We’re pleased to announce a new partnership that makes it possible for education and training providers to connect the credentials they offer via Badgr to the work-relevant skills and real-time market insights provided by Emsi’s Open Skills Library.
To learn more, see the press release below and read the full announcement from Badgr.
Concentric Sky and Emsi announce groundbreaking new partnership connecting skill-based microcredentials with real-time labor market insights
Eugene, OR — September 8, 2020
Concentric Sky (makers of Badgr) and Emsi today announce the integration of Badgr and Emsi’s Open Skills Library. Badgr is one of the world’s leading digital credentialing platforms, serving over 25,000 organizations in over 160 countries. Emsi is a market leader in the field of economic modeling and labor market insights. This new collaboration will directly connect the skills-aligned digital badges issued via Badgr with Emsi’s rich skills taxonomy and associated labor market data.
“In order to have currency, a skill must have an independent definition,” said Wayne Skipper, Founder and CEO of Concentric Sky. “By combining the power of verifiable digital credentials with Emsi’s library of workforce skills, this new partnership will greatly simplify the work of organizations that seek to create stackable, skills-based training programs – as well as making it much easier for employers to understand the outcomes of such programs.”
A recent study estimated that over 300,000 digital credentials are being offered by organizations within the US alone. This trend has been accelerated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic as organizations of all types look for ways to rapidly digitize their learning outcomes to better serve job seekers.
The “Emsi Integration Badge” demonstrates how skills can be associated with a credential
Emsi’s Open Skills Library identifies nearly 30,000 skills from hundreds of millions of job postings, résumés, and professional profiles and is updated every two weeks. Each skill in the library has a public page that describes the skill, highlights related skills, and lists the top companies that include the skill in their job postings.
This new integration makes it easy for Badgr users to design micro-credential programs that focus on portable, workforce-relevant skills and directly connect learners to job opportunities that require those skills.
Luke Jankovic, Emsi’s EVP for higher education, noted, “We have opened our skills library up as a small contribution to a shared vision for a learning and employment system that works better for individuals, institutions, and employers. This partnership is a great step in making that vision a reality and we couldn’t be happier about it.”
By partnering together on this and other shared initiatives, Concentric Sky and Emsi aim to help learners and job seekers worldwide understand how their credentials translate into the skills that lead into a successful career or promotion. With growing interest in non-degree and skills-focused training programs, this powerful combination of solutions from Concentric Sky and Emsi will enable the design of high quality, stackable programs designed to upskill and reskill workers by combining online certificates, industry certifications, apprenticeships, and micro-credentials.
About Badgr and Concentric Sky
Badgr is a global ecosystem of digital credentialing and stackable pathway tools designed for individuals and organizations of all sizes. Badgr serves millions of users and provides recognition from over 25,000 issuing organizations spanning more than 160 countries. Badgr is a registered trademark of Concentric Sky, an award-winning software development firm with a 15 year track record of enterprise product design and innovation around open technology standards. For more information about Concentric Sky, visit http://www.concentricsky.com
About Emsi
Emsi provides colleges and universities with labor market data to build a better workforce and nurture strong economies, businesses, and graduates. Hundreds of institutions use Emsi to align programs with regional needs, drive enrollment, connect students with in-demand careers, track their alumni’s employment outcomes, and demonstrate their institution’s economic impact on their region. Visit www.economicmodeling.com/higher-education/.
