A Fortune 500 company with more than 50,000 employees, Prudential Financial responded to challenges that arose during the COVID-19 pandemic in a bold way.

Prudential decided to forgo traditional hiring and promotion processes that focus on educational credentials and past experience and is instead embracing a skills-based approach. Focusing on prospective employees’ skills instead of their “pedigrees” enabled the company to create opportunities for a broader and more diverse pool of both internal and external workers—not just those who have traditional business backgrounds.

The company recently joined JFF’s Recover Stronger initiative, a coalition of employers responding to the unemployment crisis by mobilizing as Impact Employers and investing in the financial and career well-being of their employees—and urging other businesses to do the same.

In this Forbes column, Vicki Walia, Prudential Financial’s chief talent and capability officer, talks with Alison Griffin, a senior vice president at Whiteboard Advisors about how the financial services company is retaining talent, boosting morale, and promoting equity by thinking creatively about recruiting and employee development during the pandemic.