Only one in ten out-of-work older people and disabled people get help to find work each year (Learning and Work Institute, 2023)
To begin with, discovering suitable opportunities is difficult due to the multitude of job search platforms competing for your attention. Moreover, there is often a scarcity of matches based on your previous job title, which might have been arbitrarily created without adhering to any standardised job classification system. This raises the question of why there are so many diverse job titles for the same role; does your job title really describe what you do? Maybe you don’t know what you want to do. Or you want to do something different. You might not be able to do the job you’ve always done. Even if you can find a desirable job opening, the application process itself becomes time-consuming and repetitive. Even after investing significant effort, it can feel like you haven’t adequately showcased your skills and suitability. On average, each application requires over two hours to complete, with a waiting period of at least two weeks before hearing any response. If you haven’t been matched to the right vacancy or failed to effectively sell yourself, all the time and effort spent becomes futile. Consequently, you find yourself repeating this process over and over again.
Recent stats show that it takes about 100-200+ applications to receive one job offer! In a further breakdown, you have an 8.3% chance of getting a job interview from a single job application. That means it takes over 10 applications to get one interview and around 15 interviews to get one job offer (How Many Applications Does It Take To Get A Job?, Movement to Work, Feb 2022).
Structure your skills into actionable career pathways: Skillsminer’s revolutionary chatbot captures critical information consistently and extracts meaning from your experiences. It has been specifically designed to map individuals to the right opportunities and expedite their ability to quickly and effectively apply for jobs.
In less than 5 minutes we ascertain hundreds of skills, each one of them a commodity to both you and an employer, some of which you may not have been conscious of. We also profile the softer skills that are crucial in many values-based organisations.
And we don’t stop with just the insight of skills. We then map those skills to a personally curated menu based on 1,000,000 jobs, 3,000 occupations, 15,000 qualifications, 40,000 online courses and 50,000 video resources. These incorporate promoted jobs and opportunities that are created by other parties in the ecosystem such as recruiters and education providers. Our Application As sistant generates powerful content to be exported into a CV, resume, covering letter, or online application in under 10 minutes.
With this range of tools at your disposal you can upskill, find and apply for jobs 9 times quicker than traditional methods.
Skillsminer provides a one stop career guidance tool that identifies the skills that enable YOU to be successful in your career.
According to a survey conducted by the Local Government Association (LGA) in the UK, 78% of local authorities reported difficulties in recruiting professionals with specific skills required for roles such as social workers, engineers, and planners.
Recruitment is a time-consuming, expensive, and inefficient undertaking. It involves obtaining the necessary authorisation, crafting job descriptions, seeking approval for those descriptions, paying for advertising, reviewing each application, shortlisting candidates, conducting interviews, extending job offers, and, if all goes well, securing an acceptance. Additionally, there’s the operational aspect of identifying skills gaps and providing training to new hires until they become productive. This entire process can span a year or more in certain fields. The sluggishness – which averages 41 days from approval to offer – and resource intensiveness – which averages 45 minutes per application – may lead some organisations to delegate the task to external recruiters, who, in turn, typically charge a fee of 20% of the salary as compensation for their services.
On an average online job posting, 1,000 individuals will see the job post, 200 will begin the application process, 100 will complete the application, 75 of those 100 resumes will be screened out by either an Applicant Tracking System or by a recruiter, 25 resumes will be seen by the hiring manager, 4 to 6 will be invited for an interview, 1 to 3 of them will be invited back for final interview, 1 will be offered that job and 80 percent of those receiving an offer will accept it (How Many Applications Does It Take To Get A Job?, Movement to Work, Feb 2022).
Skillsminer’s recruitment software takes the heavy lifting out of finding talent, by tackling the most time consuming aspects of the recruitment process: Under 3% of applications on average are actually seen by a hiring manager, so passive recruitment is not efficient or effective. We proactively identify hidden talent based on skills, not just a job title. By tagging one of three thousand unique occupations we produce default skills, style and interest profiles for prospective recruits to match against. These can be tweaked to meet your exact requirements and then Skillsminer does the rest. We find the closest candidates to match your exact requirements. That provides you with the assurance that any new recruit will have the right stuff required to succeed.
As profiles are generated via our chatbot it means data is consistent which sidesteps the problem of parsing where those with the bigger profiles or CVs will always score higher by subconsciously gaming the AI.
By providing instant access to active talent rather than waiting passively for reams of CV’s to land on your desk, by shorting the shortlisting procedure and reducing advertising fees Skillsminer saves you 60 hours and £2,500 per vacancy whilst providing you access to hidden talent with the right skills to succeed and improve your productivity.
Skillsminer enables YOU to maximise the value of hidden skills now and prepare you for the economy of the future.
Improved Problem Solving and Innovation: Research conducted by Boston Consulting Group reveals that diverse teams produce innovative ideas and solutions 45% more frequently compared to non-diverse teams.
Skillsminer can contribute to the formation of diverse teams by identifying candidates with different skills and perspectives. By using the platform, local authorities can create a talent pool of both residents and internal applicants that reflects a wide range of backgrounds and experiences. This diversity of thought and expertise can lead to increased creativity, innovation, productivity and problem-solving within the organisation.
Cost Savings: The Society for Human Resource Management estimates that the cost of a bad hire can be up to five times the employee’s annual salary.
Skillsminer’s proactive skills-based recruitment approach can minimise the risk of making poor hiring decisions. By leveraging the platform’s talent pool, local authorities can identify candidates with the specific skills and qualifications for the job. This reduces the likelihood of hiring individuals who may not be a good fit, thus minimising turnover costs and potential expenses associated with bad hires.
Meeting Future Challenges: Local authorities face evolving challenges, such as technological advancements and changing community needs.
Skillsminer can help local authorities anticipate and address future challenges by identifying candidates with the specific skills required to navigate evolving landscapes. The platform can assist in assessing the skills and competencies needed to tackle technological advancements, changing community needs, and other emerging challenges, such as net zero. You are in control of the skills you are searching for within the talent pool. By proactively recruiting candidates with the right skill sets, local authorities can ensure they have a workforce capable of adapting and thriving in the face of future changes.
There are nearly nine million workers over 50 in England, a third of whom work in public administration, health and education. These people will be eligible for pensions in the next 15 years, at the most and will need replacing (State of Aging, Centre for Aging Better, 2020).
Understanding workforce data to effectively manoeuvre employees into different roles or projects is, in most cases, unmanageable. Firstly, there is rarely structured data on the quantifiable skills of employees or comparable data on the requirements of roles or projects. As a result, decisions are often made based on qualitative input such as the opinion of a line manager who will subjectively measure skills and attitude. Whilst this information is useful it seldom reflects the occupational skills, knowledge and competencies required of a specific role. And faced with the risk that 85 million jobs could be displaced by a shift in the division of labour between humans and machines (Global Risks Report, World Economic Forum, 2023) this is a pressing issue that needs to be addressed. Another consequence of unintelligible workforce data is employee stagnation, employees incorrectly assigned to new roles or projects, or worst of all, employees will often move to the competition.
Skillsminer enables you to profile every employee in your workforce and visualise their skills in detail. Following the 5 minute onboarding process they’ll have access to training resources or internal opportunities – all in one place. Strategically, Skillsminer can help you make the best decisions on how to deploy your workforce, recognise hidden talent for projects, identify high-performers for succession planning which will, in turn, reduce turnover and friction.
Structured data on employee skills and role / project requirements: According to a survey conducted by Harvard Business Review Analytic Services, 71% of executives believe that their organisations’ inability to leverage employee data effectively hinders their ability to achieve strategic objectives.
Local authorities often lack structured data on employee skills and role/project requirements due to decentralised systems, resource constraints, traditional practices, and a lack of awareness or expertise. Skillsminer provides a solution to this problem by enabling local authorities to profile every employee in their workforce and visualise their skills in detail. This ensures that there is structured data available on the quantifiable skills of employees, as well as comparable data on the requirements of roles or projects. With this information, local authorities can make evidence-based decisions on talent mobility and succession planning.
Subjective decision-making based on qualitative input: A study by Leadership IQ found that 46 percent of all new hires fail within 18 months.
Skillsminer addresses this issue by providing local authorities with a platform that goes beyond subjective opinions by qualitatively measuring skills and attitude. By having access to detailed profiles of employee skills, local authorities can make more objective and informed decisions when it comes to assigning employees to different roles or projects. This reduces the likelihood of incorrect assignments and allows for better utilisation of talent within the organisation.
High turnover and employees moving to competitors: According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the average cost-per-hire is approximately $4,129.
Local authorities may experience high turnover of employees moving to competitors due to various reasons such as limited growth opportunities within the organisation or better offers from competing entities. Additionally, if local authorities fail to effectively identify and retain high-performers through succession planning employees may be more inclined to seek opportunities elsewhere. Skillsminer helps Local Authorities address the problem of high turnover by enabling them to identify high-performers for succession planning. By recognising hidden talent for projects and strategically deploying the workforce, Local Authorities can provide growth opportunities and internal pathways for career development.
There are nearly 9 million people in Great Britain (Great Britain Profile, Nomis, August 2023) of which over 1.5 million “want a job”.
Career Guidance is not limited to the National Career Service; similar roles exist in colleges, training providers, local government, housing associations, employability programmes and almost every employment support initiative.
There are thousands of different occupations, each with unique skill requirements and individual jobseekers are even more inimitable. It is impossible for career guidance professionals to take so many nuanced variables into consideration and accurately calculate the right occupations for an individual. Instead, a “square peg in a round hole” situation develops where guidance is based on the limitations of the career guidance professionals’ knowledge of certain sectors and the labour market around them. This is, of course, incredibly valuable information but lacks the breadth of the big picture of universal occupational knowledge and the macro labour market intelligence required to make truly evidence-based decisions. A typical career guidance appointment lasts 60 minutes as the advisor has to interview and extract the details of an individual before any work can begin on action planning. Where subsequent appointments are required, for example, in relation to employability programme approaches the average is 45 mins where the majority of time is devoted to ascertaining activities since the last episode.
This very resource intensive activity limits the size of caseloads and as a result many cohorts are unable to receive the support they require. For example, only one in ten out-of-work 50-64-year-olds and disabled people get help to find work each year (Learning and Work Institute, 2023).
Skillsminer’s caseloading tool enables Career Coaches to view relevant acumen on every individual assigned to you and your organisation. Our technology has been developed to maximise the effectiveness of any organisation responsible for the upskilling and placement of individuals into work. A full user-based hierarchy ensures the right people see the right detail which allows them to make evidence-based decisions using aggregated organisational level information or granular action planning insight provided by the raft of data available.
Career Coaches understand the composition of skills, knowledge, competencies, culture and interests to help individuals make the best possible career choices. They can co-jobsearch with jobseekers or even do remote jobsearch for the hardest-to-help. They can create access to resources and interventions. Having access to this incredible knowledge ahead of each appointment saves up 40% every time as the data is readily available, thus enabling a larger caseload. Providing supported access to Skillsminer for individuals has been proven to increase job outcome rates by 8%.
Skillsminer is a platform that can effectively address several issues faced by Local Authorities, including economic inactivity, poverty, unemployment, economic growth, council tax revenue, and underemployment. Here’s how Skillsminer can help with each of these problems:
Economic Inactivity: There are nearly 9 million people in Great Britain (Great Britain Profile, Nomis, August 2023) of which over 1.5 million “want a job”.
Skillsminer offers a range of vocational and skill-based training programs designed to engage the hardest-to-reach, empowering them to get them closer to the labour market. As the Economically Inactive are, by definition, hidden from traditional support services our online platform offers the perfect medium to reach and support those individuals. Our Career Caseloader platform offers Skills and Employment teams to view, support and interact with residents, in either a light-touch or intensive capacity.
Poverty: There were over 13 million people living in poverty in the UK in 2021, of which nearly 8 million were working-age adults (UK Poverty 2023: The essential guide to understanding poverty in the UK, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, 2023).
Skillsminer focuses on promoting economic mobility by connecting individuals in poverty with opportunities for skills development or employment. By providing affordable access to training programs and immediate access to the labour market, Skillsminer enables individuals to acquire valuable skills that can lead to better job prospects, higher wages, and ultimately lift them out of poverty.
Unemployment: There are over 1.3 million unemployed people in Great Britain (Great Britain Profile, Nomis, August 2023).
Skillsminer plays a crucial role in tackling unemployment by bridging the skills gap between job seekers and employers. The platform offers job-specific training programs aligned with the needs of specific occupations and sectors, thereby increasing the employability of individuals. Skillsminer also facilitates job placement services, connecting trained individuals with relevant employment opportunities, reducing unemployment rates in the process.
Economic Growth: The IMF forecasts UK GDP to fall by 0.3% in 2023, the lowest figure in the G7 (A Rocky Recovery, International Monetary Fund, 2023).
By equipping individuals with the skills needed by local industries, the platform helps attract businesses to the area, creates a skilled workforce, and promotes entrepreneurship. This, in turn, drives economic activity, stimulates innovation, and fosters long-term economic growth within the community.
Council Tax Revenue: Local Authorities collected a total of £35.5 billion pounds in 2022-23 (Collection rates for Council Tax and non-domestic rates in England, 2022 to 2023, Gov.uk, 2023).
Skillsminer’s impact on council tax revenue is indirect but significant. As the platform reduces economic inactivity, poverty, and unemployment rates, more individuals become employed or enter higher-paying jobs. This increased economic activity leads to higher incomes, ultimately resulting in greater tax contributions, including council tax revenue, for the Local Authority.
Underemployment: Nearly 7% of the economically active population were underemployed in 2022, this is twice as high as the number of unemployed people in the UK (Trends in unemployment and underemployment, The Health Foundation, 2022).
Skillsminer offers access to training programs and certifications that allow individuals to enhance their skills, move into higher-paying positions, and escape underemployment. As Skillsminer profile is retained on each individual’s account it means already-employed, busy individuals can maximise those micro moments making each interaction with Skillsminer beneficial. By helping individuals achieve their full potential, Skillsminer contributes to reducing underemployment rates within the local community.
“I understand how and what my customers can do, what jobs are available to them and why. I can use this data to help them close skills gaps and to help local employers find the right candidates with great skills right on their doorstep.”
Job coach