Do you want to do better at diversity recruiting in 2022?
The benefits are huge. More diversity in your company means you’re getting the best talent, and it also means you’re getting a wider range of perspectives and viewpoints. No wonder 85% of CEOs with diverse and inclusive cultures have noticed increased profits.
So how can you become better at diversity recruitment?
What is Diversity Recruitment?
Diversity recruiting means hiring candidates who reflect the broad range of different people in society. If your company is currently mostly male, mostly white, mostly under 30 and so on, then it’s definitely not diverse.
Sometimes, diversity is seen purely in racial terms. But diversity also applies to gender, age, sexual orientation, disabilities, and religion.
CVGenius specifies that a diverse workforce is one where you have a great range of different people. You don’t have lots of staff members who look (and think) the same; instead, you have a group of employees who reflect society as it truly is.
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How to Attract a Diverse Applicant Pool
Once you have an inclusive, respectful team culture firmly embedded — or you’re at least on your way there — it’s time to look at how to attract a more diverse applicant pool. This could mean:
- Talking explicitly about how your company values diversity in your recruitment materials. Even a sentence or two in the job description could make all the difference to a candidate who is wondering whether or not it’s worth applying.
- Approaching specific groups or organizations. For instance, you might reach out to networking groups or alumni associations that are specifically aimed at people of color, or you might attend events aimed at women in your industry.
- Place job ads in diverse media, such as in different religious and cultural publications or on websites aimed at different groups. Don’t simply stick to the outlets you always use.
- Using a recruitment firm and explaining that you particularly want a more diverse applicant pool.
- Encouraging candidates to apply even if they don’t have a “traditional” background in your field.
- Asking current employees to refer anyone who they know and explaining that you’re keen to build a more diverse team.
- Only asking for the qualifications, skills and experience that are actually required. White, male candidates will often apply even if they don’t meet all the eligibility requirements — even though only 28% of hiring managers expect candidates to meet every qualification listed. However, more diverse candidates may be put off from applying.
- Making sure that your recruitment and hiring team is as diverse as possible and hiring outside talent if necessary to assist with this.
- Creating policies that are likely to help attract more diverse candidates. For instance, offering flexi-time or hybrid working may help to attract a wider range of candidates, including disabled candidates.
- Making sure your company’s website reflects your commitment to diversity. This should be clear from your vision statement and information about your company from photos of your staff and also from the language that you use on the site.
- Tackling assumptions about your industry that might put off diverse candidates from applying. For instance, if you work in construction and want to employ more women, you might need to be clear that your workplace is female-friendly and that you’d love more women to apply.
There are a huge number of benefits of recruiting a more diverse workforce. You’ll have a wide range of voices and viewpoints on your team, you’ll be better positioned to serve diverse customers and clients, you’ll have a more welcoming, inclusive environment where everyone feels comfortable, and you’ll also have the best talent out there available to you.
The tips above should help you to dramatically improve your diversity recruiting in 2022.