outcomes for the students who face the most barriers to success.”

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Accelerate Montana is a portfolio of workforce and economic programs affiliated with the University of Montana with the mission to advance inclusive economic prosperity for Montana’s workers, companies, and communities. Accelerate Montana will partner with SmartResume and Learning Economy Foundation to implement Learning and Employment Records and a skills-based talent marketplace for the first time. Learning Economy Foundation will power the LER data with their platform LearnCloud, converting learner achievement data into digital credentials from multiple institutions of higher education and training partners across the state. Montana Validated Credentials, powered by Canvas Credentials, data will also be integrated to the SmartResume platform. Montana residents will be able to activate these records on SmartResume, create a comprehensive skills-based and verifiable SmartResume, and use that SmartResume anywhere they apply for work. They will also be able to join Accelerate Montana’s talent marketplace to connect directly with Montana employers. Montana employers will be able to search for talent to hire based on their credentials, skills, and competencies and will be able to set up talent alerts to be the first to contact qualified job seekers who are actively looking for work.

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“We are on a mission to expand access to workforce opportunities for all workers in Montana, including our urban, rural, and tribal communities . Learning and Employment Records are a key part of our strategy, but we need quality technology partners to make these records accessible and easy to leverage to find work.  SmartResume and Learning Economy Foundation were the missing pieces we needed to launch skills based hiring in an equitable manner across the state,” said Paul Gladen, Executive Director of Accelerate Montana.

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“We know that SkillsFWD received many strong applications for projects that demonstrate the power of skills based hiring ecosystems fueled with LER data,” said Ian Davidson, Chief Growth Officer of SmartResume. “We are excited to extend our work into new areas with our great partners at Accelerate Montana and Arizona State University. Together we will show that any job seeker can be empowered with verifiable skill data and that every employer benefits when they have access to a hiring marketplace that makes this verifiable data accessible, consumable, and addressable in existing hiring workflows.”