The Navajo Nation’s first-ever repository of all jobs available on the reservation and the skills required to fill them will be created with assistance from Aspire Ability and the Competency-based Education Network.

The Competency-Based Education Network (C-BEN) and Aspire Ability announce an initiative to create The Navajo Nation Talent Marketplace, a distinctive ecosystem of Navajo job seekers, employers, and education providers, with the help and guidance of Navajo leaders and tribal agencies. The Navajo Nation will now have a single location where all positions, both in-person and online, that are open on the reservation can be found. The new labour market identifies the necessary job skills and provides postsecondary courses that are in line with the demands of employers.

One of the biggest federally recognised Native American tribes in North America is the Navajo Nation, which occupies 27,000 square miles of land in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. The two-year project is intended to address enduring structural barriers to employment and regional economic development. A persistent pattern of migration and brain drain that threatens the viability of the Navajo Nation is fueled by unemployment and poverty, which affects nearly 36% of Navajo households. Only 168,000 out of the enrolled tribal members reside in the Navajo Nation today.

President of the Navajo Nation Buu Nygren said, “My administration looks forward to the day when all Navajos who are looking for employment can find a thriving wage job here at home.” The Navajo Nation Talent Marketplace is the first step in creating an economy that will support people living in hózhóó both now and in the future, according to the statement.

Aspire Ability’s head of public policy and partnerships, Moroni Benally, a member of the Navajo Nation, said that having an online, publicly accessible resource that connects employment opportunities and educational opportunities will help people find all available opportunities on the reservation. “It’s an important step in our country’s long-term efforts to provide all Navajo-from our 3,500 annual high school graduates to those who moved away-access to credentials that link to well-paying jobs within the country.”

Aspire Ability and C-BEN are establishing the marketplace through a planned and coordinated series of initiatives that will fully connect employers, job seekers, and higher education institutions. The project is based on competency-based education (CBE), a method of teaching that places less emphasis on classroom time and more on the application of what students learn-what they know and can do.

Aspire Capability This will be made possible by the Navajo Nation Talent Marketplace’s tools, which will take the place of the traditional resume/job-description model and match job seekers’ competencies with those needed for particular jobs. Instead of posting traditional job requirements, employers instead post job competency maps that specify the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs). Reports summarising their compatibility with the necessary competencies for jobs are available to both job seekers and employers. Job seekers are given a customised upskilling plan, outlining the precise KSAs they require, if they are found to be lacking in some of the competencies required for a desired position.

The market will give Navajo students access to scalable, competency-based career pathways that lead to the credentials they need. C-BEN will collaborate with Navajo Technical University, Diné College, and other regional education providers to create competency-based programmes that are in line with the in-demand skills that employers are looking for in order to deliver this market capability. The marketplace technology platform will share job posting data with the colleges and universities to ensure that the educational programmes continue to concentrate on the competencies required by employers.

Members of the Navajo Nation will be matched to open positions that best match their skills by taking part in the market. Additionally, if a job seeker needs to upgrade their skills for a position, the market will connect them to programmes that can assist them in doing so.