Driving Diversity and Overcoming Bias in Recruitment

Overcoming bias in recruitment

Despite spending millions on diversity programmes and initiatives every year, companies still struggle to hire a diverse workforce. It’s not because it doesn’t exist, but because our own unconscious bias constantly gets in the way. 

Recognising that unconscious bias exists and addressing it is the first step to overcoming it

Taking the Harvard test developed to pinpoint a person’s unconscious bias can help understand it. We all have it as we’re a product of a world that has nurtured it.

With understanding comes knowledge of how you can work against it and take the bias out of the hiring process.

Words matter

Always check the language in job descriptions, advertised vacancies, emails and interview briefings. Naturally, this includes male and female pronouns, but it goes far beyond that. Avoid words that have either male or female connotations, such as ‘dominant’ or ‘aggressive’, or things like ‘dynamic’ which  can be perceived as younger employees. Tools like Get Optimal and Paiger can help ensure that advertised roles use appropriate and non-biased vocabulary to help attract a diverse candidate pool.

Let your technology help you out

Your recruitment CRM should help you eliminate unconscious bias when supported by effective screening and compliance tools. Access Recruitment CRM is fully integrated with comprehensive screening software for full compliance tracking to ensure your candidates are being treated fairly and in accordance with current legislation.

Beyond being the right thing to do, removing the bias from candidate selection to support  your clients makes good business sense. Nearly every company out there is struggling to get this right, and if your agency can talk about how you drive diversity this will help you win new clients, as well as reaching a wider talent pool to fill more vacancies.

Retaining your diverse workforce

Overcoming unconscious bias will help you drive diversity and inclusion, but beyond that, in order to retain your own diverse workforce there are some important factors to consider, including:

• Train your managers - Work with the managers in your agency to upskill them on the needs and requirements of diverse employees. Offering training on different styles of behaviour management is a great way to get your senior members on board and involved in the conversation.
• Create a diverse retention policy - If you have a policy for hiring diverse talent, extend that to include a retention policy. Having something committed, agreed and in writing is half the battle. It builds awareness within your organisation and gives you direction.
• Open the conversation - Include questions in your engagement surveys that relate to diversity and inclusion. Ask your employees what you’re missing and how you can make the culture more inclusive.
• Celebrate all holidays - Not everyone celebrates Christmas so ask your employees what holidays are important to them and make sure to recognise these too.
• Conduct stay interviews - A simple tool that is incredibly effective for the retention of all your employees. Hold “stay interviews” twice a year and ask your people for their concerns, feelings and input. Create spaces where you can have these conversations that will give you the tools to make effective and desired change.

Download our eBook to read outcomes from our Recruitment Pulse survey and our insights relating to winning clients, managing the talent pool, the impact on your people and improving efficiencies.