The CHRO perspective on building a culture of inclusion in organizations

In a dynamically evolving business landscape, the concept of inclusivity is undergoing a massive transformation. The traditional standards for inclusivity are remodeling and reshaping to meet the emerging demands of industries. While Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) policies and standards are well-thought out and documented in every organization, the emphasis needs to move from hiring diverse individuals to building inclusive teams.

As the need for an inclusive culture and recruitment becomes a pressing challenge, it is imperative to understand that diversity and inclusion coexist. Although creating a team with diverse professionals is the right pathway, building a culture that includes and welcomes individuals from diverse backgrounds is critical.

Integrating inclusive processes at various recruitment touchpoints is challenging. Sometimes, recruiters may gravitate towards biases that can’t be easily recognized. Inclusive recruitment practices can be implemented by preventing biased auto-pilot processes set over the years.

Here are a few best practices that can help ensure inclusion in recruitment.

Creating suitable job descriptions makes an initial impact on inclusive recruitment. Every description for various job positions should be planned and written in a gender-neutral language. These descriptions should be nondiscriminatory, omitting exclusive language, targeting individuals from different cast, religion, ethnicity, and orientation.

Sensitizing the leaders and the recruiting partners on the need to hire an inclusive workforce at this stage sets in motion the effort at an early stage.

Further, creating a blind review process initially can eliminate unintentional biases. This involves eliminating details that identify a candidate, allowing the recruiting team to judge and scrutinize every candidate in the same manner.

There are several types of hiring biases, such as similarity attraction, overconfidence, conformity, and confirmation biases. These biases slide into the recruitment process without deliberate efforts. To ensure inclusive recruitment, it is substantial to educate the recruiting team about what these biases are and what they look like.

Sometimes, targets on softer aspects like diversity and inclusiveness may not yield favorable outcomes. The D&I culture should be aligned with business goals, and when company leaders are aligned with this common goal, it encourages an inclusive culture.

An inclusive culture provides a unique voice and space to every employee, helping employees be themselves. However, building an inclusive culture requires consistent effort, continuous feedback and continuous strategy re-evaluation. It is a process that never stops but progressively evolves.

A diverse workplace and inclusive teams are built by diverse professionals and leaders. While this shift is challenging, involving people from diverse backgrounds in the hiring process ensures unbiased feedback, varied perspectives, and unadulterated opinions about hiring expectations.

The long-term objective for inclusive recruitment should move towards incorporating individuals from various backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives throughout the hiring process at various touchpoints. This would help organizations design a holistic and unbiased evaluation process for candidates, enhancing the efficiency of the hiring process and enriching the overall workplace culture and innovation.

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