Despite their best efforts, some companies still struggle to maintain diversity at the workplace. In some cases, this is a community-centric issue. Remote and isolated areas just don’t contain the type of diversity seen in major cities throughout the U.S. But in many cases, a company’s own policies and procedures are – at least partially – to blame for the lack of diversity.
Unconscious Biases
While discrimination in the workplace is obviously illegal, your hiring managers and supervisors might be forming biases without even knowing it. These unconscious judgments might not even concern an individual’s look. It’s entirely possible to form an unconscious bias about an applicant based on their resume, their name or previous career history.
To avoid this, some companies are ditching resumes altogether. Unilever, for example, recently started using predictive hiring games and video interviews to reduce the risk of unconscious bias during the hiring process. Your company might be able to adapt similar strategies.
Blind Recruitment
In blind recruitment, employers remove personal identifiers – such as names, gender, ethnic background, age, personal interests and more – from incoming applications before they’re even reviewed.
This is a highly effective strategy as it removes nearly all of the elements that are responsible for bias in the first place. It also ensures your HR staff is making their hiring decisions based solely on skills, talent and potential.
Discrimination
Even in the face of serious legal repercussions, some supervisors and managers intentionally discriminate during the hiring process. Most cases of discrimination are difficult to prove, but there are plenty of examples of companies that have been successfully sued as a result of discrimination in the workplace.
You can avoid this by establishing clear guidelines and policies against discrimination. Highlight the potential repercussions – both for your company and the individual – to really drive the point home.
Training
Revising your internal policies and procedures to improve diversity is one thing – but it’s another to provide your staff with diversity training and education. Not only will your employees appreciate the additional career development, your entire corporate culture will improve as a result.
Achieving Diversity With Mega Force
The professionals at Mega Force are dedicated to workplace diversity. We can help you find clients with specific talents, skills and experiences that match your needs. Contact us today for more information to work with a leader in North Carolina industrial staffing!
