Diversity Hiring

Being an Advocate for Other Women

A woman in the industry was looking for an organization that valued diversity and inclusion. She was one of the first few employees hired for a start-up division of a larger parent company and formed a national, company-wide women’s committee. She recommends that all hiring managers have at least one woman or other diversity candidate in the room during an interview. She also suggests having a peer buddy to provide a safety net if someone in the room tries to shut her down mid-thought. People need to be aware of what needs to change and have introspection to understand why they are not getting what they want or need.

How to Improve Diversity in the Workplace

This article discusses the importance of diversity in the workplace and the challenges of improving diversity. It outlines the steps taken to increase diversity, such as going to schools with a significant minority presence and including members of underrepresented minorities on the interview panel. It also highlights the importance of creating a culture of inclusion and providing adequate support for self-emergent networks. Finally, it emphasizes the need to separate business and fun time to ensure inclusion.

Developing and Sustaining Diversity Within a Company

This article discusses the importance of hiring a diverse team and outlines the steps taken to achieve this. It suggests having a diverse interview panel, avoiding terms that label candidates, creating a grassroots organization, and using social networks as a hiring resource. It also suggests having a template that represents real voices from within the company to create a welcoming impact.

Becoming Aware of and Accounting for Personal Bias

Unconscious bias can be a problem in the hiring process, and it is important to be aware of and challenge it. To remove bias, it is important to identify talent specifically and to consider how candidates align with company values. Additionally, it is important to be aware of the language used in job postings and to seek out guidance from colleagues from different backgrounds.

Enabling a Pro-Diversity Culture

In order to create a pro-diversity culture, it is important for the executive team to be vocal and open about their stance. This requires individuals to bring their whole selves to work and be open about their unique backgrounds. Additionally, trainings should be embraced as a way to educate employees about unconscious bias and microaggressions. By practicing empathy and taking these issues seriously, organizations can create a diverse and safe environment for all employees.

Rapidly Scaling Your Engineering Department

The company experienced a rapid growth in its engineering department, from 20 to 120 people, and had to find ways to manage the influx of new hires. The manager took it upon himself to spend time speaking with each team, setting up new processes and communication expectations to shape the culture in an effective way. The lesson learned was that when entering such situations, a hiring plan should be accompanied by a culture plan to ensure new hires are integrated into the team and can work productively while meeting all of the team's expectations. Performance management also became more important.