Recent research describes a gap between the workforce skills employers need and the skills college graduates bring to the workforce. Making strides toward closing the workforce skills gap means that institutions, employers, and students must work together to cultivate a shared understanding of how strategic collaboration and communication are mutually beneficial. As such, the purpose of this study was to examine whether, or to what extent, institutions are using workforce trends to align and measure learning outcomes and help students communicate their levels of workplace skill proficiencies to potential employers. The research questions included: (1) How is your institution using workforce trends to align and measure learning outcomes?; (2) How is your institution utilizing workforce trends to design and measure learning experiences connected to learning outcomes?; and (3) What methods are used at your institution to teach students to communicate their level of skill proficiencies? This Research Brief presents five key findings on a student workforce skills communication gap, whereby students have appropriate workforce skills upon graduation but may lack the communication skills to effectively articulate these to potential employers. In addition, a Playbook is available that presents strategies for college and university leaders, employers, and students to overcome this workforce skills gap. These publications provide institutions of higher education with strategies and insights to better apply workforce trends to institutional decision-making, in terms of their programmatic and course design efforts. [For the corresponding Playbook, see ED633660.]