This month we’ve been looking at attracting the very best staff for your business, as we go into February and take you through the shortlisting, screening, interview and onboarding process I wanted to pause and make sure you and your team are trained to select the best.
It is important that all people involved in the recruitment process are trained in both effective recruitment and unconscious bias.
There are hugely talented individuals looking for roles that can flow with their lives, a bit like you when you started your business I think!
Your ideal candidate may not come from traditional backgrounds; they may be older, younger, disabled, have caring responsibilities but what they can do in a day may take someone else a week!
Like Dionne who had worked for years as an Executive Assistant for multinational organisations and had taken some time out of the working to care for her elderly parents, she was ready to return to work but still wanted to be flexible so that she could enjoy her life's passions, Dionne struggled to find a role that matched her needs and then she got an administrator post with a Tech startup, where she was able to work from home 2 days a week (which meant she could still have lunch with her local friends and get to her judo class on time). For the Tech start-up that she joined, they got an experienced staff member who kept them organised, systemised online filing system and made sure they never ran out of coffee or printer toner! James the CEO never imagined that his ideal candidate would look like Dionne, but in fact she exceeded his expectations.
Unconscious bias is about how our background, personal experiences, societal stereotypes and cultural context can have an impact on our decisions and actions without us even realising. Have you ever had an experience when you are introduced to someone and the moment you hear their name or their accent you have made an assumption about them? Or been surprised when the voice and the face don’t match?
That is unconscious bias and it can mean that the college or university that a candidate attended or the way they pronounce a word may predispose you to like or dislike them and their responses.
We all have biases, so it is important to realise what they are so that they can be addressed. As well as taking part in training, there are mechanisms that can be used in the shortlisting and interview process that keep you honest by ensuring that you only pick candidates based on their ability to perform the role as an effective part of your team.
I’ll be talking about the skills and tools you need to recruit effectively live on our Facebook business page at 9 pm GMT on Tuesday, to watch live or catch the replay like our page here and turn on the notifications.
If you need some support or training to get your ideal candidates on board Schedule a call to discuss how we can help you.
We will talk about how you get the evidence that you need to make an educated decision on who to select for your role and be legislatively compliant next week