Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Lt. Governor Jon Husted yesterday announced the launch of a new tool that helps applicants for state government positions locate openings based on their specific experiences, skills, and training, not just academic degrees. The new skills-based search function on Careers.Ohio.gov was developed in response to Governor Mike DeWine’s Executive Order 2023-10D establishing the State of Ohio as a Model Employer for Skills-Based Hiring Practices. Ohio is one of the first states in the country to adopt the skill-based hiring practice to recruit employees. 

“To drive our economy forward it will take workers with diverse skill sets to meet the demands of 21^st century jobs,” said Governor DeWine. “This new skills-based approach will help job seekers more easily identify the types of jobs available and employers attract employees with the skills needed to succeed.”

"The most important qualification is whether someone has the skills and temperament to get the job done," said Lt. Governor Husted, Director of the Governor's Office of Workforce Transformation."For most jobs, there are many ways to acquire those skills and a college degree shouldn’t be an artificial barrier for employers to find the best person for the job. Nor should a degree requirement be a barrier to entry for someone who has the right skills, but does not have a college diploma."

Skills-based hiring prioritizes a candidate’s skills over more traditional qualifications like academic degrees. Beginning today, state job postings now display a primary job skill on each opening and additional technical and professional skills associated with the positions. To use the new feature, applicants need to create an account, if they do not already have one, and then can begin customizing their profile with their skills and other preferences to find open positions that match their profile.

About 62 percent of adults in the U.S. do not have a bachelor’s degree, according to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Currently, there are slightly more state employees without an academic degree, according to the Ohio Department of Administrative Services (DAS), which manages the site as well as statewide human resources operations and talent acquisition activities for agencies, boards, and commissions.

“Ohio’s new skills-based job search feature will make it easier for applicants to find state positions they may be qualified for and help the state hire a highly skilled workforce that will reflect the talent of all citizens,” said DAS Director Kathleen C. Madden.

To learn more and to utilize this new resource, go to Careers.Ohio.gov