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Across industries, from healthcare to hospitality, the resume is losing its grip. Major employers are rethinking what it means to be “qualified.” Realizing that degrees and job titles often say less about someone’s potential than their real-world skills do, business leaders are turning to new ways to evaluate candidates.
Here are seven companies that have reimagined how they hire and proved that skills-based hiring is great for business.
Cleveland Clinic dropped degrees for demonstrable skills
Cleveland Clinic partnered with OneTen and Grads of Life to remove degree and resume requirements for many operational roles.
Candidates are now evaluated on their ability to perform essential tasks and their potential to learn on the job instead of where they went to school or what their last title was. The result has been 1600 new hires and/or promotions and a more diverse leadership pipeline through apprenticeship.
By shifting focus from pedigree to potential, Cleveland Clinic has turned skills into a path for growth and advancement, proving that internal mobility is one of the strongest outcomes of skills-based hiring.
Joe & the Juice hires with personality, not paper
At Joe & the Juice, resumes have been replaced with short, conversational assessments for frontline roles at their cafes.
Instead of scanning CVs, hiring teams assess customer service instincts, adaptability, and team fit through structured dialogue. The move has shortened hiring cycles and made global hiring more consistent without losing the brand’s distinctive, high-energy culture.
In a people-first industry, Joe & the Juice found that when personality and soft skills drive performance, the best predictor of success is how someone shows up, not what’s written on a page.
Goodwill removes barriers for entry level talent
Goodwill International made waves by announcing that they were waiving degree requirements for all jobs organization wide. Several regional Goodwill organizations have taken things one step further by removing resumes from the application process for entry-level retail and warehouse roles.
Applicants now complete short, task-based assessments that measure what they can do today. The results have been striking: lower candidate drop-off rates and a broader, more inclusive pool of applicants.
By removing traditional gatekeeping, Goodwill has proven that skill demonstrations can be both equitable and efficient, especially for first-time job seekers and career changers.
Hilton Hotels pivots to scenario-based screening
In several regions, Hilton Hotels have replaced resume screening for hourly roles like housekeeping and concierge with short, scenario-based questions.
These situational assessments test problem-solving and customer service instincts directly, which reveals capability faster than any manual resume review could. The result: faster hiring cycles, better retention, and a more varied talent pool across properties.
Hilton’s experiment highlights how structured, scenario-driven screening creates both speed and fairness, turning candidate evaluation into an experience of trust.
Shake Shack goes paper free
Shake Shack has taken resume-free hiring a step further with live, in-person trial events.
Candidates are invited to demonstrate their skills in real time: taking orders, interacting with customers, and collaborating on the floor. The events eliminate unnecessary paperwork and allow hiring teams to see ability, attitude, and energy up close.
It’s an elegantly simple idea: when you let candidates show what they can do, you make better hiring decisions.
Molson Coors prioritizes aptitude
At Molson Coors, resume filters have given way to aptitude-based assessments for select operational roles.
Mechanical reasoning tests and hands-on problem-solving exercises have replaced degree requirements. Molson Coors now hires for capability — prioritizing performance in job-relevant challenges over past titles or credentials.
It’s a shift that rewards curiosity, adaptability, and practical intelligence; the same traits that drive innovation inside any modern organization.
Bon Appétit Management Company opens hiring
Bon Appétit Management Co. has piloted open hiring programs that remove traditional screening steps entirely.
Applicants attend in-person events where they complete short, paid trial shifts in kitchens or catering environments. By allowing candidates to demonstrate their ability on the spot, Bon Appétit eliminates the guesswork that often slows down hiring.
The company calls it “open hiring,” but it’s more than that: it’s proof that opportunity can start with action, not paperwork.
CLARA makes skills-based hiring easy
You don’t need to be a global brand to hire like one.
CLARA helps businesses assess candidates on real-world skills, not resume keywords. Our ethical AI is focused on considering transferable and adjacent skills, making it possible to identify potential quickly, fairly, and at scale.
To learn more about CLARA, try our interactive demo.