Skills Builder Global

The Problem

AI and other technological shifts are rapidly changing what individuals need to succeed in the labor market. As access to knowledge becomes increasingly democratized and routine tasks are automated, youth need more than functional proficiency in reading, writing, and math. Employers increasingly value the human capabilities that technology cannot easily replace: communication, teamwork, creative problem-solving, adaptability, persistence, accountability, and self-management. In an uncertain workforce, these essential skills are strongly linked to academic persistence, career progression, and economic mobility. Yet most education systems still treat essential skills as extracurricular.

Schools recognize the importance of collaboration, leadership, creativity, and adaptability, but few have clear, consistent methods for teaching and assessing these skills with the same rigor as literacy and numeracy. Affluent learners often develop them through enrichment programs, internships, tutors, and networks, while lower-income youth are more dependent on schools that lack the capacity to provide this instruction systematically. As AI raises the bar for human judgment and interpersonal skills, learners without access to essential skills development risk being left further behind.

The Solution

Skills Builder transforms essential employability and life skills from abstract concepts into measurable, teachable capabilities, enabling teachers to equip learners with the competencies they need to thrive in school, work, and life. Underpinned by an evidence-based, rigorous methodology developed over eight years, Skills Builder allows teachers to pair skill-building with academic subjects, breaking down eight essential skills, including listening, speaking, problem-solving, leadership, and teamwork, into teachable and measurable steps. In practice, a teacher might pair a science lesson with problem-solving, helping learners complete an academic assignment while also developing persistence skills: identifying options, testing approaches, reflecting, and trying again. Each step in the Skills Builder Universal Framework is concrete enough to embed into existing lessons and clear enough to track, allowing schools to integrate essential skills into traditional curricula rather than as a separate program.

Skills Builder is now entering a new global phase after building traction in the UK. The Skills Builder Universal Framework is now used by teachers, schools, employers, and education leaders in 52 countries and has gained visibility through the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) convenings. Over the next decade, Skills Builder aims to democratize access to essential skills development with a focus on low- and middle-income countries.

Impact

In the last year, Skills Builder directly delivered and co-designed programs through 1,100 NGO and institutional partners.

Learners in Skills Builder schools develop essential skills at three times the rate of peers; proficiency in these skills is associated with a 9% to 14% wage premium, lower unemployment, and higher job and life satisfaction.