Three Key Steps to Evolve to MICRO-CREDENTIALS 2.0

It’s time for us to move to Micro-Credentials 2.0 by taking three critical steps:

1. Broaden the understanding of what a micro-credential can be.
   
   Moving away from “skills for jobs in demand” to a broader conception that includes competency-based learning as well as short forms of learning linked to equity and inclusion or modular, stackable learning linked to a longer qualification (e.g., a diploma or degree).


2. Strengthen quality assurance.
   
   Seeking to define the quality frameworks and parameters for different kinds of micro-credentials and how skills, competencies and capabilities are assessed.


3. Find new ways to enable modular, stackable learning and the use of micro-credentials for prior learning assessment and evaluation.
   
   This is a particular issue across the European Union (EU) and in Australia and New Zealand, and is beginning to emerge in Canada as an opportunity. We can reimagine learning as a series of continuous, life-long small steps rather than one large leap.

There has been a slowdown of government investment in micro-credentials as governments realize the demand in the job market for quick skills acquisition has not met expectations. 

In 2023, 79% of Canadian employers say they can’t find the skilled employees they seek¹ — up from 71% in 2022 — and this is helping accelerate the move away from credentials and toward competencies as the new hiring currency. 

Already IBM, Google, Apple, McKinsey, Penguin Random House, Home Depot, Costco, Accenture, OKTA, Whole Foods, Hilton, Publix, Starbucks and Lowes select a significant number of their new employees based on competency portfolios. Their judgement is the link between a credential and capabilities is not as strong as once thought.

At the same time, new hiring processes are being deployed. Potential employees asked to submit skills portfolios linked to competency maps for the position they are applying for. Artificial intelligence tools such as Vervove AI² are used to screen submissions. Candidates of interest are then asked to submit videos in which they respond to key questions and concerns. These videos are analyzed by AI-enabled programs such as HireVu³  to identify the veracity of responses to skills-related questions. The whole video is also reviewed (with applicants’ knowledge and consent) using AI screens to assess social and emotional intelligence.

Employers are putting as much emphasis on transferable social skills as on the specific competencies required. These skills include teamwork, critical thinking and problem-solving, effective communication, project and time management, resilience, compassion, creativity and adaptability. Applicants’ portfolios should demonstrate these abilities just as much as being able to code in Python, weld a joint or whatever specific skill the potential employee is expected to have. Micro-credentials need to assess these skills, too. 

Our understanding of competencies is changing. Competencies are no longer linked solely to specific jobs but are increasingly seen as transferable across job types. The skill of coding, for example, is essentially a set of problem-solving and logical thinking and analysis skills, relevant to forms of work other than programming. IEEE⁴ is developing an open repository of reusable competency statements⁵ and a rubric for defining new competencies. This makes it possible to develop competencies as currency for individuals and employees in the transaction we call hiring. As companies move to emerging hiring practices, our skills and competency assessments must be closely aligned, reliable and verified.

“Recalibration” is the phrase being used across the EU in relation to micro-credentials. Governments are seeking to ensure all micro-credentials comply with the agreed framework and can be captured and stored using Europass⁶ — a form of standardized e-portfolio similar to MyCreds™.