10 things to change and implement in your hiring practices

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New and different perspectives may be exactly what your business needs to reach the next level. Learn about 10 ways to improve your DEI policy and partner with the best candidates:
Hiring is the best way to create an effective workforce with powerful talent, whether you're building a remote team or staffing a traditional office.

But many companies are still struggling. And some have chosen to ignore the issue entirely - to their own detriment.
In an age of greater social consciousness, it's not just employees who are demanding more inclusivity - your customers (and perhaps even shareholders) are rightly demanding it too.

So if you want to become a shining example of a workplace that welcomes all races, genders, abilities, religions, etc., we'll show you how to get started.

A quick note: The mindset around diversity and inclusion needs to change. It's not about being diverse for the sake of being diverse, being inclusive for the sake of being inclusive, or just ticking off how many BIPOC or people with disabilities work at your company. By continuing to strive for a deep understanding of our individual and collective biases, we as a company can better hire the right person for the job, with equality as our beacon. Once you've "achieved" the hiring steps listed below, remember that this is just one small step in the bigger picture of fighting systemic inequality. We are all in the same boat and will continue to develop together with you.

10 things to change and implement in your hiring practices

Those : technologyadvice.com

Make sure your diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) hiring efforts consider these 10 best practices:


#1. Assess your current situation and your team members

Where exactly does your company stand on a demographic level?

Do you have a diverse team of people from all over the world? Is there a mix of different genders, races, ages, religions and education levels? Or is everyone a copy of the original founders?

If you find the latter to be the case, you should encourage your hiring team to create one Implicit association test (IAT). These tests uncover underlying biases that may prevent your team from selecting different candidates.
For example, researchers from one Study responded to job ads in Boston and Chicago with either a very African-American sounding name (like Lakeisha or Jamal) or a very white-sounding name (like Emily or Greg). Even though they had identical resumes, they learned that the white names received 50% more callbacks for interviews.
Biases like these can be beyond your team's awareness and control. However, that doesn't mean they should be ignored.
Your employees don't need to share the results of these tests, but they should understand what happened and take steps to correct the problems. Educate yourself Regular open (and probably uncomfortable) conversations will help.

#2. Make equity a priority at all levels

"If diversity is about getting people in the room and inclusion is about making sure they have a voice, then equality is about making sure they have the power; actual decision-making power. "
- Jezz Chung

A lack of diversity in middle and senior management shows potential and current employees that there may not be opportunities for advancement for BIPOC, women, LGBTQIA2S+, people with disabilities, etc.

Eliminate barriers to hiring practices by prioritizing equal opportunity, i.e. H. Ensure opportunities for everyone (and take opportunities away from no one). Equal employment opportunity ensures that jobs are distributed fairly and that qualified applicants are not denied employment based on factors unrelated to their skills.

When evaluating your team for diversity, you shouldn't just look to include a broader range of employees in your entry-level positions. A diverse workplace includes a wide mix of employees, from new hires to senior management. By prioritizing equality, you ensure that power is evenly distributed. New perspectives may be exactly what your business needs to reach the next level.


#3. Update your company culture and company policies

In our recent guide about how to implement inclusive practices in the workplace We've talked about how you can update your company culture, mission statement, and company policies to reflect your desire for a more inclusive team.

Additionally, it is a good idea to include an anti-racism clause that makes it clear that racism of any kind will not be tolerated.
Support Black, Indigenous and other underserved populations and show that you will not tolerate racism of any kind.
Not only does this set the stage for current and future employees to demonstrate that this type of behavior will not be tolerated, but it also creates a supportive environment where BIPOC can feel safe and know they have someone to turn to.
Make sure this policy is not only listed in your company handbook, but also discussed when onboarding new employees and training existing team members.
You should also make these statements clear on your website and in your job descriptions so that candidates feel encouraged to apply.
Think of this as a dialogue between your brand and talent from other countries and backgrounds than yours. What would you want to hear if you were on the other end?


#4. Add short bios and images of your team to your website

Yes, adding short bios and images of your team on your website will help you showcase your inclusive workplace. But that's not the main goal.
Giving candidates the opportunity to learn more about the people your company has hired will encourage them to apply as well.
Either they see someone with a similar background and can see themselves working there too, or they see a niche that they can fill with their complementary but unique offering.
If you are actively working to become more inclusive, you can also mention this on your website.
Leave placeholders on your About Us page that say you are looking for your next team member regardless of race, nationality, age, gender, sexuality, or ability.
These additional steps will encourage more people to feel like they belong and apply.


#5. Expand your candidate network

If you only reach out to your network contacts, who may look similar to you or have similar backgrounds to your existing team, it will be difficult to create an inclusive remote environment.
A better approach is to source candidates from external job boards.
Here you can advertise positions for teleworkers from all over the world. And you won't know who's behind the screen until their application meets all of your criteria and advances to the next round.


#6. Partner with organizations that serve underserved communities

Network with university and organizational leaders outside your inner circle to find qualified candidates in underserved communities.
You'll come into contact with great recommenders who might otherwise never have applied to your company. And you can enrich your team with a wealth of different experiences, perspectives and backgrounds.
If you're not hiring new employees, you can still offer the following these organizations (as well as this or this ) Your support in the form of time and other resources. You can help promote their causes and volunteer your skills to improve your community.
You can also partner with Tech organizations that actively support the black community -- more specifically developers -- by following this link.


#7. Revise the job descriptions in your job postings

Even if you are committed to DEI, the language in your job descriptions may say otherwise.
One Study showed that male-dominated language in job descriptions, e.g. For example, the use of words such as "challenge", "leadership" and "competitive" discouraged women from applying for jobs for which they were well qualified.
An internal report from Hewlett Packard revealed that men apply for a job if they only meet 60% of the listed qualifications, but women only apply if they meet 100% of the qualifications.
So make sure your job description explicitly shows that you value DEI and welcome all qualified applicants.


#8th. Include the salary range for each position

Women, BIPOC, people with disabilities, etc. have historically had lower salaries than white men. So if you make a new employee's salary dependent on their previous earnings, you're penalizing them based on a system over which they have no control.
That's why you should set salary ranges for each job posting and base them on specific criteria (e.g. expertise or experience), regardless of who fills the position.


#9. Use structured interviews

Many hiring teams rely on shortcuts ( He worked for Google!) and “gut feeling” for assessing applicants. These are based on inherent biases, not on potential job performance.
But if you plan and structure your interviews, it's easier to compare candidates and get information on an equal footing.
During structured interviews, each applicant is asked the same questions about their strengths, weaknesses, problem-solving skills and previous experience. The interviewers then evaluate all answers based on a set of clear criteria.
The idea is that the differences in answers reflect each applicant's performance, not whether the interviewer asked them easy or difficult questions.
Google uses structured interviews, and they share resources so you can do the same.

#10. Send out surveys about applicants’ experiences

Those : successfinder.com

After each virtual or in-person interview, send a quick survey to your candidates to see how the process went.
You should include quantitative questions (e.g., How likely is it that you will apply for a position at our company in the future? ) and qualitative answer fields (like, Please describe the high and low points of your interview ).
Read through these answers and you may discover something that puts applicants off, such as: B. an inappropriate joke, question or comment.
You don't want these mistakes to happen again, and you'll gain valuable insight into your hiring process from the results.

Don’t rush the hiring process, do it right

Those : betterteam.com

Hiring with inclusive intentions may take more time than you're used to, and that's okay. You're not about filling arbitrary quotas - you're about finding the best new addition to your amazing team.
You may also need to change your company culture and outdated hiring policies that no longer make sense. This will all be worth your time and effort, but it shouldn't be rushed either.
As your company culture changes and includes more inclusive practices in the workplace, you will help improve your workforce and your community.
Then you will attract a diverse talent pool that is excited to work with you and for you.

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