LinkedIn launches Singapore job platform focused more on applicants' skills than education or past job titles

• LinkedIn will pilot a new job-matching initiative in Singapore from September 2021
• The Skills Path platform is supported by the National Jobs Council
• Job applicants do not have to rely solely on traditional qualifications to apply for jobs on the platform
• They can complete skills assessments to demonstrate their competencies
• Passing the tests guarantees applicants a call from recruiters

SINGAPORE — From September, the professional jobs networking site LinkedIn will pilot a new job-matching initiative in Singapore that focuses on candidates’ skill sets, rather than educational qualifications and past job titles. This is to give jobseekers a better shot at gaining access to new employment opportunities.

The Skills Path initiative, supported by the National Jobs Council, will allow applicants here to complete skill assessment tests unique to the job roles they are applying for, so as to demonstrate their competencies. They therefore do not need to rely solely on their traditional qualifications to get a foot in the door.

Employers may then evaluate candidates based on their skills rather than judge them solely on their degrees, job titles and networks to fill a vacancy, LinkedIn said on Saturday (Aug 14).

For a start, the pilot platform will feature one job advertisement each from eight different companies that have already come on board the initiative, with plans to get more companies to join.

The employers are: Property developer CapitaLand, OCBC bank, food delivery firm FoodPanda, NTUC Enterprise, pharmaceutical company Zuellig Pharma, and e-commerce sites Carousell, Lazada and Zalora.

They will put up job advertisements for six selected job roles, including customer service, data analyst, project manager and sales development, LinkedIn said.

Jobseekers who are interested in finding career opportunities via Skills Path may do so by setting their profile status on LinkedIn to #OpenToWork.

LinkedIn said: “Today, it is far more relevant to hire workers based on their existing skills and invest in their development thereafter, through on-the-job training or learning courses.

“Taking a skills-based approach and mindset to creating new opportunities will allow for equitable economic recovery for all workers and also help employers expand their talent pool.”

HOW IT WORKS

Once jobseekers indicate on their LinkedIn status that they are "open to work", they may select an open role from the list of jobs on Skills Path.

From there, they may then take the skills assessments, which are designed by LinkedIn together with industrial and organisational psychologists as well as subject matter experts.

When they complete and pass the assessment, the applicants will receive skills badges that can be added to their profile.

Completing the skills assessment will also guarantee that applicants will receive a call from recruiters within 14 days as long as they have met all the other job requirements, LinkedIn said during a media briefing on Friday.

Applicants also have the option of watching free LinkedIn learning courses to strengthen their competencies in the relevant skills needed for the job.

These courses are designed to help the applicants pass the skills assessments to get to the next step of the job application.

Skills Path also gives jobseekers the option of submitting a video or written introduction in response to questions set by the hiring company to further boost their application.

Separately, LinkedIn will be offering virtual workshops from August to November to better help mid-career workers enhance their employability.

The workshops will cover topics such as how to set up a LinkedIn profile, how to fully leverage their professional community through the social network, as well as provide tips on how to go about the job search.

The tie-up with LinkedIn is an example of how the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has stepped up its partnerships with various agencies, community and industry groups to ramp up job-matching efforts since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In its latest Jobs Situation Report released on Saturday, MOM said that it and government agency Workforce Singapore engaged 240 partners last year, 20 per cent more than in 2019.

“Such collaborations among the public, people and private sectors allow us to create innovative solutions that address the diverse needs of jobseekers and employers and provide effective last-mile connections between the two,” MOM said.

“Workforce Singapore and MOM will continue to nurture these partnerships and look forward to forging new ones in the year ahead.”