Lightcast

Lightcast Lightcast is the global leader in labor market intelligence, empowering smarter decisions for businesses, education institutions, and governments worldwide.

At Lightcast, our software products, APIs, and consulting solutions bring clarity to the fast-changing world of work. Formerly Emsi Burning Glass, Lightcast has over two decades of experience in finding solutions and delivering the competitive edge our clients demand. With world-class customer service, we provide the answers and insight to meet your specific need—because every decision made withou

t data is just a shot in the dark. By helping communities, businesses, and education institutions succeed, our ultimate goal is connecting individuals with the right skills and right jobs in the right places. People are at the heart of everything we do, and we want to create a job market that works for everyone.

One of the biggest barriers to skills transformation is inconsistency.Different teams define skills differently.Differen...
06/24/2026

One of the biggest barriers to skills transformation is inconsistency.

Different teams define skills differently.
Different systems categorize skills differently.
Different leaders prioritize skills differently.

That's why creating a [skills taxonomy] matters.

A well-defined taxonomy creates a shared language for recruiting, learning, workforce planning, and career development. It makes it easier to assess, develop, and deploy talent effectively.

Without a common framework, skills data becomes difficult to trust and even harder to act on.

Want to see how a skills taxonomy fits into a larger transformation strategy?

Our ebook breaks down all 10 steps. https://lightcast.pub/10steps-skills

How do you align education systems with rapidly changing labor markets?That was the challenge facing UNESCO.To help poli...
06/24/2026

How do you align education systems with rapidly changing labor markets?
That was the challenge facing UNESCO.

To help policymakers and educators understand how skills demand is changing across occupations, industries, and countries, UNESCO partnered with Lightcast to build the Global Skills Tracker: a diagnostic platform that maps employer skills needs against what education systems are producing.

Policymakers can identify emerging skills needs and better align education investment. --- Education providers can build curricula around the skills employers are actively seeking. --- Employers can better understand talent trends and strengthen workforce development efforts. --- Researchers can analyze labour market shifts across countries, industries, and occupations.
Jobseekers can make more informed decisions about careers, training, and lifelong learning.

As UNESCO Programme Specialist Claudia P***a puts it:
"The Global Skills Tracker is not just a map of today's labor market; it's a call to action. With better data and sharper insights, governments, businesses, trainers, and young people can make smarter decisions and move closer to a world where everyone has the skills to thrive in the economy of the future."

Read the full story: https://lightcast.io/unesco-case-study

In our Fault Lines report, we defined (3) key disruptions impacting the global labor market. Some industries are dramati...
06/23/2026

In our Fault Lines report, we defined (3) key disruptions impacting the global labor market. Some industries are dramatically affected by 1 or 2 --- Healthcare is facing all three.

First, a labor shortage:
There are 2.2 million healthcare job openings in the US, but only 417,000 unemployed healthcare workers.

Second, a talent pipeline challenge:
Nearly 3 million healthcare workers are immigrants, just as immigration rates are declining and demographic trends point to a smaller future workforce.

Third, a technology shift:
Nearly half of all healthcare venture capital investment now flows into AI.

Taken separately, each trend is significant. And together, they reveal a healthcare industry being reshaped. Over the past several weeks, we've explored each of these forces.

Part 1: Labor Shortages
https://lightcast.io/resources/blog/healthcare-labor-shortages-fault-lines

Part 2: Geopolitics
https://lightcast.io/resources/blog/healthcare-geopolitics-fault-lines

Part 3: AI
https://lightcast.io/resources/blog/healthcare-ai-fault-lines

40% of current skillsets are misaligned with labor market needs.Which means that millions of people are being trained fo...
06/22/2026

40% of current skillsets are misaligned with labor market needs.

Which means that millions of people are being trained for jobs that are disappearing, while employers struggle to find talent for the jobs that are emerging.

UNESCO sits at the heart of efforts to tackle this challenge, strengthening Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) through evidence-based policymaking and curriculum development.

But for education systems to teach the skills needed for today's and tomorrow's jobs, UNESCO needed a way to track changing skills demand in real time.

As Borhene Chakroun, UNESCO’s Director of the Division for Policies and Lifelong Learning Systems, explains:
“Having real-time data at one's fingertips is critical to enabling joint, evidence-based responses to this huge challenge."

Enter UNESCO's partnership with Lightcast to build the Global Skills Tracker: an online platform that draws on millions of job adverts and advanced skills intelligence to give countries a live view of how skills demand is changing across occupations, industries, and regions.

The result is a better understanding of what employers need today, and a clearer picture of what workers will need tomorrow.

Read the full story: https://lightcast.io/unesco-case-study

Matt Walsh discusses credentials as a viable path in this ever-evolving labor market https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FW5...
06/22/2026

Matt Walsh discusses credentials as a viable path in this ever-evolving labor market https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FW5g-Drcu2E

A rigorous, data-driven methodology can help workforce boards, community colleges, K-12 systems, & industry associations evaluate which credentials truly deliver results.

One of the most interesting findings from our analysis:The solution isn't necessarily finding more data center workers.I...
06/18/2026

One of the most interesting findings from our analysis:
The solution isn't necessarily finding more data center workers.
It's identifying workers *adjacent* to this field to fill needs.

Systems support specialists. Network administrators. Telecommunications technicians. Power distribution engineers.

Many already have substantial skill overlap with data center roles.
That's how you find the workforce you need.
https://lightcast.io/resources/research/data-centers-and-the-local-workforce

06/17/2026

*STARs—workers Skilled Through Alternative Routes—make up 50% of the US labor force, and they are often excluded from jobs they’re qualified for because of unnecessary degree requirements. Now, Lightcast and Opportunity@Work have made it easier to connect STARs to more jobs and help organizations shift to a skills-first approach. https://www.opportunityatwork.org/take-action/lightcast

The US Healthcare system badly needs workers, and labor-saving AI innovations might help address some of these talent sh...
06/17/2026

The US Healthcare system badly needs workers, and labor-saving AI innovations might help address some of these talent shortages. But so far, AI exposure has been slow to reach most Healthcare jobs—but not all.

To discover how Artificial Intelligence is (and is not) bringing disruption to American Healthcare work, read this final installment in Lightcast's series on the Fault Lines rattling the Healthcare labor market. https://lightcast.io/resources/blog/healthcare-ai-fault-lines

Elizabeth Crofoot talks about developing a skills strategy to help solve your workforce challenges. https://www.youtube....
06/17/2026

Elizabeth Crofoot talks about developing a skills strategy to help solve your workforce challenges. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPgu7N-DatM

From concept to conduct, this 5Cs framework helps organizations move beyond theory & create a scalable, practical approach to skills-based transformation.

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