Uncover Hidden Hiring Bias

While human bias can change over time, employee surveys often reveal slow progress in perceived bias, especially when it comes to promotion and equity. Here are a few suggestions that work in any organization, regardless of size:

• Post the position in a broad range of forums, networks, or organizations, including those that work with the under-represented.
• Don't discriminate by asking for classification-specific applicants or referrals, rather, include a mission statement and/or diversity statement in your post: how your organization is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion for all of its employees and clients: the stakeholders.
• Create a diverse interviewer panel, a consistent set of interview questions, and scoring criteria relevant to an accurate job description of essential qualifications.
• Ask every applicant for their definition of diversity. As a follow-up, ask how they have promoted diversity, equity, and inclusion through their previous work experiences.
• Document your recruiting, hiring, and promotion process. Retain copies of the job posting, applications and resumes, and notes from interviews or discussions on promotions.

If you haven't already, identify a diversity officer or diversity task force to create hiring and promotion plans, and to review outcomes and disparities. Look to your managers, at all levels, as potential participants in the task force.

What You Need to Know about Hiring Technology

Some businesses also leverage technology to assist in their recruiting and hiring process to reduce discrimination. Of course, it must be carefully designed in order to avoid pitfalls and achieve fair hiring: absent of disparate treatment and disparate impact.

For example, when a resume is discarded because of the name (e.g., a traditionally female name, or the assumption that the person is Black) the discrimination is overt, intentional, and is a form of disparate treatment. When the overall effect of the selection process disproportionately disadvantages members of demographic group, disparate impact discrimination has occurred.

Technology can be used to promote fairer hiring practices, however, it must ensure that human biases have not been codified. In assessing technology, look for:

• Data that demonstrates fairness throughout all demographics
• Candidate assessments and selections that are relevant to job requirements
• Disparate impact testing prior to deployment
• Ability to conceal demographic indicators from decision makers to enable objective human assessment
• Tools that mitigate the risk of human bias in decision making
• Tools that audit for disparate impact

Two important notes: beware of small samplings or group sizes in data sets, and review algorithms. This is critical to demonstrate fairness, objectivity, and relevancy, especially in terms of predicting outcomes and success.

Share your employment processes with all employees. This includes the criteria for hiring, promotion, salary and bias/discrimination complaints. Share your employment composition data with the public, and if possible, how it compares to other businesses in your segment and geography.

In Health, Love and Happiness,

Maynard

Dr. Maynard Brusman

Consulting Psychologist amp; EQ Executive Coach and Mindful Leadership Consultant
Trusted Leadership Advisor

Professional Certified Coach (PCC), International Coach Federation

Board Certified Coach (BCC)?
San Francisco Bay Area and Beyond!

I coach emotionally intelligent and mindful leaders to cultivate trust and full engagement in a purpose-driven culture who produce results.

Our services:

• Executive Coaching
• Mindful Leadership
• Neuroscience - Conversational Intelligence (CI-Q)
• Attorney and Accountant Coaching
• Emotional Intelligence amp; Mindful Leadership Workshops

Top 5 Clifton Strengths#0160;-#0160;Maximizer,#0160;Learner,#0160;Ideation,#0160;Strategic,#0160;Individualization#0160;

VIA Character Strengths#0160;-#0160;Love of Learning,#0160;Social Intelligence, Bravery, Gratitude, Appreciation of Beautyamp;Excellence

For more information, please go to http://www.workingresources.com, write to mbrusman@workingresources.com, or call 415-546-1252