Burning Glass Institute Launches to Track a Fast-Changing Labor Market

Real-Time Labor Analytics Pioneer Matt Sigelman Creates New Nonprofit Advancing Research & Practice on Mobility, Opportunity & Equity

(Boston, MA) – January 20, 2022 – Today real-time labor market data pioneer and chairman of Emsi Burning Glass, Matt Sigelman, announced the launch of a new, independent nonprofit, The Burning Glass Institute, focused on tracking the future of work and the future of workers.  

Situated at the intersection of work and learning, The Burning Glass Institute will advance new data-driven models of economic mobility and of workforce equity at a time when rapid change increasingly challenges employers and workers alike.  Building on a legacy of breakthrough innovation in labor market analytics, the Institute will be a trusted source bridging workers, employers, educators, and policy makers.

The Burning Glass Institute is launched with the generous support of its founding partners, Emsi Burning Glass and Wiley, a global leader in publishing, education, and research.  The Institute’s researchers will have full access to Emsi Burning Glass’s data to inform their work.  

The Institute goes beyond the traditional think tank model not only because of its unique big data approach but also because it will serve both as a research center and as a laboratory to test high-impact solutions.

The Institute also announced the appointment of six distinguished leaders in higher education, industry, public policy, and research as Senior Fellows.  These include:

• Michael Bernick, Counsel at Duane Morris and former Commissioner of Labor for the State of California;

• Yvette Burton, a leader in the field of people analytics with an extensive executive track record at E&Y, Deloitte, IBM, and Lockheed Martin, and Professor of Practice Emeritus and Academic Director of the Human Capital Management Program at Columbia University;

• Joseph Fuller, Professor of Management Practice at Harvard Business School and co-leader of HBS’s initiative on Managing the Future of Work;

• Tamar Jacoby, President of Opportunity America, a Washington-based nonprofit dedicated to promoting economic mobility for working Americans;

• Joe May, Chancellor of Dallas College, one of the nation’s largest and most successful community colleges; and

• Debbie Wasden, Director of the Rework America Alliance at the Markle Foundation, a multi-stakeholder partnership working to help millions of unemployed workers and people from low-wage roles to move into better jobs.

Over the coming weeks, the Institute will be releasing major reports studying how employers are abandoning degree requirements, identifying opportunities for universities to serve as more effective dynamos of diversity, and tracking the quickening pace of skill change within jobs.

“Through our expertise in mining new datasets for actionable insight, the Burning Glass Institute’s research draws attention to pressing problems and frames the potential for new approaches,” Sigelman said.  “Thirty percent of the skills underlying the average job have been replaced over the past decade, challenging higher education to keep up and threatening industry with the prospect of major talent disruption.  Our work is about helping companies and communities ensure that the workforce they have can be the workforce they need for the future.”

“This Institute will focus on promoting opportunity, expanding prosperity, and reinvigorating economic mobility at a time of great change,” said Ken Mehlman, Co-Head of KKR Global Impact, the lead investor in Emsi Burning Glass.  “We are delighted to continue our partnership with Matt Sigelman in this hopeful endeavor.”

“We are pleased to be a founding partner of this important new initiative dedicated to using research and data to drive improved outcomes in the labor market,” said Brian Napack, CEO of Wiley. “Real change can happen when we bring employers and educators together to develop solutions to unlock human potential at scale. We look forward to collaborating with The Burning Glass Institute and its partners.”

For any questions about these reports, or to schedule an interview, please contact media@burningglassinstitute.org.  

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Situated at the intersection of learning and work, The Burning Glass Institute advances data-driven research and practice on the future of work and of workers. We work with educators, employers, and policymakers to develop solutions that build mobility, opportunity, and equity through skills.