help! How can I make my workplace more diverse?

Oh dear,

I am a (white male) hiring manager for a company that is not very diversified. I want to help us become more diverse, but we only seem to allow people who look like us to apply for jobs. I don’t know how to apply for people who don’t look like us. How can I do better in recruiting and thus diversify our employees?

-mark

I yell at the lack of diversity in my industry on the Internet, Which means that I always get variations of this problem from friends, colleagues, acquaintances, and even complete strangers. Although I like to be considered an expert on everything, this particular method of investigation always makes me feel a little confused. I don’t know if this is the case in your field, Mark, but my whites are sometimes treated (by other whites) as if they were just… hiring blacks and browns who have solved some mysterious secrets.

I get a little angry when people tell me to recruit people from different backgrounds hardBecause it is not; it only needs Hard work. When white people say it is difficult to hire more blacks and browns for the office of the vast majority of whites, the subtext is that finding qualified blacks and browns is harder than finding whites. But this is obviously wrong. There are many qualified non-white candidates for almost any job, and the only way to interview only white people in the end is if you are unwilling to put in the work to get a more diverse talent pool.

I’m not picking you up, Mark. I fully believe that you really want to make your company better by diversifying your company, and I promise I will provide specific suggestions for this. But I do think it’s important to understand systemic issues before getting into the specific methods of operation, because recruitment diversity is an area that requires more critical thinking, and you can’t get a step-by-step guide. I encourage you to first read widely about your industry and wider workplace diversity, and discuss what you have learned with your colleagues.

Okay, this is the advice you are really looking for. I will first try to find out what might prevent people who don’t look like you from applying. At least, I bet that people are reluctant to send their resumes because they know that you usually don’t hire someone who looks like them. Who can blame them?Talk to your current employees of color (you do have some,right? ) About how the company can improve their work lives and make the changes they require. (Assure them that this is not a tricky question, but realize that they may not tell you anything, not because you are really doing well, but because research shows that people of color are actually be punished Promote work diversification. ) Check your company’s retention rate for different employee groups. If they differ by race, ethnicity, or gender, please think critically about the reasons.Reflect on the difference between the two Diversity, fairness and inclusiveness And figure out how to create an inclusive workplace. Then, when you do identify good candidates (see below for more details), you can tell them all the positive steps you have taken to correct your mistakes.

Once you have taken all these steps, instead of a second before, focus on active hiring instead of just filtering the resumes that find you. Although posting vacancies publicly is an important step towards a diversified workforce, it is far from enough. You need to diversify them using the same online tools that have always allowed companies to be white and male. This means asking all your contacts who they recommend. (An important caveat: do Is not Unless you already know them well, please ask well-known people of color in your field for their advice; you have not benefited from their knowledge, and it is absolutely useless to make people feel invested. ) This also means searching for LinkedIn, Twitter, message boards, or other places where people in your field gather potential customers. Participating in professional conferences and other events in your field is also helpful, but it is not a substitute for this harder work.