Despite the country slowly returning to pre-COVID “normalcy” there are still huge workforce shortages in the healthcare and social assistance sector, particularly aged care – regardless of whether talent is needed in residential care settings or in regional/remote areas, there is a continued battle to fill shifts. 

In a sector that is already struggling financially, the pressure on recruitment teams and managers to fill vacancies is an ever-building crescendo. Reduced candidate numbers, no-shows to interviews and even no-shows on the first day on the job are increasing, leaving managers at their wits’ end. 

The need for speed

But with pressure comes risks. The need for speed to snap up any available care staff is a slippery slope to hasty hiring decisions. We’re seeing organisations using fewer reference checks, removing additional screening or going from one (video) interview straight into sending a contract. 

Although speed-to-hire is important, preventing hiring mistakes remains critical, as the cost of a hiring mistake is not only front-loaded but continues to ripple long after the bad hire has been dismissed.

Research finds that a bad hire can cost an employer between 15 – 21 per cent of that employee’s salary, with the extent of the impact depending on the industry and seniority of the role. They furthermore found that 61 per cent of employers have settled for a candidate that did not sufficiently match the job role, ultimately hindering growth and incurring additional costs to the organisation.

For a talent acquisition platform that can help you post jobs, manage candidates, and hire the right talent all in one place, click here to learn about Scout Talent’s service-enabled software.

Reasons to keep psychometric assessments

Psychometric assessments are becoming increasingly popular for frontline care roles because they effectively showcase a candidate’s soft skills, which can be more challenging to identify through a standard resume. One provider of psychometric assessments for the care sector, Care Advantage, has screened close to 200,000 Australian care applicants in the past seven years. 

However, they too have seen a change in how their assessments are being used and a push-back from managers who just want to get their shifts filled. Although it may be tempting to skip additional screening, there are compelling reasons why these types of assessments work:

• There are many different types of assessments that give insight into aspects of a person that are more difficult to uncover otherwise, such as personality style, risky attitudes to work, cognitive ability, level of emotional intelligence and more. 
• They can identify people with the right fit for a job without necessarily having relevant experience. Perfect for hiring people from different sectors. Skills can be taught!
• Every part of the recruitment process can be exaggerated or faked by the candidate and it’s estimated that 40 per cent of people lie in their resume and another 45 per cent of candidates admit not having been fully honest in an interview. While psychometric assessments can also be exaggerated, many assessments will mention in the final report if this may have been the case.
• Candidates who complete the assessments are often more motivated for the role than those who do not. 
• Psychometric assessments are no longer cumbersome and time-consuming. Many have short-form options, gamification elements and an excellent candidate experience.

Speed and due diligence are not mutually exclusive

Increased speed and efficiency can be achieved by using a recruitment system and automating regular tasks. It is important to keep that human touch when recruiting for frontline care roles. Contacting applicants by phone or text message soon after they apply appears to be best practice. Emails tend to get lost. In addition, many organisations choose to invite applicants to complete psychometric assessments before even looking at a resume. This is particularly handy for passive job seekers who may not have a resume on hand, or for job applicants from different sectors. Plus, it helps sift out applicants who weren’t really interested.

Although the Aged Care Worker Registration Scheme could come into effect this year, due diligence remains important and the responsibility of the organisation. In the end, it is better to get it right from the start than to smoothen the far-reaching ripple of hiring mistakes. 

Want to incorporate psychometric assessments in your talent strategy? The Care Advantage is offering readers five FREE candidate assessments – click here to get in touch and redeem.

With nearly two decades of experience in Human Resources, Marleen Galligan is a seasoned professional with a diverse skill set that includes recruitment, change management, training, marketing and communication, EVP, and psychometric assessments. Leveraging her educational background in psychology, Marleen provides valuable guidance to clients through a range of services and tools, including their Employee Referral app, Care Friends, to help turbocharge the power of employee referral and their Psychometric Assessment tool, Care Advantage, to effectively screen candidates.

The post How psychometric testing can help you recruit faster – without skipping due diligence appeared first on Recruitment Marketing.

As a recruitment service provider that works closely with small businesses across Australia and New Zealand, Recruit Shop is tasked with always paying attention to recruitment trends and looking for new ways to stay ahead. In this article, they share top recruitment trends that will give you the best chance at securing the highest quality talent this year.

Recruitment trends to capitalise on in 2023

In: Prioritising skills over experience

What does “5 years of experience” mean? Does it mean they are 3 years more qualified than someone with 2 years of experience? Does it mean they have more talent? More ability? Does it mean that they are ready to start the job immediately upon hire?

What more and more organisations are realising is that it doesn’t necessarily mean any of those things.

Experience is not exactly the same as talent, ability, or capability. It is not proof of strength, on its own. There are even situations where it can be a disadvantage, as they may not be agile enough to adjust to your new needs.

Skills and potential, on the other hand, are universal. Maybe the person has less experience, but they demonstrate that they can learn quickly and that they’ll be able to competently do the job. It’s also good to consider that all new hires – including those with 5, 10, or 20 years’ experience – take weeks if not months of training and handover to adjust anyway.

Finding people with the right skills is the new way to hire, especially when the labour market is tight.

Out: Posting generic job ads

People are no longer desperate for work. The best talent is already employed and, if anything, they are trying to find an organisation that speaks to them, one that makes them truly consider leaving their current job and finding a home somewhere new.

An engaging job advertisement is your most important tool to attract new candidates. You need your job ad to be written in a way that is unique to your business, and you need it to excite people to work with you, kind of like you are trying to sell them a product.

Although copying and pasting a generic job description from the internet will save you time, it’s not going to attract highly motivated, skilled candidates to your role. You can learn to optimise your job ads like a pro, or you can get expert advice on how to market your vacancies most effectively from one of our recruitment consultants.

If you can offer unique qualities and benefits to your new team members, highlight that. If you offer a close-knit team or a flexible culture, candidates want to know that! Pay transparency is important, but marketing your uniqueness will go a long way to entice candidates who resonate with who you are.

In: Extensive onboarding, training, and handover 

Recruitment doesn’t stop at the hire. Extensive onboarding and training is the best way to make sure your new hire not only thrives at the job, but stays.

Along with training and handover, the first few days with your new hire should be spent sharing your business’s story, and inducting them into your culture so that they feel supported professionally and socially. It goes a long way to build trust and lines of communication that will help your new team member to feel like they belong, and like they are empowered to be highly productive in their new role.

Try to support your new hire with handover notes that outline key processes and procedures, what to do if things go wrong, who to ask for certain kinds of information. Plan ahead to spend a lot of time with them, particularly in the first week, and ongoing to check in and ensure they feel comfortable in their first few months.

Here’s a guide to onboarding your new hire to help you.

Out: Targeting only active job seekers

When recruiting, there are two groups of candidates to consider:

• Active candidates, who are actively looking at job boards for new roles, making applications and scheduling interviews; and,
• Passive candidates, who are not actively seeking a new job, but could be interested in the right opportunity if they come across it. They might browse job boards occasionally, but they’re not actively applying for roles.

Your unique job ads will help you grab the attention of the active candidates, but it helps to have a plan for attracting passive candidates, too, particularly when the labour market is so tight.

Reaching out to passive candidates directly can be very effective, particularly when you can follow it up with really engaging information about the job and the benefits of working with your business.

If this kind of outreach is a little bit time-intensive for your team, Recruit Shop offers a digital headhunting service that can be used in conjunction with our standard recruitment service to help you expedite the process. Combined, the package helps you to pool together active and passive candidates, and make even better hiring decisions on account of having more options.

In: Maintaining relationships with ex-employees

Sometimes, the talent you need is the talent you had. We’re in an era where people leave companies for things like more money or more excitement all the time, even if they generally like their job. This isn’t the same market as a few decades ago, where employees were loyal or felt like they couldn’t experiment and try new things.

This change in attitude can be beneficial to your business: it means that an employee that leaves your organisation may be more than willing to come back, and that person may be exactly what you need. Often, hiring “boomerang employees” as we affectionately call them, can reduce the time taken to onboard and train, as they may remember a lot of your processes and procedures from days gone by.

We highly recommend maintaining positive relationships with all of your ex-employees, as you never know when one of them will be open to returning.

Out: Ghosting unsuccessful candidates

We live in a connected world, with online reviews, social media, and so much more. It is not only bad ethics to forget about unsuccessful candidates – it can be harmful to your business and your hiring efforts.

Those “ghosted” candidates now have a voice they can use to discourage people from joining your team.

It’s best practice to contact each and every unsuccessful candidate to grant them the closure of knowing which of their opportunities are still on the table. A simple, empathetic email can show immense respect and create a more positive experience for the candidate, which reflects well on your business. It could also leave the door open for future hires – ask talented candidates who happen to be unsuccessful if you can add them to a mailing list for future opportunities with your team!

In: Speeding up your time to hire

Imagine that you are a highly-skilled candidate who is in high demand in the current market. You find a job that appeals to you and you apply. More than a week passes before you are invited for your first interview. More than a week passes before the second interview. You are offered the job, and told that you’ll start a few weeks later. By now, you’ve waited more than a month to see if you even have a chance at this one job.

What would that make you think about this organisation?

You might think they are disorganised, or that the position is not a priority.

And what might happen in that time?

You’ll be scheduling other interviews, and fielding other job offers. You’ll become less passionate about working for the first organisation. You may even decide to stay at your current job because things aren’t taking off.

Speeding up the time to hire is critical for businesses that want to stay ahead of their competition. At Recruit Shop, we ensure a fast and efficient process that gets results. We have the resources to spend time keeping your candidates engaged and well-informed as you make your decision. If you want to discuss how we can help you improve your recruitment process without breaking the bank, you can request a callback here.

Out: Trying to do it all yourself, if you’re struggling 

Recruit Shop works closely with small businesses to achieve real results. If you want to capitalise on these recruitment trends but you’re not sure where to start, we can work with you to create a robust recruitment campaign that meets your needs. You can reach out to our team today on +61 1300 901 721 or send an email to info@recruitshop.com.au with information about your vacancy and the kind of candidate you’re seeking. Alternatively, you can request a callback from one of our recruitment specialists to chat about your goals in detail.

This article was originally published on the Recruit Shop website and was reproduced here with permission.

Kyra Kirrane is a content marketing specialist with Scout Talent and its sister company Recruit Shop. Her focus is on coordinating up-to-the-minute content that helps small to medium-sized organisations gain a competitive edge by leveraging high-value trends and best practices in their industry.

Recruit Shop is a low-cost recruitment service provider that supports small businesses across Australia and New Zealand to achieve their goals for growth. Through dedicated advertising and sourcing channels, Recruit Shop helps its clients to secure the best talent, in less time, for a low flat fee.

The post 2023 ins and outs: recruitment trends to capitalise on appeared first on Recruitment Marketing.

We spoke to Tracey Mathers, who has over 35 years of experience in the retail industry, for her insights on how to hire retail team members with quality and longevity in mind—and how to get it right the first time.

From your extensive experience in the retail industry, what are some non-negotiable steps for recruitment teams when hiring for retail?

There were several non-negotiable steps we had—after all, our potential recruits would be joining an already strong team, so I needed to make sure they were going to fit in perfectly and not cause disruption. Some thoughts and examples of essential recruitment steps are:

Do your preparation

• Profiling is a great tool to really understand where people are in their natural flow. I am a brand partner with a company called Contribution Compass and, when profiling, we often pick up that the potential recruit is not strong in the area of expertise we are looking for. This does not mean they will not work in that position, but it gets you knowing ahead what you need to be asking and looking for in the interview. This can save a lot of time and—in some instances—a lot of heartache.
•  Really think about the position you are hiring for. What values do you need? What is the true talent they need to have? What sort of personality will work? Once you understand the true needs of the position, design a range of questions around getting that information from them. Preparation is essential and the more thought you put into your questions for the outcomes you want, the greater the interview will be. Remember: we want them to talk, and we listen.

Take your time during the interview

• It is really important to relax the candidate for a few minutes before you begin. This is just general small talk just to get conversation flowing but keep it light and fun, to hopefully relax them. I would always add something like, I am really looking forward to chatting today and getting to know you more. We want them as relaxed as possible to really get them to let their guard down.
• Many people go by the popular saying, first impressions count. Try not to do this; instead, stay open-minded. Some of the best people I ever hired came in looking like a train wreck, but they were so perfect for the position that all I had to do was help them know how to show up; this is much easier than teaching someone great sales or people skills.
• Don’t rush an interview and don’t get excited after five minutes because you loved their last answer, focus on all answers. This is about connection and taking the time to really evaluate and chat; after all, we are looking for close to perfect for this position. Give yourself plenty of time. I work with retail clients every day and the first thing I do when I discover the turnover in staff they have been experiencing is ask if I may sit in on their next interviews. One of the many things I have learnt from doing that is how important the questions you ask are. It’s important to take your time and ask as many questions as you like; after all, employing a new team member is expensive and time consuming, so we need to take the time to get it as right as we can.

Look for specificity

• Keeping in mind that people often will tell you what they think you want to hear, ask for examples on what they are telling you they are great at. If they share that they are great at handing complaints, ask for an example of where they handled a complaint well, and what the outcome was. Watch them carefully; look at the body language and at their level of communication. Are they looking you in the eyes as they are talking to you? There are so many signs that tell you if they are really connected to themselves and their talents, and if they are telling you the truth or just what they think you need to hear.
• When you are finished interviewing and you ask the question, “Do you have any questions?”, listen to what they ask. Are they great questions about helping them discover more about the organisation or the role? Or are they selfish questions, making it all about what is in it for them? This will give you a good indication of the outcomes they want or expect.

What happens when these non-negotiable steps are missed?

If you make a bad hire, sometimes you can get lucky and might be able to train and manage the person into the role, but often it will cause disruption; it can take people away from where their focus should be and cost the business a lot of money. It can get really bad, which is what I have seen in cases before where key staff leave, as they just can’t handle what is happening and that management is not doing anything to fix it.

What are some common gaps you see in recruitment and business processes that allow for the wrong people to get hired?

The biggest one is what I call desperate hiring, which is when your gut is telling you it is wrong but your
head is saying, I need to get this hire finalised, so they will do. It is so important not to cut corners, so you should have a procedure in place when hiring. Clarify for yourself and your hiring team what the position is, and really understand it. Some questions you can ask yourself to get connected to the role you are trying to fill are:

• What are some attributes a possible candidate could have that would work well for
  the position?
•  Do a profile on candidates to understand them more before the hiring process starts.
• Is there another team member whose opinion I value, and can I ask them to sit in and
  just listen?
• What questions will I be asking?
• What values and strengths am I looking for?

After the interview is over, give yourself time to reflect on the candidate. Did they cover the points you identified as essential? Is there anything that does not feel right? Is there anything you missed asking that you need to ask in the next interview, if there is one?

When you take the time during recruitment to truly understand what you are looking for and the cost of ‘making do’, you will avoid hiring the wrong people.

For businesses that hire reactively, what are some things you’d recommend they do to hire proactively and land key talent?

• Take it slowly, make sure your advertising is really clear and precise.
• Consider a referral program that encourages your team to find high quality candidates through their own network.
• Many companies have implemented work experience platforms that work well as proactive hiring methods. While this is time consuming, it is an effective way to talent pool as you get to choose the talent that shines from it and offer them positions within your business.
• Have guidelines for your hiring process and stick to them.

What are your recommendations for businesses to nurture staff and work towards higher retention rates?

There are so many ways we can work towards creating loyalty and long-term employment retention. Here are a few of my thoughts:

Actively recognise and communicate with people

• People today want to feel like they belong. They want praise, congratulations, feedback and recognition for jobs well done. Money is important, but so is being valued.
• Make sure communication is open and honest. Encourage your team to have candid conversations; listen to these to make sure you have them doing work they love and are good at, have team meetings often so the connection with the team stays strong and feedback or reviews are essential to get motivation and interest going.

Prioritise good leadership habits

• Direction and great leadership are important. People feel more valued when they are communicated with well on expectations and deliverables. When everyone knows what is expected and what they need to be doing, there is a greater sense of belonging.
• Lead by example. Don’t expect a certain behaviour if you are not showing your team that it is what you live by—do what I say, not what I do does not cut it. If people respect you and enjoy interacting with you, they are more likely to hang around longer.
• Be aware of what is happening around you as an owner/leader. Take notice of whether people are being excluded, bullied, or others are taking recognition for work they didn’t do. If you fix the issue then respect will grow for you, and your team will be loyal and want to stay.

Address issues with tact and timeliness

• One non-negotiable I stuck to whenever giving feedback or reviews was that if there was a problem, I always started with a congratulations on something great, then opened the conversation on the problem. From there, I worked with them to find the solution together right then and there, and always finished on a thank you for what they do well. With this method, the problem gets solved and the team member walks away feeling that they know they have improvements to make but that you are also happy in so many other areas.
• Never address an issue with an individual in front of other team members. This will not only make them feel like you don’t value them, but it will also embarrass them and generally they will become disengaged immediately.

How can businesses learn from you?

If you get your team right and leadership is great, there is a much greater chance that you will have a happy team who will continue working with you for as long as you want them.

I have had 35 years’ experience in creating brilliant leaders and teams. It is tiring having to keep training new people, so investing in how we can improve our own skills in leadership and recruitment should be a priority.

I would love to help you build a super successful team, feel really connected with them and know how to manage all situations that arise. What we put off today can become a greater issue tomorrow, so handling things as they arise is essential. I work with both leaders and teams on connection, building greater relationships within teams and confidence building—but it does start with the initial choice on who do we bring in to work with us.

I would love to connect and chat with how I can help you connect more with your own talents to get your recruitment and management processes just right.

Tracey is a well-respected keynote speaker who gives inspirational talks covering topics such as leadership, sales, connection, confidence, and how to survive in business today.

With 35 years’ experience in both the retail and the corporate world, Tracey has a wealth of knowledge in all different aspects that she passes on now through her work as a professional advisor, speaker and mentor, having sold her retail stores in July 2016.

The post Why getting recruitment right the first time is so important appeared first on Recruitment Marketing.

Here is a basic outline of the standard recruitment workflow that’s been around since dial-up days: a recruiter posts a job on a job site, job seekers view the job, and apply with resumes. The recruiter then goes through all responses, reads resumes, shortlists, and progresses through to further stages. Rinse and repeat. 

And while some progress has been made in hiring practices over the last few years, especially when it comes to companies wanting to make the process fairer and more equitable for diverse candidates, recent research commissioned by WithYouWithMe has revealed that organisations overwhelmingly still rely on traditional recruitment methods—with 92% using reference checks, resumes, and cover letters to screen applicants.

It’s not that recruiters and hiring managers haven’t identified that resumes can be problematic—most are aware of a resume’s shortcomings. And this is exactly why cover letters were introduced. The introduction of the cover letter was the recruiter’s way of saying “don’t dump resumes on me, write me a letter telling me who you are and why you’re the right fit for the role”. While initially a great concept and way to get to know the jobseeker better (and put the onus back on them to do the work) cover letters became less effective over time, and recruiters got stuck having to read both cover letters and resumes. 

Not only do resumes limit a recruiter’s ability to understand a candidate’s true potential, but they can also hinder diversity in the hiring process. While most organisations today are keen to diversify their workforce and accommodate diverse candidates, details such as a candidate’s gender, age, and race can often be gleaned from resumes, which can cause unconscious biases to creep in. 

This brings us to a very important question: How can a recruiter get to know a candidate and understand their true potential—successfully and unbiasedly? Simply asking them will not give recruiters a proper representation because candidates will only be able to share how they view themselves, much like how a resume functions. If a first-person opinion was sufficient, we wouldn’t have 360-degree performance reviews. 

We need a better way to understand who job seekers really are in terms of their capabilities and what kind of roles they are likely to succeed in, rather than just a summary of their experience to date. We need visibility into a person’s ‘underlying capabilities’—strengths they may not have yet tapped into over the course of their career. This can be achieved through looking at a candidate’s cognitive ability.

Cognitive ability, which can be measured through psychometric or aptitude testing, is considered a successful indicator of job performance. These tools determine candidate’s suitability to a role by assessing their ‘potential’ over their ‘experience’ then uncover a candidate’s strengths and areas they will excel in, while removing potential for bias. Psychometric and aptitude testing makes identifying the right talent easier—especially when it comes to overlooked talent pools like women, military spouses, neurodivergent individuals, refugees, and indigenous people. 

Assessing talent on their ‘potential’ over their ‘experience’ is not just a highly effective recruiting strategy—it’s an equally strong career mobility strategy for a business’s already existing employee base. Once you know the underlying capabilities of your team, you can be prepared to adapt and scale your workforce as the need arises to ensure the future success of your business. Your projections are no longer a wish list, they become clear and actionable roadmaps. 

According to WithYouWithMe’s research, only 32% of managers say they have used psychometric or aptitude testing showing that there’s huge opportunity for recruiters to tap into this effective way of screening and hiring talent. My observation is that we are not in a talent shortage crisis. We are not lacking talent, but rather we are lacking visibility into the huge pool of potential that exists in the Australia market. These are people very capable of performing the in-demand skills so desperately needed. They just need their potential to be identified. The future of work is about talent creation.

Prashant Bhaskar is Global Vice President of Product at WithYouWithMe – a tech start-up that works with government agencies and leading organisations globally to address the digital skills shortage while making a positive social impact.

The post Solving hiring problems of 2022, with processes from decades past? appeared first on Recruitment Marketing.

For employers, this means a heightened risk of employee stress, overwhelm and disengagement, as well as lowered performance and productivity, and ultimately, higher rates of staff turnover – a real concern for organisations in a time where workers are harder than ever to find. The circumstances have well and truly given new meaning to the concept of resilience, and shown people how difficult, if not impossible, it is to thrive without it.

As we optimistically look beyond the pandemic, the first challenge for leaders is to enable the recovery of the organisation and its people. A resilient, agile, and mentally healthy workforce is paramount when it comes to withstanding future disruption and change, and while it’s important to rebuild and maintain resilience within your current team, it’s equally as important to look for resilience in new talent. 

What it means to hire for resilience 

Resilience is often seen as the ability to “bounce back” from setbacks and challenges. But particularly in the context of the workplace, resilience is broader than the survival component of “bouncing back” – it’s the ability to build and maintain connections with others, having a sense of purpose, displaying courage, and showing creative and innovate thinking. For organisations focused on their recovery, it’s important to identify whether a potential recruit is resilient – a skill that will translate to their work performance, how they show up every day, and what they can bring to the team. 

Whether it’s on a CV or in an interview setting, job applicants will put their best selves forward in order to achieve their goal of landing a job offer. While candidates speaking to their achievements, beneficial skills, and positive attributes is useful for employers, it will often not identify whether the candidate is resilient. 

Resilience is a skill that is often best observed when facing a stressful or challenging situation. When describing times where work ran smoothly during a job interview, employers won’t often see how the candidate handles difficult situations. To hire for resilience, recruiters must know how to ask the right questions and be creative with their recruitment processes.

Interview questions to identify resilience 

One approach to identity resilience in a job applicant is to ask targeted and open-ended questions that focus on their response to challenges. A common interview question such as “Name a time you dealt with a challenge at work” is a good starting point. But the difficulty with this question is that candidates tend to prepare answers based on positive examples, such as a work project that was challenging at times but ultimately highly successful. To identify resilience and gain insight into the applicant’s ability to navigate challenges, wording this question in a different way and asking follow-up questions is key. 

For example: “Describe a time where things at work have come undone. How did you react to this situation at the time? What did you do to resolve it? How did you move on from this challenge? What did you learn from it?”

These questions dig deeper into the candidate’s experience to provide a better picture of their level of resilience. Asking an candidate to explain their reaction to the situation and how they resolved it helps to identify how they respond to challenges and “bounce back” from setbacks. Being able to learn and move on from a negative experience is an important element of resilience, as is the candidate’s self-awareness and overall outlook on the negative experience itself. 

Questions like these can also help identify other components of resilience, including courage, empathy, creativity, compassion, and social connection, which are often listed as soft skills. When it comes to soft skills, however, it’s important to ensure the candidate is being authentic.

Rather than simply asking a candidate to list their soft skills, ask more direct questions about their workplace relationships, communication skills, or a time they’ve used empathy or compassion at work. Their answers will give insight into their ability to connect with others and show compassion, and ultimately identify their level of resilience. 

Creative recruitment processes 

Outside of a job interview, there are many ways to determine if a potential recruit is resilient. Practical tasks, such as role-play scenarios, are useful ways to see how the candidate would respond to real life situations. Role-play scenarios can show the candidate’s ability to build trusting relationships, practice compassion, and solve problems with innovative thinking. When using this technique throughout recruitment, stick with realistic examples that are within the scope of the role the job applicant has applied for. 

An example of a scenario question to identify resilience is to ask the candidate to play the role of a team member who is not meeting their targets. Ask the candidate how they would perceive and respond to this situation. The candidate’s ability to “bounce back” and problem solve, and their outlook on challenging situations will be visible in their answer. 

Personality testing, psychometric testing, and resilience testing are all creative recruitment processes that support organisations when it comes to hiring for resilience. These forms of testing allow organisations to understand who the candidate is as a person, how they solve problems, and their response to setbacks. 

The broad definition of resilience must be kept in the forefront of employer’s minds when hiring for resilience. With organisations looking to recover from the past two years, and a collective fatigue affecting the workforce, hiring resilient workers is more important than ever. When workers are in a place of resilient energy, they are innovative and creative, and bring their best, full selves to work. In this place of resilience, people operate with purpose in all areas of their life – an energy that is beneficial for both work outputs and team culture.

Stuart Taylor is the Chief Executive Officer and founder of Springfox. Since 2003, Stuart has engaged and inspired more than 20,000 people globally through his workshops, keynotes and conference presentations.

A diagnosis of brain cancer in 2002 led Stuart on a personal journey back to health. Stuart became a strong advocate for incorporating cultural practices into organisations to nurture well-being. In 2003 he founded The Resilience Institute in Australia – now Springfox. His diversity of qualifications in psychology, finance, IT and aeronautical engineering bring a breadth of credibility and perspective to client situations. His purpose is to help people and organisations shift into a more compassionate space in order to reach sustainable high performance.

The post How to hire for resilience appeared first on Recruitment Marketing.

The challenge for employers, therefore, is not only to attract stellar candidates but to maintain a competitive edge when it comes to sealing the deal. In order to snap up a high-quality hire, employers need to be increasingly flexible, fast, and willing to negotiate. 

But what does the right person look like? A candidate with a keen understanding of your industry and organisation will be an obvious stand-out, but don’t overlook someone with complementary or transferrable skills who may bring a fresh perspective. Someone with a background in teaching may be skilled in leadership, organisation and empathy, in the same way someone with a background in journalism will likely excel in research, planning and written communication. When reviewing applications, consider the candidate’s background and skill set and look for transferable skills that could benefit your business. 

The same can be said for hard versus soft skills. While hard skills — that is, technical knowledge or training — are necessary for successfully performing any role, employers should view soft skills as equally important and valuable. Unlike hard skills, soft skills like resilience, empathy, persistence, creativity, and emotional intelligence are considerably more difficult to teach, yet can have a significant impact on an employee’s performance and team cohesion. 

In fact, according to Indeed’s recent Graduate Outcomes research, a growing number of employers are prioritising soft skills over hard skills, likely in response to the challenges of the pandemic. The survey found that in 2021, over one third (35 per cent) of employers said they’re now searching for recruits who are hardworking, productive, professional, organised and reliable, compared with just 23 per cent of employers prioritising these traits in 2020. 

Similarly, when it comes to company culture, consider hiring a culture add rather than a culture fit. A culture fit is someone who fits in with your organisation’s existing culture, while a culture add is someone who brings with them valuable elements that your culture lacks – whether that’s a different skillset or a different way of thinking. In other words, where a culture fit preserves familiarity and enables cohesion, a culture add brings something different that contributes positively to your company, making them a valuable addition.

During the recruitment process, be mindful of your approach. Recent research by Indeed explored job seekers’ and employers’ biggest pet peeves when it comes to recruitment and found that the majority of job seekers (66 per cent) are put off when interviewers are rude, distracted or disinterested during interviews, and an additional 40 per cent hate being asked personal questions. 

While it might go without saying, employers should remember to be enthusiastic, engaged, respectful and professional throughout the recruitment process, recognising that in many cases, you’ll be the candidate’s first taste of the organisation and its culture, so you’ll want to make a positive, lasting impression. 

It’s also vital to remain open and transparent throughout the interview and recruitment process, particularly around things like salary, benefits and the requirements of the role. Indeed’s research found that over half (54 per cent) of respondents say encountering discrepancies between the role described in a job ad and what is mentioned in the interview could make them discount a job opportunity, while 65 per cent want to know their salary, flexible working options (56 per cent) and non-salary benefits (21 per cent). It’s also important to ensure you’re able to speak honestly and positively about your organisation’s culture and values, as 38 per cent of job seekers want a role that aligns with their personal values and provides a sense of fulfilment and purpose.  

Finally, it’s crucial to ensure you’re communicating with candidates openly and frequently throughout the recruitment process and minimising as many complex or unnecessary interview steps as possible. Indeed’s survey revealed 50 per cent of job seekers are put off by too many interview or pre-interview steps, and 55 per cent want more regular communication and feedback throughout the interview process. For this reason, it’s a good idea to review your organisation’s recruitment processes and consider how these could be streamlined – particularly in the current market, where an efficient recruitment process could be the difference between quickly locking in a stellar candidate or having them snapped up by a competitor. 

When you think you’ve found the right person, you’ll want to act quickly and let them know they’ve been successful. As soon as you’ve made your decision, waste no time in reaching out and making an offer – and the more competitive the better, however don’t play all your cards at once. 

Remember, job seekers have the upper hand in the current market, which means there’s a good chance your candidate has other opportunities or offers to consider. If you’re confident they’re the right person for the role, be willing to negotiate. Be clear on what you’re able to offer in terms of salary and benefits but remember to sell the organisation and the opportunity too and highlight the positive attributes that differentiate your business from competitors. 

Most importantly, ensure this process is as efficient and streamlined as possible. Opt for phone or Zoom calls over in-person meetings where possible – a matter of hours could be the difference in securing a great asset or missing out. 

The reality is that in a job seekers’ market, it’s employers – not just candidates – who need to be prepared to put their best foot forward. To avoid missing out on a stand-out hire, you must be willing to review your approach; be flexible, broaden your search and don’t be afraid to recruit outside the box, and be prepared to speak to your organisation’s culture and values, not just the requirements of the role. This approach will allow your business to remain competitive and attractive in an increasingly crowded market and find the right hire for your team.

Kate Furey is Indeed’s Career Insights Specialist and APAC Corporate Affairs Director. Kate has a dynamic global background in communications, marketing and journalism. Kate’s passion lies in helping people find jobs they love.  

The post How to avoid missing out on a stand-out candidate appeared first on Recruitment Marketing.

What is the difference between a culture fit vs. culture add and how can you differentiate between the two during the recruitment process?

A culture fit can be understood as someone who fits in with your organisation’s existing culture. They’re typically someone whose values, beliefs and behaviours align with the company and its employees, and someone you can imagine fitting seamlessly into the ecosystem of the organisation. 

A culture add is someone who brings with them valuable elements that your culture lacks – whether that’s a different skillset or a different way of thinking. Where a culture fit preserves familiarity and enables cohesion, a culture add brings something different that contributes positively to your company. 

Many organisations make the mistake of focusing too keenly on hiring for a culture fit, resulting in them overlooking potential culture adds. If you find yourself gravitating towards certain candidates over others, stop to consider why – and whether you might be missing out on someone valuable. 

How would you test and compare two candidates’ soft skills?

If you’re trying to choose between two candidates who both have the required hard skills, chances are that one candidate’s soft skills could set them apart. 

Soft skills like communication, grit and empathy are highly valuable. Note how well candidates convey and receive information, including the way they write, speak, listen and respond. Do they repeat back what they heard to confirm understanding, or do they frequently interrupt? 

Assess their empathy and interpersonal skills by asking about a difficult situation or conflict they had in the past. Were they able to see the problem from both sides and reach a solution? 

Measure grit by asking candidates how they respond to failure – do they learn from their mistakes and resolve to try again, or do they tend to give up and shift their focus elsewhere? Your candidates’ answers to these questions could help make your final decision easier. 

Why should you use a double-blind test and how can it inform your final decision?

If you still don’t have a clear standout, a double-blind test could help. This involves removing candidate identifiers such as name, age, gender or spoken languages, before giving candidates a practical task to complete – for example, for someone applying for a client-success role, you might put together a list of customer complaints and have the candidate participate in mock service calls.

The absence of identifiers ensures that all candidates are competing on a truly level playing field – in other words, you’re assessing the candidate solely on skill. 

The recruiter then brings in two colleagues who understand the requirements of the position but are not familiar with the candidates. This further reduces the chance of unconscious bias and ensures you’re hiring the most qualified and capable candidate for the job. 

What are your tips for candidate care to ensure the candidates who miss out are keen to go into your talent pool?

It’s important to ensure candidates have a positive experience when interviewing, regardless of the outcome of their application. Indeed recently conducted research on job seekers and employers’ biggest dilemmas when it comes to recruitment and found that the majority of job seekers (66%) are put off when interviewers are rude, distracted or disinterested during interviews, while 55% would like more regular communication and feedback throughout the interview process, and 50% dislike having too many pre-interview steps.

Your interactions with a candidate will often form their first impression of the company, so it’s crucial to ensure this is a positive experience. Treat candidates with the same level of respect, consideration and attention with which you’d expect them to treat you, and make sure they’re kept updated and informed throughout the application process. If the process is taking longer than expected, get in touch to let them know when they can expect to hear from you, and invite them to ask any additional questions they might have. If they’re unsuccessful, explain why and offer to provide feedback where helpful. A positive candidate experience means unsuccessful candidates are more likely to hold your company in high regard, and more likely to speak favourably about the company to friends and colleagues. 

Kate Furey is Indeed’s Career Insights Specialist and APAC Corporate Affairs Director. Kate has a dynamic global background in communications, marketing and journalism. Kate’s passion lies in helping people find jobs they love.  

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In this article, we’ll look at some steps you can take to make sure your virtual recruitment processes land you the perfect candidates.

1. Invest in your recruitment marketing

Ever tried to write about a role you need filling but had difficulty standing out from the crowd? 

It can be tough to know where to start, especially if it is your first time recruiting virtually. Another element in the mix is that candidates are now needing more motivation to work for a particular employer – in other words, they need to know why they should work for you. What kind of culture and benefits can you offer (be specific about these!), and what values do you live by that will make you the best choice for them? 

So, show them why they should be interested. Start off strong by attracting them from the get-go with specialist-written role postings. As an example, Scout Talent recruitment marketing specialists can ensure your virtual recruitment campaign begins on solid footing by creating role postings that capture your organisation identity, the role description and prerequisites, and what you’re offering in an effective way. Try to think about what would be most important to your candidates (for example, job security, competitive remuneration, and so on) and let your recruitment marketing specialists know to include these points in your role postings.

Be sure that you are ruthlessly authentic in the way you are represented: you want to attract the right candidates with your authenticity and put off the wrong candidates who won’t be the right fit. 

By outsourcing this work to the experts, you can make sure your role postings are enticing and hitting the right mark – and free up your time for other important steps of the virtual recruitment process. 

2. Be creative with virtual interviews 

Thanks to great tools like Zoom, you can still meet and connect with candidates by holding virtual interviews and group assessment days. But what do you do when according to the MIT Sloan Review,  80% of candidates consider Zoom interviews boring?

For one, you can incorporate activities that achieve two things: enjoyment for candidates and a gauge for their commitment to the opportunity. For example, if you are holding a group assessment day with your candidates on Zoom, you email them a set of fun questions beforehand to answer at the start of the day; and at the end of it, set them a short quiz where they must answer questions based on their peers’ answers earlier. Doing something like this is not only fun and engaging, but will show you things like the level of involvement each candidate has invested; and their attention towards their peers, which could be an indication of how they would work in a team – all things you would usually have to meet someone in person to gauge.

For the sake of professionalism, there are some things you can keep the same virtually. With dress code, for example, you can maintain a professional standard by treating a virtual interview the same way as you would a pre-COVID one: set expectations for dress code before the interview. Look out for consistency, too: if you have multiple interviews, take note of if the candidate upholds the expectations both times. From this, you will be able to tell their level of professionalism, how they follow a brief and how much they care about landing your role.

On your end, make sure that you have everything organised and prepared beforehand – check that your Zoom links work, your sound and video quality are good, and you are on time. You don’t want to be caught unawares when meeting candidates!

3. Make use of virtual testing processes

You may think, with ever-changing restrictions on travel and contact, that the closest look you’ll get at a candidate’s job-specific skills is through their CV and samples of work. But you can do so much more.

Just like with virtual interviews, you can use a variety of different virtual recruitment testing methods to further narrow your list of candidates. 

If you are hiring them for an information-dense role, for example, then over a Zoom call, you could set them the task of researching a topic for a few hours; when the time is up, you can reconvene for another call so they can present their findings. 

And what about if you are hiring for a role that is dependent on their skills in-person – say, for roles in hospitality or retail? In this instance, you could identify what traits are most important in the role you are hiring. If it is the ability to work in a fast-paced environment, you could set them a series of scenario-based questions that assesses their work pace and customer service skills all at once. If it’s dealing tactfully with customers, you could send your candidates a complaint email from a customer and get them to respond to it.

These examples show that virtual recruitment does not have to be boring, and that the scope for your screening process is only as limited as you want it to be. 

Lastly, if possible, you should make sure your candidates can complete your exercises on a range of devices – laptop, mobile phone, iPad, and so on. Making your virtual recruitment tests accessible will allow you to cast your net wider for a larger pool of candidates. 

4. Reaffirm your expectations

Once you have your shortlist and are on the home stretch towards selecting your successful candidate, you should let your potential candidates know what they can expect of working conditions moving forward. What this means is: is this virtual recruitment process the only thing they will ever have to engage in virtually? Or will they have the option to work from home?

This may be a step you have already taken and addressed during the role advertising period, but it’s always good to reaffirm – you never know if they may have misunderstood, changed their mind or want to surprise you with their work-from-home arrangement expectations. 

Reaffirming expectations is also important because if you do have remote work options or requirements, then you can take this time to let your candidate know what kind of equipment and training they will need to complete their work remotely.

It’s important to remember that setting expectations is a two-way street: you should also be sticking to the expectations you set for yourself. What that means is, if you have told the candidate you will get back to them in five days, then make sure you keep your word. If you can’t stick to your timeline, communicate that clearly so they aren’t left in the dark – something as simple as, ‘We wanted to reach out to let you know we haven’t reached a decision yet, but wanted to keep you in the loop’ will help to keep your virtual recruitment process professional, respectful and clear.

By doing reaffirming your expectations and sticking to them, you can make sure you and your candidate are on the same page.

5. Most importantly – remain personable

This may sound like a given but if you’re not careful, virtual recruitment can become a dry, impersonal process – and that’s not what you want in a time where many of us have been isolated for long periods of time from human interaction. 

Yes, you are hiring and are mainly interested in what skills and experience they can contribute, but sticking just to questions you can answer from reading their CV will make the experience feel like a robotic question-and-answer process. 

Remind your candidate that they are being seen and heard by an actual person by just having a conversation with them. Ask them about themselves, give them room to explain what they mean; by establishing a flow in the conversation, you’ll find that there is often an organic opportunity to ask the questions you need to ask. As Georgette Pascale says, having a conversation “helps to not only identify their qualifications, but gives you a feel for whether they could easily mesh into the company dynamic”.

All the while, make sure you, as the employer, look after yourself in the interview process, too. Avoid burnout by ensuring you take small breaks between interviews, keep plenty of water and healthy snacks on hand, and allot an appropriate time for each interview slot to stay on schedule.

Finally, at the end of your interactions with your candidates, be sure to show them you value their time and contributions by giving them the opportunity to give feedback. The best way to do this is to attach a link to a survey in your final email with them; this way, whether they are successful or not, they can give you feedback on your virtual recruitment process while the experience is still front of mind.

By taking the time to have a conversation with your candidates and inviting them to give feedback, you are showing them that you are sincere and committed to facilitating a pleasant candidate experience. And those things, as much as the actual role and organisation, will get you a long way in attracting high-quality candidates.

Rochelle Auman is the Assistant Editor of Recruitment Marketing Magazine. She has a keen interest in a wide range of fields, having worked across the hospitality, retail, fashion and media industries—to name a few.

Thanks to her experience running a business and managing teams of staff, Rochelle understands the importance of attracting the best talent and retaining them by creating an environment where they feel empowered.

When she is not writing about the recruitment marketing landscape, she likes to disappear for hours at a time to play Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild or read the latest Sarah J. Maas novel.

The post Five tips for successful virtual recruiting appeared first on Recruitment Marketing.

But how often do we consider the implications of the ethicality of our recruitment processes themselves? Are we, deliberately or by omission, creating a recruitment culture that is experienced by some as unethical? It really is a matter of perspective and which end of the recruitment process you’re standing in.

If you’re reading this then you are probably an experienced HR professional who has conducted an untold number of recruitment processes over many years. You know all the up to date practices, you’ve completed the training, you’ve probably even trained others in how to run a fair and transparent recruitment process.

But sometimes we might be complying with these processes because we know that we (or the organisation) could “get in trouble” if we don’t. It is more ‘stick’ than ‘carrot’. It’s also highly likely that if you’re involved in recruitment on a daily basis, you may have conflated the notion of legal compliance with being ethical. There’s certainly an overlap, but compliance is not and should not be the whole story.

So, this begs the question…What does an unethical recruitment process look like? And for this, I’m nudging you to think about the recruitment process from the candidate’s point of view.

Why? Because unsuccessful candidates should be thought of as ambassadors for your company. Treat them ethically throughout the whole process and you will be strengthening your organisation’s reputation ‘out there’. Treat them unfairly, or neglectfully, and you risk creating potentially thousands of people sharing stories about how they were treated that can do significant damage to your brand.

Unethical recruitment practices can arise from a simple oversight, or not taking the time to consider how your process is being experienced outside the organisation. With the increase in the number of applications being received – sometimes hundreds for a single role – it is easy to be overwhelmed, take shortcuts and end up unintentionally treating people unethically.

So, what do we mean by unethical recruitment practices?

Nepotism without a competitive process springs to mind. But less obvious unethical practices could include:

• An overcomplicated application process written with impenetrable internal jargon. Only insiders can understand it.
• Unfair timelines – too short, too long, too much time between written application and interview, not enough notice between the invitation to be interviewed and the scheduled time allotted to them.
• An impossible job description that no individual could ever fulfil. Or a job description that promises more than your organisation can or will deliver, such as autonomous decision-making.
• Interview panels that are single gender, or far too senior compared to the role being recruited. Power on display can unfairly influence the interviewee’s performance, no matter how friendly and approachable you think you are.

And the biggest ethical downfall is not communicating with candidates once they are no longer being considered. Have you ever been ghosted after an interview, never hearing from the organisation ever again? I certainly have, even after a second-round interview. This is a common ethical gap that recruiting panels can overlook. While you might be pre-occupied with onboarding the successful candidate, you still have an obligation to treat unsuccessful candidates well and ethically.

Once you have hired the right person, reinforce company values in the onboarding process. Talk explicitly about the importance of integrity. If you have a large cohort being welcomed, have the CEO set the tone by coming and talking to them about ethical work practices. Draw on actual examples where possible. Illustrate that the company walks the walk, and if there are ethical failings to be dealt with it welcomes bad news AND acts on it.

Don’t make the onboarding process the last time employees hear about your ethics and values. Reinforce them regularly in ways that make sense for your industry and company. Again, this needs to be led from the top and supported by HR.

An ethical recruitment process will strengthen diversity in your organisation, the benefits of which, beyond a nice-to-have, were recently established in a world-first study that- identified the causal role between greater gender diversity and business success. Over the last six years, Australian companies which appointed a female CEO increased their market value by five per cent — worth nearly $80 million to an average ASX200 company. Similarly, research revealed that London-listed companies are more profitable when women make up more than one in three executive roles, with a profit margin more than 10 times greater than those without. While this research was on gender, the principle applies to diversity more generally.

Diversity also encourages uncommon innovation, that path to exceptional ROI. It comes from leadership teams having the courage and willingness to think differently, and challenging others in the company to do the same. Thinking differently is easier if not everyone in the conversation looks and sounds exactly the same. Teams with mixed backgrounds, ethnicity and gender are more successful because they challenge group-think. They bring broader perspectives, have more discussion and debate, leading to better decision-making. They also more accurately reflect the communities businesses operate in, and the consumers they sell to.

While there’s no guarantee when it comes to recruitment, implementing an ethical process that reflects genuinely held organisational values means you’re choosing from a pool of high calibre candidates, and that offers the best chance of finding the best person.

Vanessa Pigrum is CEO of Cranlana Centre for Ethical Leadership, an independent, not-for-profit organisation dedicated to developing the ethical decision-making skills of Australia’s leaders. Vanessa shapes the strategic direction of Cranlana Centre and leads a diverse and ambitious team in its work to build a better society by strengthening critical reasoning and moral courage in business, community and government leadership.

The post Why organisations must consider ethics in the recruitment processes appeared first on Recruitment Marketing.

The work starts with your hiring process and examining what steps you and your team can take to cultivate a more diverse and inclusive workplace.

Remove gendered language from your job posting

Whether we’re conscious of it or not, many words carry gendered connotations. For example, using words like “rockstar,” “ninja,” or “superhero” might seem like a fun way to promote your job posting, but you may be alienating your female candidates in the process. As a result, the most qualified candidates may not apply to your open roles because they are turned off by the language you’ve used.

An unconscious filter at the beginning of your hiring process will bottleneck any DEI initiatives, so it’s important to take a critical look at how you’re presenting your company to candidates from the start. Emphasise experience and skills over academic or professional degrees. Keep your list of requirements concise, as studies have shown that women typically only apply to jobs if their skills line up 100% with the requirements listed, whereas men will apply for a job even if they only meet 60% of the qualifications. Avoid using superlatives such as “expert” or “superior,” and focus more on descriptive words that actually apply to the role.

Your initial job description determines the makeup of your candidate pool. It’s paramount that your description reflects your company values and culture. Ensuring your language remains neutral and inclusive will naturally expand and diversify your candidate pool.

Implement a structured interview process

Once you reach the interviewing stage of your hiring journey, it’s important to keep a standardised and controlled process in place. Establishing a predetermined set of questions allows you to compare candidates fairly based solely on the quality of their answers, eliminating the possibility of unconscious bias.

Video interviewing can be a useful tool for standardising the interview process and allowing all candidates an equal opportunity to be seen and heard. Utilising a standardised evaluation system (like a 5-star rating) included in your video interviewing software ensures each candidate is rated fairly and consistently among your hiring team members. Each applicant is reviewed against the same set of standards and hiring team members are not able to see a candidate’s current rating until they have submitted their own, ensuring an unbiased compilation of candidate feedback.

Internally, structured interviews create a streamlined hiring environment for the entire hiring team, ensuring candidate assessments are efficient, fair, and accurate. Recorded video interviews can be shared with multiple colleagues and hiring stakeholders, allowing the candidate to receive a fair evaluation from a team of people and eliminating the potential for one person’s personal bias to impact the decision-making process.

Maintaining a fair and consistent interview experience will help advance your DE&I goals and ensure you hire the most qualified candidate for the role.

Extend your shortlist

Consolidating your shortlist to a few qualified candidates seems like the natural next step for a streamlined hiring process. Typically, for both internal and external hiring, you’ve already decided on a handful of applicants to focus on. These lists are usually compiled from a combination of networking and partiality, and whether consciously or not, often result in these candidates receiving more attention and favouritism. However, narrowing the focus of your informal shortlist can be detrimental to your DEI efforts.

For example, when you’re looking to fill a position in a typically male-dominated role or industry, you’ll automatically associate men as more suitable for that role. Therefore, your natural inclination will be to focus on male candidates based solely on prevalence. You’re informal shortlist will unintentionally eliminate women from consideration simply because of your unconscious associations.

To combat this, try extending your shortlist to include 2-3 additional candidates. Research in the Harvard Business Review found that when a shortlist was extended, the number of female candidates in consideration went up by 33%. Extending, and as a result diversifying, your shortlist often produces a more fair and effective hiring experience. Additional research found that when a final candidate shortlists has only one minority candidate that candidate has close to zero chances of getting hired. However, a “two in the pool effect” makes a tangible difference. Similarly, including just one female candidate on your list causes a shift in the status quo. As a result, the woman or minority often became the favoured candidate.

This shift can be explained by the propensity of the human brain to think more creatively the longer you brainstorm on a particular problem or task. Extending your shortlist will help challenge your preconceived notions around what your candidate should look like based on the qualifications and credentials you desire and help remove unconscious biases from your hiring process.

Establish accountability among your team

Even if you already have a solid system of diversity in place at your company, there’s always room to improve. Your team needs to have a clear process outlined with well-defined expectations in order to achieve your DEI initiatives. Holding your team accountable is critical to your continued success.

Start by keeping your conversations about diversity open and honest, and make sure your team feels comfortable talking about it. Create a common language within your organisation with shared definitions.

Take a hard look at how final decisions are made and who is making them. No one is exempt from the new system of accountability. You might face more resistance the higher up you go, but this work is important. You need your leadership team to model the company’s stance on diversity in the workplace.

Invite managers, directors, and C-suite members to participate in the conversation and ask questions without judgment. Allow this time to be educational rather than confrontational. Even leaders need tools to examine and overcome implicit biases. Have research available to support why diversity in the workplace is beneficial and what barriers you’ve uncovered in your organisation so far.

To effectively improve diversity in the workplace, it’s critical you ensure accountability is present at all levels.

Remain intentional with your efforts

You’ve put in the work to create effective change within your organisation, now it’s time to remain intentional about your ongoing efforts.

Create a system for ongoing education. Stay committed to growth and development. Don’t let diversity in the workplace be a passing fad. Keep diversity top of mind by continuing to offer resources, workshops, and support. Make sure your data is updated, and work to improve your metrics.

Post more open roles to job boards that support underrepresented groups to ensure you stay actively reaching out. Look into hosting networking events to remain engaged with these communities.

And don’t forget to keep a pulse on your team. Continue to incorporate new ideas and voices as you strive to build a better and more diverse future for your brand.

This list is by no means a one-size-fits-all solution for each individual company or organisation. But to initiate meaningful change, actionable next steps similar to the ones suggested here are necessary in order to establish a more inclusive and diverse workplace.

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