What are some ways to make your interview process more inclusive?

The language of job descriptions significantly impacts the accessibility and appeal of the role. Be sure to use clear and inclusive language at all times.

The advice provided for reviewing job descriptions is sound and aligns with best practices in recruiting. Make sure about clear, inclusive, and accurate job descriptions can attract a diverse pool of qualified candidates, while avoiding unnecessary requirements which helps encourage more applicants.

Diverse Interview Panels. Ensure that your interview panels represent a variety of backgrounds and perspectives. This can reduce unconscious bias and make candidates feel more comfortable.

I ensure my hiring managers are using a standard list of questions for all candidates they interview to ensure a consistent interview experience for all candidates and I ensure my hiring managers have selected a diverse interview panel team as well.

More focused on the Candidate's talent or skill irrespective of their break from work OR why they left OR why you are expecting more CTC for change because everyone is working for money here. So if the candidate is genuine forget about all their break from career or anything for hiring.

Diversifying your sourcing channels is key. It's not just about forcing diversity in the hiring spot, it's about finding the most talented people for the role. Sourcing those candidates from various channels becomes imperative. If you only recruit out of the same ivy league school that is 99% republican... guess what type of candidates you will hire?!?!

Diversifying your sourcing channels is a must to attract and recruit the most competitive talent for the role. However, don’t stop there. Ensure the contact methods and communication channels you use are diverse as well, and never rely on one form of outreach.

Diversifying sources is key in your strategy. Leveraging niche job boards, Social media platforms, collaborating with diversity and inclusions organizations, attend diversity job fairs, Employee resource groups and of course optimize job descriptions for Inclusivity.

Diversifying recruiting channels is essential to mitigate biases and it allows organizations to tap into talent from various backgrounds, experiences, and demographics, contributing to a more robust and dynamic workforce. By expanding outreach beyond traditional channels, companies can discover hidden talents and enhance their overall adaptability in a rapidly changing landscape.

An area of diversity that sometimes gets overlooked is the platforms or devices applicants have access to. Today, approx 70% of applicants find and apply for roles on mobile devices*. This makes ensuring your process is either mobile 1st or mobile optimised an essential element to create an accessible entry into the journey. Outside of the technical, practical considerations such as shorter job descriptions to be small screen friendly, and elements to save and share are key to allow candidates access to apply regardless of where and when they are applying. *source: withe.co, 2023.

Standardized assessments can be great, but ensure they are accessible to the targeted population. Some vulnerable populations may not have the same access to technology as other candidates so ensure every candidate has an equal opportunity of employment. This may include alternative formats and other forms of accommodation.

Standardized assessments can be great, but ensure they are accessible to the targeted populations. Some vulnerable populations may not have the same access to technology as other candidates so ensure every candidate has an equal opportunity of employment. This may include alternative formats and other forms of accommodation.

This is a really great point. When we partner with hiring managers, we encourage them to determine their own right answers first. Then create associated questions, then interview. By standardizing interview guides and processes, hiring managers are able to objectively assess the candidate. Helping people to avoid biases in the evaluations and leave space for diversity.

Creating assessments and personality tests to take people out of the running is not so ideal for Recruiters/Staffing firms, when thier goal is to get the most quality people in and intrigued...unless of course there are technical requirements for a role assessing someone's ability to actually do the job. The more assessments you throw into the mix, the more it will create barriers of entry into your organization. Also, some people are not the best test takers , so you create a level of anxiety in the hiring process to bring in some types of assessments. The in person meeting should be the assessment for personality and there should be someone in the interview that knows how to assess such things for the company: HR, CEO, Leader, etc.

Interview stage: 1. Create an interview environment where the candidates feel at ease to express themselves fully by ensure that interviewers are calibrated on variety of diversity & inclusion topics within the realm of interviewing. 2. Ensure that the interviewers are aware of unconscious bias towards diverse candidates so that focus remains only in assessing them against the job in question. 3. Where possible, include an interviewer representing the candidate’s background so that the candidate gets a fair representation from the assessing side also.

In the UN panel composition for staff recruitment has strict rules in terms of cross representation and grades in relation to the position, and they must have at least one female member. Other than that, I feel that more inclusivity would be hard to achieve, given that interviews are often looked at by managers as an extra burden on top of their duties, and HR is overjoyed if they can get anyone available to sit in for hours if not days, fitting the essential criteria.

I think one idea could be to select DEI representatives for the organization. They should be a part of the interview process to answer any questions the candidate might have in regards to the company's inclusivity practices. An insider perspective, so to speak. They can also ensure best practices are being followed by the hiring manager.

Having people with different perspectives is a great way to evaluate candidate and see things you may have not seen if everyone has the same lens. It can be difficult having diverse panels, but should be encouraged if the team has the capacity. You don't want to falsely represent a team by demonstrating a diverse panel, when the team actually isn't diverse.

Different roles require different technical questioning. Involve managers, team leads, stake holders & come up with a variety of technical steps where many panelists & use their expertise & work in collaboration for the hiring.

Foster inclusivity in your interview process by involving diverse interviewers and panelists. Diverse perspectives contribute to fair evaluations and create a more welcoming environment for candidates of varied backgrounds.

I agree on this point though I would suggest providing some of this at the beginning of the process. Specifically, I would encourage employers to provide applicants with a clear understanding of the recruitment process as they are invited to start. For example, the number and format of interviews, the assessment criteria or method, the timeline, and so on. This can help the applicant stay organised and confident and makes for a better candidate experience. It could improve the successful offer ratio for the employer by helping applicants consider the role amongst others (i.e. sometimes applicants will accept another offer - even though they prefer yours - just because they don't know how long the process will take with you).

I have found that candidates appreciate a well defined timeline for the various steps of the process. This helps alleviate anxiety for the applicant if your company has a lengthy review process.

Communication is key. Make sure you convey appropriate response time & keep the lines open for queries. Either positive or negative feedback, always communicate. Do not leave the candidates hanging.

One important thing to keep in mind; the recruitment process expose the company as much as the candidate itself. It is a two-ways decision and mutual agreement at the end. A recruiter who doesn't follow up timely and clearly with the candidates may show that the company is not ready to recruit or is not clear with what type of profile they want onboard or the job position itself. This can be a first "red flag" and demonstrate a dysfunction of the company. If during the recruitment process there's already issues and a lack of communication, it may underline some deeper internal challenges and instabilities which may send a negative signal to the candidates.

To boost inclusivity, communicate and follow up with candidates effectively. One helpful practice is providing clear feedback, aiding candidates in understanding the evaluation process. However, I disagree with delayed communication, as it may lead to uncertainty and impact candidates negatively. An example of effective communication is sending personalized follow-up emails, demonstrating appreciation for candidates' efforts.

One other thing to consider is paying candidates in some form (a gift card is often easiest) for the time they put into completing a required assignment. Without doing this, assignments can feel like unpaid labor, and you may be unintentionally losing candidates in the process who could otherwise be making money working in the time it takes to do the assignment.

It all comes down to carefully evaluating the needs of the population you work with. If you work with diverse or vulnerable populations, you have an obligation as a staffing professional to ensure the hiring process is inclusive, accessible, and fair. Reflect this in your hiring process.

In the competitive world of interviews, success hinges on meticulous preparation. Before the interview, emphasize to candidates the importance of delving into the company's values and recent achievements. Encourage them to draw lessons from past experiences, helping them proactively address concerns and highlight their growth potential. This approach transforms candidates into proactive problem solvers, showcasing their ability to overcome challenges. Such focused preparation ensures candidates confidently stand out in any interview scenario.

I have offen imagined what hiring would be like if it was handled much like the show the Masked Singer. I say this because in the Masked Singer, The singer is wearing a costume and nobody knows their true identity. They are judged on their abilities alone, and not based on how they look, or their past achievements. Obviously this is not a feasible solution for organizations, but wouldn't it be interesting to know if hiring managers made the same hiring decisions if the person was wearing a costume? Only left to make their decision based on the answers the candidate provides. This could open up the opportunity for people to be interviewed soley based on their skills and experience. Coming soon, The Masked Candidate

Ensure that the physical space around the candidate is inclusive. For example, have gender neutral toilets, a ramp is made available alongside every flight of stairs to make wheelchair movement seamless, have braille keyboard/elevator control buttons available where required.