Chances are your hiring process is riddled with bias
Inclusive hiring is the practice of minimizing bias and creating an equitable recruitment, application, interview, selection and offer process for a diverse set of candidates. It’s critical for attracting and retaining a diverse, engaged and innovative talent pool. It’s also where many companies go wrong. Achieving workplace diversity and equity requires intention and focus in order to overcome systemic and individual biases that have marginalized all too many members of our society.
Here are some tips you can begin implementing right now to make your hiring process more equitable.
Job descriptions
Bias can creep in at all stages of the hiring process, starting with job descriptions. As Marsha Ross-Jackson, Esq., MPA, Senior Lecturer and Associate Dean of DEI at Chicago-Kent College of Law, explains, “What type of job are you trying to fill? What are the requirements? What are the preferred qualifications? How are you wording those job descriptions so that they attract (or discourage) a diverse set of candidates? Take a look at the language you’re using. For example, does any of your language have the potential to be viewed as seeking candidates who are more masculine or youthful? Are you implying a preference for people without disabilities by including requirements like, ‘must be able to walk certain distances’ as opposed to ‘must be able to move items certain distances’?”
TIP: Engage a diverse group of individuals to create and revise job descriptions. This is a great first step toward attracting the best talent, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, etc.
TIP: Audit the language of your job descriptions to ensure that it’s as inclusive as possible. Tools such as Gender Decoder may be helpful. You can also check out these lists of masculine-coded and feminine-coded words.
TIP: Include an Equal Employment Opportunity statement and a listing of your company’s benefits. This will demonstrate your commitment to building an inclusive company culture and investing in employee well-being.
TIP: List salary ranges. This will convey that you have a culture of transparency and a focus on equity.
Would you like to learn more?
Join Joel Lesko and special guest Marsha Ross-Jackson, Esq., MPA on Wednesday, May 3, 2023 at 12:00 p.m. ET / 9:00 a.m PT for a powerful webinar titled “Want to Succeed? Stop Hiring People Like You!” – part of our new “DEI Discussions” series. It will feature tips for eliminating bias when it comes to:
- Recruitment
- Candidate screening
- Interviews
- Selection
- Promotions
And make no mistake. Inclusive hiring is not simply the right thing to do. There’s a strong business case. Diversity in the workplace fosters innovation and creativity. A variety of life experiences leads to greater problem-solving, and, as any modern salesperson or marketer can tell you, solving customers’ problems is at the heart of business. Companies that tend to identify, understand and solve problems innovatively and creatively stand out from the crowd. This is supported by abundant research, including McKinsey & Company’s 2015 Why Diversity Matters report, which revealed that companies in the top quartile for gender, racial and ethnic diversity tend to have higher financial returns compared with the national industry medians.
Click here to register for this free webinar, or use the QR code below. You won’t want to miss this hearty discussion filled with actionable insights. Joel and Marsha will also explain the option for booking an Inclusive Hiring webinar exclusively for your organization.
More From Our Blog…
The Launch of SunShower Learning’s New Webinar Series, DEI Discussions
SunShower Learning is thrilled to announce the launch of our new webinar series, DEI Discussions, which is designed to provide insightful, action-oriented sessions on a variety of DEI topics. Our first webinar, “Want to Succeed? Stop Hiring People Like You!”, took...
Joel Lesko, Filmmaker and Founder of SunShower Learning, will speak at the 2023 International Peace Conference
Joel Lesko will be a speaker at the 2023 International Peace Conference in Birmingham, Alabama, on May 5 - 6, 2023. The event is being hosted by Rotary International District 6860 (North and Central Alabama) in partnership with the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute...
What’s going on in there?
Listen to the Hidden Brain: Revealing Your Unconscious podcast and find outA friend texted me about a podcast he thought I would enjoy. The show notes piqued my interest: “We ask how is it that we can hold negative stereotypes — without being aware of them?” If you’ve...
You can’t see me
Associated PressExamples of racial double standards in sports abound. Athletes of different races are frequently treated differently based on their race, and the recent NCAA women’s basketball national championship laid this bare. Near the end of a game, LSU’s Angel...
Reclaiming the Water
Why I’m in awe of the Howard University swimming and diving team By Gina Miller When we follow threads back through history, appalling origins or explanations for certain contemporary social issues / racial matters are often discovered. This was my experience when I...
DEI Leaders are Burning Out
A recent article in Human Resources Director highlights something that we’ve been hearing a lot about - diversity fatigue. It’s a term from the 90s, but it’s back now and the reasons require serious consideration. In the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder, there was...
The Day the National Guard Raided an HBCU Dorm
A portion of the bullet-ridden, exterior wall of Smith Hall still stands in commemoration at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. Khadejeh Nikouyeh/News & ObserverThis is why Black history needs to be taught By Gina Miller, contributing...
Embodying Ethical Leadership
In an age when faith in our institutions—academic, corporate and government—is at an all-time low, it behooves leaders to “do the right thing.” Paraphrasing Charlamagne, “Right action is better than knowledge, but in order to do what is right, we must know what is...
Right Where She Belongs
How Lisette Martinez creates an inclusive culture and a world of opportunity as Jefferson Health’s Executive Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer By Gina Miller The innate desire to belong The year was 1984 in Ypsilanti, Michigan when the world fractured in...
The Accessibility Journey
Accessibility is typically about providing the ability to access a building, a vehicle or a service. In our world of online eLearning courses, accessibility means enabling all learners to engage with a course in the way they need and prefer in order to gain the...