Diverse teams mean that your employees are working with people who think differently, forcing them to challenge stale assumptions, consider new facts, and overcome blind spots that could be limiting creativity. That’s why non-homogeneous teams outperform their peers by up to 35%.

Oftentimes, ineffective recruiting strategies and unconscious bias can undermine recruiting efforts before they yield the diverse hiring results you’re looking for. Most companies already know that building a diverse workforce takes intentional effort, strategy, and a willingness to deal with uncomfortable questions. But how do you practically implement a program that yields tangible results?
 
These 12 ideas will give you a good head start.

Start With Strategy
Before you change your sourcing and screening process, you need to know where you’re heading. Hiring strategies should actively support diversity initiatives from the top of the organization downward. Here’s what you can do to move the needle:

• Get comfortable with new ideas about diversity.
  
  • Talking about diversity might feel uncomfortable, but that’s okay. Be willing to have conversations about difficult topics and to rethink previous assumptions from new perspectives.
• Promote executive sponsorship to encourage diversity.
  
  • Adoption of new initiatives and ideas must start at the executive level and flow throughout the organization. When leaders value and promote diversity, it becomes part of the organizational culture.
• Consider updating current diversity metrics.
  
  • Review diversity metrics at the organizational level and within individual departments. These might include:
    
    • Workforce demographics, both holistically and within teams
    • Percentage of diversity sourcing tactics for each hire
    • Overall hires per quarter
    • Diversity training participation
    • Career advancement percentages
• Evaluate employer branding - does it exemplify diversity and inclusion?
  
  • Does your employer branding make your company an attractive option for diversity candidates? Images, employee stories, and messaging can all paint subtle pictures about how much (or how little) you value diversity. You can also  create a culture of authenticity and open-mindedness where employees can confidently be themselves, which will attract diverse candidates. Cultural elements such as paid parental leave, holiday policies that include diverse belief systems, and benefits that cover domestic partners can all support those efforts.

Broaden Your Candidate Sourcing Efforts
Next, review where and how you recruit. Unconscious bias can occur if you are sourcing only from a narrow pool of candidates. Proactively recruiting among diverse candidate sources can help you cast a wider net by:

• Writing inclusive job ads.
  
  • Ensure the wording of job ads appeals to the broadest number of candidates. For example, women often respond negatively to words like “ambition.” Women are also less likely than men to apply for a job posting if they do not meet 100% of the requirements. To overcome this challenge, consider eliminating rigid requirements that aren’t strictly necessary. For example, does the candidate absolutely need a minimum of five years of experience? If someone with four years could conceivably perform well in the role, leave the specific number out of the job ad.
• Partner with diversity organizations.
  
  • Build relationships with organizations that promote diversity hiring. For example, offer internships through schools to build interest among target segments, or reach out to advocacy groups that connect diverse talent with prospective employers.
• Choose search criteria strategically.
  
  • Use inclusive terminology, and consider whether you may be inadvertently skewing search results toward a single demographic. For example, a study of LinkedIn talent searches showed that recruiters almost always view twice as many male profiles as female profiles. It’s not an intentional bias, but it happens all the same. Using search phrases like “women in tech” or “STEM Women” can help you find more female candidates who fit your talent needs.
• Diversify your advertising media channels.
  
  • If you always advertise in the same places, you may unintentionally be targeting a narrow audience that fails to include diversity candidates. Consider advertising your open roles with diverse cultural, religious and ethnic publications and websites.

Reduce Bias During the Screening Process
Even if you have a diverse stream of candidates flowing into your talent pipeline, a biased screening process can still hinder success. Old-school screening methods lean toward intuitive decision-making, which can introduce unconscious bias even when you have the best intentions. To overcome this challenge, try the following:

• Automate initial resume screening to reduce bias.
  
  • AI tools that automate your initial resume screen will ensure all candidates who meet the requirements are included in your shortlist. While this is not a foolproof process, it can still help eliminate unconscious bias based on things like candidate names or backgrounds.
• Remove identifying information from resumes.
  
  • Once you have your short list of resumes, blind the names and demographic information before evaluating them. Again, this is a simple way to remove unconscious bias and promote screening based on your job description.
• Implement blind assessments.
  
  • Remove identifying information from skills tests and other assessments so that you or the hiring manager can evaluate them in an unbiased manner. This helps to mitigate internalized biases that we aren’t aware of. Even when you endeavor to make fair, unbiased decisions, these subconscious influencers can still be at work. The best way to eliminate them is to remove identifying information that may unintentionally sway a decision.
• Standardize the interview process.
  
  • The best person for the job may not necessarily be the person you like the most. Instead of going with your gut, use a standardized interview process that includes an assessment rubric. Each person who interviews the candidate should use the rubric to gauge how well he or she meets the qualifications for the job.

Implementing or refining an effective diversity recruiting strategy means you have to take a long hard look at what’s working and what isn’t working in your current recruitment process. Proactively pursue diverse pools of candidates and consider what message you are sending – either consciously or unconsciously – through your brand messaging, job descriptions, and interactions. And listen to your employees. You may be surprised by the ways various demographic segments perceive your culture and employer brand.
 
If you learn something that makes you uncomfortable, let that motivate you to take the next step forward.