The New-Collar Workforce
There’s a huge, capable, and diverse talent pool out there that companies aren’t paying nearly enough attention to: workers without college degrees. It’s time for a skills-first approach to hiring and people management. by Colleen Ammerman, Boris Groysberg and Ginni Rometty
Summary.
Earning a bachelor’s degree can expand one’s mind, widen horizons, and provide a pathway to a well-paying, satisfying career. Yet for those who don’t complete four years of college, the lack of a BA or BS looms as a barrier. Millions of people are locked out of promising job opportunities because too many companies default to hiring workers with four-year degrees, even for positions that don’t require that level of education. The trend began decades ago but spiked during the Great Recession: Research by Alicia Sasser Modestino, Daniel Shoag, and Joshua Ballance shows that from 2007 to 2010, job postings requiring at least a bachelor’s degree increased by 10%. That number dropped somewhat as the economy recovered, but scores of jobs remain inaccessible to people who have the skills and aptitude to succeed at them—but not a college diploma.