Companies Need to Stop Using Keyword Searches to Find Digital Talent

I recently received a LinkedIn InMail from a talent recruiter at a company hiring for a “Data Cloud Expert” role. The message said:

Hi John, you have a great background with Salesforce. I’m reaching out because we’re looking for a Data Cloud Expert to join our team.

The problem is that I have no experience with Data Cloud. In fact, I’m not even sure what it is. It sounds like two generic industry terms combined with the word “expert,” which has no specific way to be defined. On top of that, I haven’t explicitly used SalesForce for over five years.

I’m not the only one who experiences this. Many people receive LinkedIn messages, calls, and emails from recruiters about jobs they’re not remotely qualified for. Many recruiters still rely on archaic strategies like keyword searches and years of experience to find candidates.

This is where SFIA comes in. SFIA stands for Skills Framework for the Information Age and is managed by the non-profit SFIA Foundation. SFIA provides a common language for defining and measuring the digital and professional skills and competencies needed to thrive in the digital economy. For over 20 years, SFIA has been used by employers, employees, and job seekers to identify the skills and competencies needed for specific job roles and track progress.

If this company or recruiter used SFIA to create the job description/role, they could quickly and easily identify qualified candidates for open positions. This would save time and money for both employers and employees.

Here’s an example of how SFIA could be used to improve the talent acquisition process:

1. The recruiter would first need to identify the SFIA skills and competencies needed for the Data Cloud Expert role.
2. The recruiter would then search for candidates with those specific skills and competencies at the identified competency levels.
3. The recruiter would use SFIA to filter the results and identify the most qualified candidates.
4. The recruiter would then contact the most qualified candidates to schedule interviews.

This approach to talent acquisition needs to be stopped immediately. The future is skills-based. The world of mandatory certification acronyms, years of experience, and other outdated talent management strategies is ready for a skills-based revolution.

We must avoid relying on keyword searches and outdated job descriptions. Instead, we must focus on identifying and hiring candidates with the skills and competencies needed for the job.

It’s time to stop wasting time and money on outdated talent acquisition strategies and embrace the future of skills-based talent management.

Additional Resources:

• Request access to our on-demand demo showcase to see how SkillsTX Talent eXperience Skills Intelligence makes the SFIA Framework come to life.
• Ask yourself, “How well does my organization do Digital Skills Management?” | Take our 15-minute Digital Skills Management Maturity Assessment to find out. (40+ pages of tailored strategies for transitioning to a skills-based talent strategy)
• Download the FREE SFIA Cheat Sheet
• Create your own SFIA-aligned skills inventory by taking a FREE SFIA Assessment and compare your skills against more than 600 job descriptions and roles.
• Maximize your Microsoft Enterprise Services Agreement (ESA) with SkillsTX Talent eXperience, contributing to your Microsoft Azure Consumption Commitments (MACC).