I think we know that having individuals from various different backgrounds will drive innovation, improve team skills and help with problem solving etc. but diversity goes beyond the business results and performance.
I think we know that having individuals from various different backgrounds will drive innovation, improve team skills and help with problem solving etc. but diversity goes beyond the business results and performance. If we can build our teams regardless of gender, background, race, religion, or sexual orientation then it would be a step towards equality in the workplace. Doesn’t that feel like the right thing to do?
Our workplace should try to reflect the general makeup of the community around us. Consisting of a variety of different types of people, from different backgrounds and experiences. This can include diversity in gender, experience, socio-economic levels, race, religion, sexual orientation etc.
Some of the benefits of having a diverse workforce are:
Just some of ways to recruit for a diverse workforce and things to think about:
Job adverts
Reviewing past job adverts can help you make changes to speak to a broader range of candidates in the future. You could notice that some of the language has been geared toward a specific demographic of experience level and it would be worth finding different ways to be more inclusive in your language to appeal to candidates from different backgrounds.
Referrals
Members of the team will likely have their own networks of people with similar backgrounds to them. Creating a diverse candidate referral program is a good way to boost your diversity recruitment strategy and share that the organisation values different backgrounds and ideas.
Targeted attraction
A good way to attract a talent pool is full of diverse candidates is to source them from a variety of different places. The more you take the initiative to find these channels, the more likely it is that your talent pools will be diverse.
Employer branding
A great way to boost diversity in your candidate sourcing is to develop an employer brand that values people and opinions from all walks of life. Talk about the benefits and importance of diversity with your team, gain their buy in and embed those values into your company culture.
CV’s and application forms
If recruiters omit any or all personal information they this can assist in removing bias. Information like names, schools, date of birth, specific locations, and so on can all contribute to some degree in a biased assessment of the candidate, even if it’s not done consciously.
Interviewing
Interviewers should be suitably qualified and have completed unconscious bias related training. Another option is to include multiple interviewers per applicant, and ensure the process is the same for each candidate.
I do believe that ultimately having a diverse team should absolutely be the goal of any organisation, but diversity doesn’t exist without inclusion or a sense of belonging. Creating an atmosphere that welcomes all individuals and encourages equal engagement and representation are the fundamentals that are necessary to build a diverse team but also retain them too.
