Skills hold higher currency than degrees says LinkedIn VP Sue Duke | Fortune

In the checklist of requirements for an ideal candidate a degree is sliding down the priority list for employers, a LinkedIn Vice President believes. “The difficulties we face as we struggle to fill roles, weather economic shifts and create a diverse and resilient workforce will only grow unless we change our approach to finding and nurturing talent,” Sue Duke, Vice President and Head of Global Public Policy at LinkedIn, told CNBC Make It. It’s why, she claims, skills-based hiring is becoming increasingly popular among businesses with 45% of companies explicitly using skills-related metrics to find candidates according to LinkedIn data—12% more than a year ago. Skills-based hiring is good news for most, except new grads  Skills are currently ranking higher than degrees for some prospective employers because it gives them a competitive edge over graduate-focussed competitors, Duke explained. “Our research showed a skills-first approach could increase the global talent pool by nearly ten-fold. And a larger talent pool means less competition with other companies over the same candidates,” Duke said. As well as increasing the breadth of opportunity on offer to job seekers, it also makes the application process more transparent Duke believes. “It levels the playing field for workers
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