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Hard Data on Soft Skills: 2025 Year-in-Review with Matthew Brink and Randy Bitting

Fee: FREE (member); FREE (nonmember);

Audience: All

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Explore the key findings and emerging patterns in 2025 Career Readiness data with Matthew Brink, Chief Content and Programs Officer for NACE, and Randy Bitting, Head of Strategy & Career Readiness at Suitable. This session will be a comprehensive Year-in-Review deep dive and provide exclusive “hard data on soft skills” research. During their conversation, Matthew and Randy will candidly discuss the current state of Career Readiness in Higher Ed and explore 2025 hard data on soft skills by exploring the power of Observational Data: utilizing observational behavioral ratings from supervisors and co-workers during work-based experiences, including internships, student employment, and group-based projects.

Summary
Join us to discover how the NACE Ready assessment provides objective data on soft skills by using observational behavior ratings from supervisors and co-workers during work-based experiences, including internships, student employment, and group-based projects.

Using the data gleaned through the tool, we’ll dive into where students are struggling to meet employer expectations, identify skills gaps and key areas of strength, and examine how to translate data into action.

Take part to learn about:
- The competencies and soft skills employers are prioritizing;
- How gamification and digital badging can drive student engagement;
- Options for monitoring competency development over time; and
- Why first-generation students lack confidence—and how to address that challenge.
You’ll also learn how to embed the Career Readiness Competencies into the curriculum and co-curricular programs and how to integrate NACE Ready into your LMS to enable scalable, campus-wide implementation.
Presenters

Randy Bitting, Head of Strategy & Career Readiness, Suitable
Randy Bitting is head of strategy and career readiness at Suitable. Previously, he was led the higher education division at SkillSurvey and helped more than 300 schools integrate their market-leading competency assessment. He also served as chief strategy officer at Handshake, where he helped the organization grow from 10 to more than 400 career centers internationally. Bitting started his career as the founder and CEO at InterviewStream and is an expert in career services assessment and technology.

Matthew Brink, Chief Programs and Content Officer, NACE
Matthew Brink is chief content and programs officer for the National Association of Colleges and Employers. He oversees professional development services, meetings and events, content, and all research initiatives. An experienced professional in the field, Brink has overseen career services in a variety of institutions, including, most recently, the University of Delaware, and has been active in employer-focused activities.