Ren Akinci, Chief People Officer at Emerald

Breaking Educational Barriers in Talent Acquisition with Ren AkinciIn this episode of the Built by People Podcast, the host welcomes Ren, who shares her 15-year journey in HR across various industries and discusses the pivotal moment when she realized the unnecessary barriers created by college degree requirements. Ren talks about her partnership with OneTen to remove degree requirements in over 75% of job descriptions and how this initiative has diversified talent pools and strengthened recruitment pipelines. She shares insights on the impact of eliminating degree prerequisites on diversity and inclusion and emphasizes hiring based on skills and potential over formal education. Ren concludes with advice for companies interested in adopting similar approaches and stresses the importance of tapping into a wider talent market.00:00 Introduction and Career Journey01:08 Realizing the Barriers of Degree Requirements02:17 Practical Experience Over Formal Education03:15 Partnership with OneTen04:28 Impact on Diversity and Inclusion05:47 Success Stories and Skills-Based Hiring06:56 Parting Advice and Call to Action07:44 ConclusionPrevi is a private pricing network that is free for companies to launch and maintain. It saves employees $2,200/year on essential services like their cell phone and auto insurance bill. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Visit here to learn more⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.