Thinking about your Diversity Recruiting Strategy in 2024?

Diversity … we know, we know! It’s by no means a fresh topic, but we wanted to give some thought to reconfirming why diversity matters so much in the hiring process.

So, why should we care about diversity in the recruitment process? Well, we all understand the many benefits that a diverse workforce brings – in a nutshell it can bring a whole new level of dynamism and creativity to teams which we all understand often has a positive impact on performance which can lead to more successes, better business profitability – all those different perspectives and experiences bring such varied viewpoints. 

And if we all understand the why, then what’s the how? How can we tweak our recruitment strategies to support diversity? Here are a few ideas our TA network have shared with us. 

Bringing diversity to the recruitment process 

Let’s start at the very beginning – the job description. Could it be time to review and revamp them? Are they fit for purpose? Could someone from outside your business fully understand them? It might be time to ditch the generic job descriptions, get rid of the internal business language and acronyms that might put off potential candidates and take time to ensure your job descriptions appeal to a wider audience.  

If you haven’t already, perhaps you might want to give blind recruitment a go? Removing names and personal details from CVs during the screening stage and focusing solely on skills and qualifications could take out any unconscious biases during this stage of the recruitment process.  

If you can, invest in technology to boost Your Diversity recruitment strategy. Analytics tools for example can track your recruitment metrics to identify diversity gaps and allow for an adjustment of strategy, not to mention AI-Powered Recruitment Platforms which because they sift the CV’s means that the CVs aren’t subject to the unconscious biases that an individual might have. 

Have you thought about the actual interview process? Have you made it accessible? How diverse are your interviewers? Demonstrating the diversity within the business can often help to make candidates feel more comfortable, plus it’s a great way to get different viewpoints. On to then looking at your interview content – are you asking the same set of questions to all of your candidates so everyone gets the same experience and has the same opportunity to showcase their skill set? 

What about expanding your talent pools outside of your normal search grounds? Look to hire in different ways, try new channels, spread the net far and wide, go after different pools of talent. Attending different events, engaging with diverse communities may be a new avenue to pursue. Leveraging social media platforms to your advantage could also be an effective strategy. 

Could you offer internships perhaps? These internships could be aimed towards different schools or communities to forge relationships with students who will be the rising talent of the future. 

When all is said and done 

It’s about fostering an inclusive company culture. Making sure your teams are on board and are up to speed with the diversity journey and have had the support and learning they need to help promote this within their future hiring. 

After all, a workplace that embraces differences is a workplace that is likely going places!