On Equity, hiring for Diversity, and jerk CEOs

Diversity and Inclusion is an everlasting plus crucial recruitment’s subject. So, we indeed don’t want to miss it! You’ll find the video and its transcript in the section below! At the end of the episode, we’d like to give you a bonus on a case of “Jerk CEO”. Keep watching!

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Transcript

Oh hi there! Today we’ll look at some possible ways to make the world a slightly better place. Welcome to the Tea on Recruiting, where we share insightful and thought-provoking content that can help you shape your recruiting career.

Let’s check out our first piece of content of the day…

Getting Serious About Diversity

This first article is not just important for recruiters but important for pretty much everyone. I read “Getting Serious About Diversity: Enough Already with the Business Case”. 25 years ago Robin Ely and David Thomas promoted a learning and effectiveness paradigm. They were stating that “cultivating a learning orientation toward diversity enables companies to increase their effectiveness.”

Now everyone keeps on talking about the business case for diversity, but its premises are incorrect.

First of all, the “add diversity and stir” approach – doesn’t work. In fact, increased numbers of underrepresented people don’t automatically translate into benefits. Not just that, but emphasizing the economic payoffs of diversity is dangerous. When diversity initiatives promise financial gains but fail to deliver, people are likely to withdraw their support for them. That, and making the economic case makes people think like equity in itself is not as important. It limits socially conscious investors’ ability to promote it, and may even increase bias. Finally, the message it sends a message to traditionally underrepresented employees that they are worth hiring and investing in only because having “their kind” in the mix makes the company more profitable. That’s awful.

So, it’s not just about diversity but how you harness it! Let go of the notion that maximum shareholder returns are paramount. Success comes from learning, innovation, creativity, flexibility, equity, human dignity. It’s time to alter the status quo. It’s time for you to shift to the learning and effectiveness paradigm. But how do you do that?

There are four steps:

Step number one is to Build trust. Your people should feel free to express themselves. Being vulnerable can help you create connections and psychological safety.

Step number two: Actively work against discrimination and subordination. Business leaders have more power, but every single one of us can have an impact. Educate yourself, but know that that’s not it. Try to spot issues in your organization and address them, spur collective learning and systemic change, monitor, and adjust.

The third advice is to Embrace a wide range of styles and voices. nDon’t rely on stereotypes.
How do your organizational norms implicitly discourage certain behavioral styles or silence certain voices? You can’t tell a large Black man to smile so his colleagues won’t fear him, a Latinx woman to dial down her passion, or a no-nonsense white woman to be “nicer”, and then expect them to bring their talent and prospect to the table, right?

The fourth tip is to Make cultural differences a resource for learning! Identity groups shape your employees’ experiences in and outside of the office. Encourage—and draw lessons from—open discussions about it. Those experiences can help your company’s work and culture grow. You don’t need an economic reason to affirm the agency and dignity of any group of human beings. Investing in Diversity and Inclusion gives our lives meaning.

On to the second piece of content for today!

Top Diversity & Inclusion Tips

We’ve talked about how essential Diversity and Inclusion are in every workplace. And it all starts with the people you hire. So, how can you hire better for it?

In the Open Source Show’s episode “Top Diversity & Inclusion Tips for Job Seekers, Hiring Managers, and Interview Panelists”, Erica Joy Baker, shares some very valid tips.

Number one, While preparing, make sure that your job vacancy’s wording is welcoming and comprehensive. You can run your job descriptions through textio.com and it’ll tell you whether the language you’re using is more masculine or feminine.
Example: if you’re wording your vacancy like a gym bro, the odds are that you won’t attract many female candidates.

Step number two is to be super extensive when describing the role, the company, the benefits – make sure to lay it all out there so there are no surprises for people who want to come work at your company.

Step number three: If you’re reaching out to someone who will be interviewed, tell them exactly how it’s going to go (structure of the interview, who will interview them, what’s expected of them, and so on). This is especially helpful for those who have test anxiety – I know I can relate.

Step four: This might seems like a no-brainer but bias is absolutely unavoidable, so it’s fundamental to keep your eyes peeled for it. During the interview, check yourself for unintentional bias like language and appearance. Don’t judge a book by its cover.

Step number five, this is an interesting one. Instead of whiteboard interviews, experiment with take-home tests. And also, don’t impose a deadline. People have all sorts of backgrounds and situations at home, we all work differently. Have your candidates bring in their assignments and explain their reasoning to you. You’ll learn about their abilities and problem-solving skills

Ontooo theeeee

CandE Crash

As you should know, the more barbaric your treatment of candidates, the more demonic their Glassdoor reviews of your company.

So, let’s look at our nasty review of the day.

Shoutout to a company we won’t name. You must have forgotten that you were trying to hire this person, and you were not someone’s toxic date, Don Juan, because you made this candidate feel like “a number on a big pile”. I’m especially impressed by the fact that you decided to inform your candidate that your CEO is a jerk. You truly know how to impress people.

Let’s read this passage.

“Every bit of communication you receive from … seems automated, without a human touch. At one after performing the test and receiving a Passed, I wonder if there was a human recruiter at all. I did not enjoy the skype talk. The recruiter was grumpy and moody, and there was no smile to detect in her whole demeanor. As if she couldn’t be bothered to be there at all. Most remarkable is that she stated that CEO himself can be quite harsh, which is quite remarkable to hear during an interview. I did appreciate her candidness about that, however. Altogether I did not enjoy the whole process, very impersonal, really like you are just a number on a big pile.”

Got something to say about this? Drop a comment below, we’d love to pick your brains. I mean, we can only get better at helping you get better… With your help.

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