6 Hiring Obstacles Historically Underrepresented Populations Face

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On Team JTC, we have coined the phrase, “The Hiring Obstacle Course” to spotlight the hurdles that individuals from historically underrepresented groups face when trying to get employed and later promoted. The Hiring Obstacle Course is real and prevalent in hiring processes around the world. As a matter of fact, one of the reasons your workplace may be unable to meet your initiative to increase diversity at all levels is because your hiring process is creating this very obstacle course. If your organization is working toward increasing diversity, it is important to understand the obstacles that you might have in your hiring process. 

When we talk about historically underrepresented groups to audiences, we are generally referring to people of color, women, people with disabilities, those who identify as LGBTQ, and veterans. These populations know very well the feeling of living at the intersection of being both ambitious and being treated as different. Different from what? Different from white, male, heterosexual, able-bodied individuals. Despite all the efforts and work done at different levels to curb this, it still remains an all-too-familiar obstacle course that underrepresented candidates face when trying to reach new levels in their careers.

Here at Team JTC, we have been on a mission to help make it easier for job seekers and employers to meet, engage and forge hiring success. When I created this video last year, I wanted to share six similarities between an obstacle course and your hiring process. The video is aimed at giving you, hiring leaders, an understanding of these obstacles, so you can create a more equitable, inclusive hiring process. 

You can also find the video directly on the Increase Diversity by Jenn Tardy YouTube channel. Be sure to subscribe when you visit! Did I mention that we are celebrating our 1,000th subscriber to the channel? So exciting! 

Don’t have time to watch the entire video? Here are the key takeaways:

Obstacle #1: Questioning the Candidate’s Ability

Obstacle number one is having to climb beyond perceptions put upon candidates whereby others question their ability or the likelihood of their success because they have never seen someone who looks like them. Many times, the lack of representation has more to do with historical discrimination or discriminatory hiring processes than one’s ability to get the job done. For people from underrepresented communities, this can be extremely challenging to address, increasing the feeling of being at a disadvantage, simply because of the perceptions of other people. 

Obstacle #2: Incompetent Leaders

Obstacle number two concerns the psychological harm caused by conflict-avoidant, incompetent leaders. If a manager tells anyone in their team that they are not quite ready just yet for promotion and provides no reason as to why and no development plan, then that is a sign of an incompetent leader. Seeing your peers get promotions just because they fit a certain profile can be traumatic and unfortunately, another big obstacle faced by underrepresented populations. 

Obstacle #3: Biased Standard of Professionalism

Obstacle number three is the challenge of jumping over landmines of appropriate vs inappropriate behavior. Most of these behaviors are rooted in whiteness and middle-class norms. An example? Beards - who said that having a beard at work was unprofessional in corporate America, and being clean-shaven was professional? A certain look or behavior might be part of someone’s culture or religious beliefs or they might just like to express themselves like that. But because of the so-called “standard of professionalism”, these individuals have to suppress their individuality and the behaviors that define them. 

Obstacle #4: Cultural Misunderstandings

Obstacle number four relates to cultural misunderstandings and the constant need to do things to be perceived fit for the team. Keep in mind that if you are seeking to increase diversity in your workplace, you should be looking for those who can ADD VALUE to your culture, because not everyone will FIT your culture. This is even more true if your existing culture is dominated by a certain homogenous group of people. Workplace culture is ever-evolving. So, if someone does not fit the company profile at the moment, that does not mean it will always remain the case. You should be aiming to evolve your workplace culture into one that is more inclusive and accepting of everyone. 

Obstacle #5: Misuse of Adjectives + Pronouns

Obstacle number five has been a topic of conversation quite a lot lately. We should be aware of the impact that misusing adjectives or disrespecting someone’s pronouns has on them. What we all need to understand is that even if we don’t understand the need for these pronouns and adjectives or don’t agree with them, we must always be respectful of the way an individual wishes to be addressed. This is not hard to do, but due to some pre-set beliefs and perceptions, some people are unwilling to call others the way they want. 

Obstacle # 6: Assimilation vs Authenticity

Obstacle number six is walking the tightrope of assimilation vs authenticity. It is unfortunate that just to be likable or to make others feel comfortable enough to award a person the job or promotion, they stop being authentic. Your company becomes toxic when it promotes the idea of making underrepresented people resemble a society’s majority group, assuming their values, behaviors, and beliefs. The beauty of diversity is that it allows for more engaging, enriching, and creative ideas to flourish and you should always work to create a culture that promotes authenticity. 

I hope understanding these obstacles will help you create a work environment that is free of them. I also encourage you to get a copy of The Hiring System (+ Its Hidden Obstacle Course). This 20-page guide features 113 thought-provoking questions to support hiring leaders and recruiters in identifying systemic hurdles, obstacles, and barriers that might be stopping your organization from increasing diversity. 

Join me in the comments: I want to hear from you. Have you been able to identify any of these obstacles at your company, or maybe in a previous company? I’d love to hear your stories below in the comments section.