Diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) practices have become a central focus for HR teams in today’s competitive talent landscape. But how can you ensure this shines through in your employer branding and messaging in a meaningful way?
If your goal is to capture high-quality talent, it’s not something you should leave to chance.
More jobseekers than ever are considering DE&I as an important factor in their decision-making process. And organisations that don’t have an inclusive online presence are losing the best talent. In fact, 39% of candidates reject a role or do not proceed with a job application due to a perceived lack of inclusiveness.
If you’re struggling to find the talent you need, it could be that jobseekers don’t think your organisation is supportive of diversity, equity and inclusion.
The solution? Increase your organisation’s ability to hire great talent by authentically showcasing DE&I at each stage of the candidate journey. Positive imagery through your job ads, careers site and other channels will help you tell your DE&I story.
What is DE&I (diversity, equity and inclusion) and why does it matter?
More than a “set and forget” talent acquisition objective, companies with strong DE&I strategies create conditions where creativity, productivity and empathy thrive.
Truly diverse, inclusive and equitable workplaces are those with fair processes and an employee value proposition (EVP) that supports all people – regardless of age, gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, education, disability, beliefs and other attributes.
The benefits are clear. Gender-diverse companies are up to 21% more likely to experience above-average profitability than those that aren’t. Culturally-diverse companies are up to 33% more likely to outperform their less diverse counterparts. Inclusive teams have also been shown to make faster, better business decisions up to 87% of the time.
So, let’s talk about how the job search has changed and what this means for employer branding.
Today’s jobseekers do their homework
More than 75% of jobseekers state diversity is an important factor for them when evaluating companies and job offers.
Jobseekers search company channels for content that prioritises diversity, like:
- Videos, images and quotes on your website and careers site
- Employee-driven content, including social media posts and profile stories
- Statements about DE&I commitments and policies
That’s right. To attract DE&I jobseekers and diverse employees, companies need to share content that celebrates diversity and is inclusive of all people. Being deliberate with your imagery and language and showing how your company is committing to DE&I can help reinforce your identity as a company for diverse employees.
But remember: if your content doesn’t feature diverse perspectives and representation across all your channels, you run the risk of deterring high-quality candidates from applying. To ensure your content approach is authentic, rather than performative, use real photos of your employees instead of stock images. Candidates want to see content that’s true to a company’s core values and the initiatives it supports.
Are your job descriptions turning away certain applicants?
Often, a few word choices in a job description can unintentionally create bias and limit the size and diversity of your talent pool.
For example, underrepresented groups including women and BIPoC (Black, Indigenous, People of Colour) workers are less likely than others to identify as “experts” regardless of their experience or seniority. These demographics are also less likely to apply if they feel they don’t meet 100% of the listed role requirements.
The good news: there are plenty of modern solutions and tools available to assist. Online tools like Textio, can produce gender-neutral job listings. These flag areas for improvement by identifying problem spots in your word choices. (Think words like “competitive” which can be skewed towards males.)
While it’s great to use these tools and limit your list of “must haves”, it’s up to recruiters and employer brand specialists to review job ads carefully.
Does your website and careers site celebrate diversity?
Inclusive job descriptions are an important piece of the puzzle in the candidate experience. But the content on your website, homepage and careers site creates the bigger picture.
Let’s consider companies in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Women are doing incredible things in these industries and the number of females taking up these careers is on the rise. But a common question we hear from hiring managers is, “How can I attract more women to STEM roles?”
Share employee profile stories and other content that features women in STEM roles. This is a great tactic to organically attract women in these fields.
At the end of the day, there are many content pathways you can take to feature underrepresented groups. (Videos, images and stories all work well!)
Can you share employee quotes from BIPoC C-suite leaders on your careers site? What about a careers video featuring diverse team members in different roles?
Be authentic and creative in choosing the types of content you want to share. The possibilities are endless.
Doing the work is just as important
It takes time, effort and attention to build a diverse workforce. Yet diversity is only one part of DE&I. It’s only meaningful if you have the recruitment process and workplace culture to back it up. Providing employees with a sense of belonging, respect and support helps you retain the diverse talent you’ve worked so hard to recruit.
If there’s work to do, you might need to instil conscious inclusion efforts, like bias training, throughout your workplace. Or, embed diversity practices into your culture and everyday learning experiences. Programs, events, celebrations and mentoring are great avenues for this.
Successful DE&I programs don’t have an expiry date. But they are something to sustain and build on as an organisation. Not only will your continuous effort improve financial outcomes and business performance, it will enable you to attract diverse, high-quality candidates in a tight talent market.
This article originally appeared on PageUp, and was republished here with permission.
Marion Robinson is responsible for spearheading global growth for PageUp in all its forms. She provides strategic direction across PageUp’s client advocacy, partner alliance, marketing and brand-building programs, ensuring total alignment between them so as to deliver on the PageUp growth strategy. Leveraging a wealth of experience in client management roles across a range of industries including Banking, Human Resources and IT, Marion understands the daily people challenges of clients first-hand.