Look to the STARs

Activating Talent in a Regional Market

Employers can find the talent they need, transform their local and regional labor markets, and boost STAR mobility by embracing a collective approach to skills-based job pathways.

Labor Markets Are Local

Large enterprise employers have footprints that span cities, states, regions, and even nations. Workers, on the other hand, experience the labor market in a local context. This remains true, even as work has evolved to include more remote options. Only 20% of workers hold remote jobs and, among workers who work outside the home, 76% of workers have a commute of less than 30 minutes. Hiring is a local endeavor; even for a national employer, a sustainable talent strategy relies on a healthy local labor market.

In a regional labor market, employers have a collective interest in skills based pathways

Employers are producers of talent who provide STARs learning opportunities on skills-based job pathways. They play a key role in building in-demand skills for workers in their local labor market.

Employers are consumers of talent who share the benefits of STARs’ skills developed across pathways. As they hire workers to fill in-demand roles, they compete for and share talent on skills-based pathways.

Employers share talent developed on these pathways across businesses and industries. In Atlanta, Georgia, multiple enterprise employers in retail, healthcare, and finance hire and develop talent on this sales pathway.

A Different Way to Think About Talent Pipelines

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STARs in the Workplace

Workers Skilled Through Alternative Routes (STARs) other than a bachelor’s degree demonstrate valuable skills on the job, but the vast majority don’t get the opportunities to develop their full potential. Why not?

Barriers and Breakthroughs

The STAR Barriers and Breakthroughs Framework identifies six key contributors to STAR economic mobility and the many interventions and investments that can support a STAR’s career progression.

The Changing Face of Apprenticeships

Research from Lightcast and Opportunity@Work shows how apprenticeships are on the rise as a solution to tear the paper ceiling separating employers and the talent they need.