We are living in an era where the job market is constantly evolving due to technological advancements. While this means that more jobs are being created, it also makes it harder for people to enter the workforce. In a rapidly changing environment, skills that were current one year ago may be outdated today. As a consequence, job seekers have to continually improve their skills in order to have a chance in an increasingly competitive job market. This professional anxiety may lead many applicants to find ways in which they can ‘hack’ the system.
If you are a recent university graduate or a professional looking for opportunities in the job market, it is more than likely that you have searched for ‘tips and tricks’ that are ‘guaranteed’ to get your CV noticed. After all, who wants to have their CV continuously overlooked? This fear of rejection is what has compelled job seekers to resort to unethical means in the hopes of making at least the initial recruitment stage. While this may work for some, it not only has a negative impact on the overall hiring process, but backfires on further inspection.
According to a survey conducted by CareerBuilder in 2016, 56% of the hired candidates had lied on their CV, 40% had misrepresented their academic qualifications, and 11% had even lied about the fact of earning a degree at all. For someone trying to start or advance their career, small manipulations and minor misrepresentations may seem like the perfect solution to achieving one’s professional goals. These distortions can come in varying degrees of unethicality, such as overplaying the skill level of an ability, distorting the role one may have had on a project, and even the falsifications of certificates. At the end of the day, which company would invest their time and money verifying every single detail of the Curriculum Vitae of each candidate? Not all businesses have the time or monetary resources to verify the credibility of each applicant. As a result of this dynamic, there’s now an environment where the falsification of records can easily pass under the radar, depriving qualified candidates of opportunities they deserve.
The current malleability of resumes is not the only detrimental issue facing the job market today. The veracity of professional certificates gained through non-academic institutions is also being questioned. Recently, the Internet has made it possible to pursue additional education outside of the traditional system. This has made it possible for candidates to enrich their profiles, constantly adding to their skill set. At the same time, there is no immutable way to measure or compare the value of the different certifications in question.
While platforms such as LinkedIn have revolutionized the job market by making resumes accessible and shareable, the legitimacy problem remains: anyone can create an account and provide the “right” kind of information they need to have in order to land the job. Reliable certification not only ensures the capability of the applicant, but it also gives companies an ease of mind during and after recruitment.
This is what our team at Skillchain aims to tackle. We plan to bring clarity and certification to the job market with the use of blockchain technology and the implementation of smart contracts. In a time where CVs and certifications can be forged, the Skillchain platform offers a Life Skill Passport that will accurately store and incorporate all educational data, whether they be academic or non-academic education, while allowing for transparency, legitimacy and transferability. This not only gives candidates the opportunity to be rightfully represented-- it also assures the employer of the qualifications of the applicant.
We plan to revolutionize the job market with the use of cross-reference analysis, immutability, and the ease of transfer implemented in our Life Skill Passport.
For more information on our project, visit the Skillchain website.
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