Grads of Life

As the advisory, training, and thought leadership practice of Year Up United, Grads of Life is so excited about the future of our organization. Leveraging the insights we’ve gained over the last 10 years, Grads of Life will continue working directly with leading employers across the country on implementing skills-first practices to transform the way they find, hire, and grow their talent – advancing the skills-first movement, alongside our strong partners, to end the #OpportunityDivide for good. #YearUpUnited #OpportunityForAll #SkillsFirst #GradsofLife #YUPROPlacement

ROI data is critical to advancing the skills-first movement and helping companies quantify the value of their skills-first efforts. Of course, #ROI can take many forms, and every employer looks to different data based on their needs and goals.  We want to hear from you. Answer our poll below! #GradsofLife #ImpactMeasurement #SkillsFirst 

“I think when people wrote job descriptions, they would just say, ‘four-year degree.’ We were putting these requirements on there that were just way overqualified for what we were looking for,” shared Dave Regnery, CEO of Trane Technologies. Since starting his career at Trane as a trainee and working his way up, Dave has found that when employers hire based on skills, and then invest in their employees’ education, the returns are enormous. In addition to implementing a Tuition Assistance Program and a Technical Apprenticeship Program, Trane Technologies, under Dave’s leadership, has eliminated degree requirements for approximately 50 job categories. As a member of OneTen, Trane recognizes that emphasizing skills, rather than relying on degrees, helps employers recruit, retain, and advance talent – which leads to positive impacts across the business. We’re proud to partner closely with Trane Technologies on their skills-first initiatives, and congratulate them on this recognition! Read more here: https://lnkd.in/eGRFfjDe #GradsofLife #TraneTechnologies #OneTen #SkillsFirst #PartnershipInAction

We’re excited to see new research affirming the transformative power of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives in the workplace! A recent article from Fortune highlights a significant trend: despite vocal critics, DEI programs are gaining popularity among workers across all demographics. When employers have more DEI initiatives in place, employees report an increased sense of belonging, which has been shown to lead to greater retention. Employees also shared a greater willingness to recommend their employer to others. Read the article here: https://lnkd.in/gt9H7fmM At Grads of Life, we champion employer-led DEI initiatives and are committed to helping organizations launch and enhance these programs. Services like our Opportunity Identifier are designed to help employers identify strengths and opportunities within your organization, and provide a roadmap to accelerate your work.   If your organization is looking to build or refine its DEI strategy, let’s connect! Discover how Grads of Life can support your journey towards a more inclusive and impactful workplace. Reach out to us to learn more about our solutions and how they can benefit your team: https://lnkd.in/eUHKXRf9 #DEI #DiversityEquityInclusion #WorkplaceCulture #GradsOfLife #OpportunityIdentifier 

This recent report by OneTen sheds light on the unique barriers and opportunities faced by Black workers without four-year degrees – and how embracing a skills-first approach is crucial for tapping into the immense value they can offer. Grads of Life is proud of our close partnership with OneTen and its 65+ employer members, working together to change systems and create more equitable pathways to opportunity. As this report highlights, focusing on skills rather than formal credentials can transform workplace culture and open doors for talented individuals who may otherwise be overlooked. Let’s continue to champion this shift and embrace the full spectrum of talent available to us. By doing so, we not only enrich our organizations but also contribute to more inclusive and dynamic communities.  Read the full report to explore these findings, and join us in advocating for a future where skills, not degrees, define opportunity. https://lnkd.in/g67iKPpq #GradsofLife #OneTen #SkillsFirst #BlackTalent 

A survey of 750 U.S. business leaders found that 1 in 3 companies eliminated bachelor’s degree requirements for some job postings, and another 25% say that they plan to do so in 2025 as they shift to skills-based hiring practices, CBS News reported. More and more employers are recognizing that hiring candidates based on their skills rather than degree attainment leads to a wider, more diverse talent pool. And a college degree doesn’t necessarily translate to workplace success – especially in rapidly evolving fields like technology, where information and skills learned in college can quickly become outdated. Here at Grads of Life, we’re proud to work with companies across industries to adopt skills-first practices, from recredentialing roles and creating skills-first job descriptions, to training hiring managers to develop skills-first mindsets. The skills-first movement is rapidly gaining traction among forward-thinking employers across the country, and the future looks bright! Reach out to us for a consultation to see how we can support your company’s progress: https://lnkd.in/eUHKXRf9 #GradsofLife #SkillsFirst #TalentPractices #SkillsBasedHiring Read the full article in CBS News: https://lnkd.in/e7fQA3p2

The Grads of Life and Year Up teams participated in #JFFHorizons last week – both sharing and gaining valuable insights. We were invigorated to see such a major focus on skills-first talent management at the conference!    Grads of Life Founder and Managing Partner Elyse Rosenblum participated in a panel with Suzanne Towns (Education Quality Outcomes Standards), Debbie Wasden (The Burning Glass Institute), and Matt Zieger (GitLab Foundation) on how AI will accelerate the skills-first transformation, enabling far greater access to quality jobs. Another theme of the event was the need to better understand the ROI of skills-first talent management, which is a major focus for Grads of Life. Thank you to Blackstone for inviting us to engage in a breakfast discussion on this important topic! We were also delighted to join JFF’s Impact Employer Summit, an outstanding gathering of employers sharing insights on how to expand access to opportunity and economic mobility. Huge kudos to Jobs for the Future (JFF) for hosting such an impactful event that is sure to help advance the skills-first movement! #GradsofLife #SkillsFirst #TalentPractices 

“As America’s largest employer, Walmart plays a profound role in setting trends and practices that often become standard across the entire U.S. labor market,” writes Grads of Life’s Elyse Rosenblum today in Forbes. “That’s what makes Walmart’s commitment to the skills-first movement so important.” Walmart has shown that skills-first talent practices are good for business. Just a couple of their recent skill-first practices include: ✅ Rewriting job descriptions to focus on skills alongside degrees  ✅ Doubling the number of short-form certificates available through their employee education benefit Through partnership with Grads of Life, Walmart.org is investing significant funds in initiatives that help employers measure the business impact of skills-first practices, provide change management support & resources for hiring managers, and create a compelling narrative to encourage more companies to hire based on skills. Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/gnzV2pjQ Grads of Life is proud to have such a strong, influential partner in Walmart. As Elyse shares, “Their support and energy around this work is laying the foundation for a labor market that can be stronger, more inclusive, and more resilient in the years to come.” With Walmart as a leader in the skills-first movement, the future looks bright. #GradsofLife #Walmart #SkillsFirst #TalentPractices 

Introducing a new resource from Grads of Life to further support businesses in their skills-first journeys!  Skills-first talent practices are gaining prominence and adoption, but many employers continue to grapple with the challenge of translating theory to practice.  This new report, “Recredentialing: What, Why, and How?” by Grads of Life, is designed to help businesses navigate #recredentialing, which is a critical step in the skills-first talent journey – and a priority for organizations seeking to combat degree inflation and increase their access to new internal and external pools of talent. Access the report here: https://lnkd.in/gdfBvAqi The report offers an introduction to the fundamentals of the recredentialing process, with a focus on the manufacturing, retail, and healthcare industries. It leverages the methodology of our Skills-First Accelerator tool, which analyzes labor market and organization-specific data to map out custom recredentialing strategies. We encourage you to check out the report, and reach out to us to discuss leveraging the Skills-First Accelerator for your organization!  #GradsofLife #SkillsFirst #TalentPractices 

We’re excited to share a new resource for employers to help you measure the impact that skills-first efforts have on employees, your business, and society! Collecting consistent and accurate data is integral to measuring change over time, but the lack of standard methodology around skills-first data collection has made building a strong approach a challenge. To address these obstacles, Grads of Life has developed the Impact Measurement Metrics Data Guide. Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/g4WSMVdr Building on Grads of Life’s Impact Measurement Framework Playbook, the data guide is a self-serve reference tool that delves into each of the metrics that make up the Framework. It’s meant to support decision-makers to select a set of priority metrics to track based on the unique goals, needs, and resources of your company. Our hope is that this tool equips skills-first leaders with the guidance and information you need to build a strong, strategic vision around skills-first impact measurement. Check it out, and let us know what you think! #GradsofLife #SkillsFirst #TalentPractices #ImpactMeasurement