Ask HN: How do you manage employee IT skills?

Hello All, I work for a semi-large international company and we have an employee driven initiative to create a searchable database of people and their skill sets. Since this is an employee driven initiative there is almost no budget for development, so I come to you to ask whether there is a way around wheel reinvention that does not cost a fortune. What do you use to manage employees and find the best fit for projects?