Lightcast has announced a strategic partnership with Opportunity@Work to help employers adopt skills-first hiring at scale, embedding new insights directly into its workforce analytics platforms. The collaboration aims to give HR leaders and workforce planners a more complete and inclusive view of the labor market by identifying roles that can be filled without a traditional four-year degree.
At the center of the partnership is a new filter within the Lightcast Analyst platform that uses AI and skills intelligence to highlight jobs suitable for STARs—workers Skilled Through Alternative Routes. These individuals, who make up roughly half of the U.S. workforce, have built valuable skills through community college, military service, certificate programs, bootcamps, and on-the-job experience rather than bachelor’s degrees. Despite their capabilities, many remain excluded from higher-wage roles due to degree screens and biased hiring systems, often referred to as the “paper ceiling.”
Beginning in March, Lightcast customers will be able to view STARs-friendly job postings across all versions of the Analyst platform. The feature makes it easier for organizations to reassess degree requirements, expand their talent pipelines, and connect qualified workers to opportunities they might otherwise never see. The STARs filter will function alongside existing filters such as location, education, and salary, and will also extend to Lightcast offerings including APIs, data-sharing products, visualizations, and professional services.
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“It’s time for skills-first data to become standard workforce infrastructure,” said Papia Debroy, Chief Impact Officer of Opportunity@Work. “For years, we’ve been raising awareness for STARs – their skills, and their potential and the opportunity employers unlock when they hire for what workers can do. Now, through our partnership with Lightcast, we are translating that awareness to action – embedding skills-first insight directly into the systems that shape hiring decisions. When employers hire for performance rather than pedigree, everyone benefits. Now, we’re making that shift possible at scale.”
Lightcast leaders see the integration as both a business and equity imperative. “By adding STARs insights directly into Lightcast job market data, we’re giving customers a clear, data-driven way to see high-paying roles that can be designed and filled without a four-year degree,” said Cara Christopher, CMO of Lightcast.
Together, the organizations are moving skills-first hiring from theory to operational reality, enabling more equitable access to opportunity while helping employers tap into a broader, often overlooked talent pool.
