The Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore’s “Why Baltimore” program has local leaders discussing Baltimore’s distinct standing among other markets. In his segment that first aired April 5th on WYPR, our CEO Jacob Hsu made the case for skills-based hiring as a way to create more economic opportunities in the city.
You can listen to the full segment here and read Jacob’s remarks below.
Full “Why Baltimore” transcript
For 18 years, Catalyte has hired its software developers based on aptitude, not pedigree or resumes. Through this process we’ve learned that there’s no correlation between someone’s educational, racial, gender or previous employment background and their ability to be a great software developer. Talent is equally distributed. Opportunity is not.
Skills-based hiring levels the playing field. Communities who made up the backbone of Baltimore’s industrial jobs, many of whom lack the formal education or traditional work experience that resumes highlight, can now put their innate abilities to work in fields that once seemed unattainable.
By applying AI and predictive analytics to technology hiring, we reduce bias and create new opportunities for underserved populations. We create a new, more diverse workforce that can revitalize our communities. We create a new talent pool to fuel innovation in Baltimore. And we create more productive and profitable companies.
