compliance-and-data
Hiring a diverse workforce
Orla Hodnett
HireHive
Orla Hodnett
HireHive
Orla Hodnett
HireHive
Orla Hodnett
HireHive
The benefits of workplace diversity are numerous. It improves collaboration and problem solving, helps you to understand customers and their needs, makes your organisation appeal to candidates and innovation in a diverse organisation is much greater. Best of all, you can improve diversity through good strategy and with the help of recruiting software.
Improving diversity and hiring is a no-brainer. What might require some brainpower is improving your hiring strategies. Here are a few tips to help you hire more diversely.
One aspect of the recruiting process which can impact your profile of candidates is your job advertisements. While you may well understand that job postings require a particular structure and particular information, how you communicate your needs is also significant.
The way you phrase your job postings can appeal to certain candidates, but also alienate others. One fascinating tool you can use to avoid this is Texito, which analyses your ads for words that may send the wrong message to some demographics.
How you advertise
Now that we know job postings can influence a candidate’s decision to apply for a job, it is worth looking at the channels for promoting those postings to candidates, i.e. which job boards or other platforms you use.
Undoubtedly, the easiest way to reach a greater range of candidates is to cast a wide net. Firstly, do not limit yourself to popular job sites. Consider social media, sites like github, meetups - the possibilities are really limitless, helping you reach a broad spectrum of candidates.
Interviewing
The stage of the recruiting process at greatest risk of unintentional bias is the interviewing stage. Naturally, we are drawn to those with the same views and attitudes as ourselves, but if you are seeking the most skilled candidates, you have to avoid influences that hinder that.
One great way of avoiding interview bias is by using a scorecard. This handy interviewing tool keeps your focus on the straight and narrow, giving you particular criteria to score your candidates on. HireHive allows you to generate scorecards and store them in the candidate’s profile. Yup, that easy.
**Te****sting and skills evaluation**
You want your hiring process to exist in a meritocracy. Essentially, you just want to find the most skilled and experienced candidates to fill any vacancies. The easiest way of doing this is by using tests or assessments in the recruiting process.
The great thing about this technique is when you use it early in the recruiting process, it weeds out unsuitable candidates quickly. For roles requiring very specific skills sets, it ensures that you and the candidate are on the same page.
Referrals are a recruiter’s best friend. They reduce the cost and time to hire, have higher retention rates and make existing candidates feel that their opinion and input matters. As if that was not enough, they can help improve diversity at your organisation.
Your existing employees are likely to know other experienced individuals in your industry with a broad range of experiences. Better again, your employees will be able to do their own bit of screening, as they understand the needs of the organisation. Another form of referrals may be from specialised organisations, which will help you reach the candidates you want.
“HireHive makes the team a lot more productive. We’d be lost without it. Team Leaders can do it all themselves if needed or jump in at the right time and know exactly where everything is and what’s happening.”
Hilary Dempsey Head of HR at Life Credit union
