📉 Over 50% of Gen Z grads feel their degree was a waste

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Good Morning!

Whether it’s job seekers questioning the value of their educational degree or employees zoning out in Zoom meetings, one message cuts through: the old systems aren’t working.

It’s time for employers to meet people where they are — or risk losing them entirely.

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⬇️ Upcoming in this issue

• ⚠️ The Deepfake Resume Problem Is Already Here

• 🔍 No Degree? No Problem, Say Top Employers

• 📉 The Hidden Cost of Disengaged Employees

• ⚡ Fast, Clear, Human: What Candidates Really Want

📰 Latest in HR News

• Company Layoffs are Reaching Historic Highs—Here’s What HR Should Know

• Gen-Z Continues to Challenge the Traditional Workplace—Here’s How Leaders Can Adapt

• Starbucks Is Hiring In-Store Human Workers After Replacing People With Machines — and Finding It Didn't Work

• Quiet Cracking: Employee Disengagement Takes on a New Form

Tailored HR Software Recommendations for Your Org

⚠️ The Deepfake Resume Problem Is Already Here

Generative AI is helping candidates write cover letters, build polished resumes, and even conduct interview prep.

But recruiters are starting to face something far more dangerous: completely fake applicants powered by AI — including deepfaked interviews, fake credentials, and stolen identities.

HR professionals can no longer afford to think these risks fall outside their purview.

Key Insights

• 🧠 Fake candidates aren’t just padding resumes anymore
  Some bad actors use AI to generate full identities, create diplomas, and fake entire job histories to infiltrate companies.

• 🎭 Deepfakes are a growing threat in hiring
  North Korea-backed IT workers have used deepfake video interviews to breach Fortune 100 companies’ systems and steal data.

• 🛡️ Recruiters are using AI to detect fraud
  Live facial screenings and document verification tools use AI to spot deepfakes, identity theft, and behavioral anomalies.

• ⚖️ AI can fight fraud — but can also cause bias
  Without oversight, AI might infer protected traits like gender or race and make unfair decisions in the hiring process.

read the full 671-word article here

🔍 No Degree? No Problem, Say Top Employers

More hiring teams are swapping degree filters for skill-based assessments, driven by AI tools that match candidates to problems, not GPAs.

At the same time, Gen Z graduates are joining the pushback, with many calling their expensive degrees “a waste” in today’s skills-first job market.

Key Insights

• 📉 Over 50% of Gen Z grads feel their degree was a waste 🎓
  A recent Indeed survey shows disillusionment with academic ROI, especially outside high-earning STEM and medical fields.

• 🏢 Major firms are ditching degree requirements 🗂️
  Google, IBM, Deloitte, and others now prioritize practical skills, making hiring more inclusive and performance-focused.

• 🧠 AI is powering the skills-first revolution 🤖
  AI hiring models assess capability over credentials by drawing from skill databases, not educational backgrounds.

• 🔓 ‘Great Places to Work’ value opportunity for all 🌍
  Top employers now define inclusion as removing degree barriers and giving all candidates a fair shot at advancement.

read the full 558-word article here

📉 The Hidden Cost of Disengaged Employees

In an era where physical presence is back on the agenda, mental presence seems to be rapidly disappearing. Many employees are disengaged, unclear on what matters, and drowning in bad communication and bloated meeting calendars.

This has turned into an economic issue, with disengagement costing U.S. companies hundreds of billions each year. And while executives think their internal communications are working, employees clearly don’t agree.

Key Insights

• 📉 Half of employees admit they’re only giving the bare minimum 😐
  Disengagement is widespread — and driven more by poor communication and unclear goals than laziness or bad attitudes.

• 📊 Bad internal comms = big financial losses 💸
  Disengaged employees cost U.S. companies an estimated $500 billion a year in lost productivity, burnout, and misaligned efforts.

• 💬 Leaders and workers live in two different communication worlds 🗣️
  While 80% of leaders say comms are clear, only 50% of employees agree — revealing a critical perception and priority gap.

• ⚙️ Smart companies cut noise, not corners 🧰
  Cox Communications boosted goal clarity by 17% using shorter, sharper messaging — not more emails or meetings.

read the full 1,108-word article here

⚡ Fast, Clear, Human: What Candidates Really Want

In a hiring landscape shaped by burnout and digital overload, job seekers are demanding less friction, more clarity, and a process that respects their time.

Here’s what today’s applicants expect — and what employers need to fix now.

Key Insights

• ⏱️ 73% of job seekers expect applications to take under 30 minutes 🕒
  Long applications are a dealbreaker — over one-third will abandon if the process feels too slow or clunky.

• 📧 Email dominates as the top communication channel 💬
  Candidates prefer recruiters reach out by email, especially early in the process — not phone calls or face-to-face.

• 🧠 56% are comfortable with AI reviewing resumes — but trust HR more 🤖
  Automation helps, but 58% still trust human HR reps more than AI for decision-making during hiring.

• 🤝 Great interviews still win 👥
  Attentive, well-prepared interviewers with strong communication skills remain key to making a lasting, positive impression.

read the full 837-word article here