Realizing the importance and value of having a diverse team is not difficult. Instead, the challenge for many firms is where to start. For organizations with no HR or no history of doing anything other than posting on LinkedIn or seeking referrals, it can seem like a daunting task.
In other cases, it is a mindset riddle: how do you ask a nondiverse team to implement diversity? To avoid analysis paralysis, here are three simple ways to begin to diversify your recruiting.
LinkedIn, Indeed!
LinkedIn and Indeed can be great solutions to getting a job posting wide and casting a wide net has long been a strategy for government and public agencies to ensure accessibility to job postings. It is a main reason we still see job ads in newspapers: the internet could be a barrier to access for some applicants.
Taking this idea one step further, private employers can use the processes already in place to post jobs online and simply expand the posting. General jobs sites focused on diversity, like Jopwell can be a valuable resource to expand the reach of the job posting.
Similarly, the websites of specific associations like Women in Technology International or the National Society of Black Engineers, can be a fantastic way to address diversity in recruiting specific positions.
Get creative
Another way to push the limits of existing in-house systems is to take a look at current company programs, conferences and focus areas.
For example, does your company already have a nonprofit focus? Does the organization partner with local schools for interns? Is there a conference or conferences that staff attend? Take a look at the socially minded programs associated with those partners and resources.
The idea is to find a way to leverage existing pipelines or relationships. For example, if the organization is already used to bringing on interns, then why not consider a returnship for professionals who have stepped away from work? Or if a partnership exists with a nonprofit, is there overlap in the population they serve and the job vacancy?
For example, Grads of Life advances options for opportunity youth by working with employers to create talent pipelines. Both cases are a first step that allow employers to open postings to applicants outside their usual pool, quicker and easier than trying to overhaul their entire recruiting system at once.
Conference time
Conferences are also a great way to diversify recruiting. Whether presenting at or attending a conference, these larger gatherings provide a great opportunity to reach a different audience. In some cases, the conference may have breakout sessions, specialized speakers or panels discussing diversity, in which case the experts and tools are there to access for support.
In other cases, the conference itself may have a diversity focus. For example, Unidos US, NMSDC, the USPAACC, NAVOBA, and the Women of Color in Technology STEM Conference, all provide forums for outreach, networking, vendor/B2B and recruiting opportunities.
The bottom line is that it does not have to be challenging to diversify recruiting. Take the first step by using systems already in place to expand the reach of current postings.
