Why a Portfolio That Represents Skills, Achievements & Identity Matters for the Next Generation

The way talent is discovered is changing.

As AI increasingly becomes part of recruiting and skills assessment, a resume alone may no longer tell the full story. LinkedIn’s Future of Recruiting 2025 found that 73% of talent acquisition professionals believe AI will change the way organizations hire, while 37% are already experimenting with or integrating generative AI into hiring.

At the same time, employers are placing greater emphasis on what people can actually do.

An OECD analysis of LinkedIn recruiting activity found that 15% of candidate searches across OECD countries were filtered by skills, compared with just 1.7% filtered by degrees alone. In the United States, roles removing degree requirements were five times more numerous in 2022 than in 2014.

LinkedIn’s research points in the same direction: 93% of talent acquisition professionals say accurately assessing a candidate’s skills is crucial to improving quality of hire, and companies making greater use of skills-based searches were 12% more likely to report a quality hire.

Credentials still matter—but demonstrated skills and evidence of what someone can do are becoming increasingly important alongside them.

That matters enormously for young people.

Today, exceptional young talent can go unnoticed because accomplishments are scattered across classrooms, projects, competitions, internships, research, entrepreneurship, and other experiences.

A resume compresses that into a few lines. A portfolio can show the evidence behind those lines.

And the need for better evidence is growing.

The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025, based on more than 1,000 employers representing over 14 million workers across 55 economies, found that 39% of workers’ core skills are expected to change by 2030.

When skills change that quickly, a qualification earned at one point in time cannot fully capture how a person continues to learn and evolve.

We believe the portfolio can become that living layer of evidence.

A continually evolving record of a student’s skills, achievements, projects, experiences, credentials, interests, and growth—built over years rather than assembled only when it is time to apply for college or a job.

There is already evidence that employers want richer signals. In a 2025 survey for Accredible’s State of Credentialing Report, 42% of HR and talent leaders said a lack of evidence of real experience made evaluating candidates difficult, while 94% considered a project portfolio or sample work essential or valuable in hiring decisions.

The future isn't simply about displaying more accomplishments. It is about displaying credible accomplishments..

We believe we are moving toward a future where:

• Proof of work will matter increasingly alongside credentials. Employers are already moving toward skills-first hiring: 15% of OECD LinkedIn searches were filtered by skills versus 1.7% by degrees alone, while 93% of talent professionals say accurate skills assessment is critical to quality hiring.
• Digital portfolios can become an important layer of trust. Projects, certifications, competition results, internships, research, recommendations, and other evidence can provide context behind claims made on a resume.
• Talent discovery can become more skills-driven and scalable. AI is already being incorporated into recruiting workflows, with 37% of organizations experimenting with or actively integrating generative AI.
• Young people will need ways to demonstrate continuous growth, not just static qualifications. Deloitte’s 2025 survey of 23,482 Gen Z and millennial respondents across 44 countries found that 70% of Gen Z respondents develop career skills at least weekly, while 67% do so outside working hours.

And this is bigger than technology.

There is a growing tendency to generalize about Gen Z. But Deloitte’s data shows a generation actively investing in its own development: 88% value on-the-job learning and practical experience, and 70% develop career skills at least weekly. In India, 94% of Gen Z respondents say on-the-job learning and practical experience are helpful for career growth, while 85% are developing career-advancing skills weekly or more.

The challenge is making that work visible.

We don't want to argue about what Gen Z can or cannot do.

We want to give them a way to prove it.

A portfolio gives a young person a vehicle to say: Don't just take my word for it. Here is what I built, what I learned, what I achieved, and how I have grown.

For colleges and employers, that creates richer signals for making evidence-based decisions rather than assumption-based ones.

The resume tells you where someone has been. The portfolio can show you what they can do—and who they are becoming.

This is an early version of what we envision, with much more already in development.

Explore the portfolio. See where we're heading. And tell us what you think.