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Everything You Need to Know About Inclusive Hiring

June 19, 2023

Reem Al-Tamimi

Reem Al-Tamimi

Content Writer

Inclusive hiring is the new buzzword in the recruitment world and for a good reason! Building a diverse and inclusive workforce starts with your recruitment process, and this means incorporating inclusive hiring practices.

We’re talking about HR professionals who are blazing a trail toward a better and more inclusive future. They’re like superheroes, fighting against the forces of bias, discrimination, and prejudice in recruitment. And guess what? They have a secret weapon: applicant tracking systems!

These cutting-edge systems are the key to unlocking a more diverse and inclusive workplace. With the power of unbiased and safe hiring practices, they make sure that everyone has an equal chance to shine. Want to know more about how they work? Check out our blog post today for all the juicy details!

What is inclusive hiring? Why should employers care about it?

When it comes to diversity in the workplace, most people tend to focus on race and ethnicity. But there’s so much more to it than that! One essential aspect is inclusive hiring, which intentionally seeks to bring underrepresented groups into the fold. This can include women, people with disabilities, and individuals from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.

So, why is inclusive hiring important? Well, for one, it’s just the right thing to do! Everyone deserves a fair shot at employment. But beyond that, it can benefit businesses in a myriad of ways. Diverse teams tend to be more creative and innovative, leading to better problem-solving and decision-making. Plus, by embracing inclusivity, companies can attract top talent that might have otherwise gone elsewhere.

All in all, inclusive hiring isn’t just a buzzword – it’s a crucial step towards creating a more fair and successful workplace.

The benefits of promoting inclusive hiring best practices

Ready to join the inclusivity revolution? In recent years, businesses have realized that a diverse and inclusive workplace is essential for success. And promoting inclusive hiring practices is a crucial step toward achieving that goal.

Why? Well, for one thing, it helps companies attract a broader pool of talent. When you prioritize inclusivity, you can find the best people for the job, regardless of their background or identity. But it’s not just about business – inclusive hiring can also lead to a more enjoyable and fulfilling work environment.

So why not jump on board and start promoting inclusive hiring practices? It’s a win-win for everyone involved. How? Let’s take a look. 

A recruiter adopting inclusive hiring

Attract and retain top talent

Are you ready to learn about the superpower of inclusion in the workplace? Here’s one of the top reasons why it’s so crucial: inclusive companies are more likely to attract and retain top talent.

According to a study by McKinsey & Company, companies that prioritize racial and ethnic diversity are 35% more likely to have financial returns above their industry median. That’s because a diverse workforce can bring a range of perspectives and ideas to the table. And when you have different points of view, you’re more likely to come up with innovative solutions and make better decisions.

So if you want your company to thrive, it’s time to start prioritizing inclusion. Not only will it help you attract the best and brightest, but it’ll also help you create a workplace culture that’s vibrant, exciting, and full of fresh perspectives.

Build a better culture of high-performance

Inclusion is not just a nice-to-have in the workplace – it can also give businesses a competitive edge in the global marketplace. That’s right, companies that prioritize inclusion are more likely to come out on top!

Take the example of women in the workplace. A study by McKinsey & Company found that companies with more women in leadership positions were more likely to have better outcomes and outperform their competitors. Why? Because having diverse perspectives and experiences at the decision-making table can lead to better strategies and innovation.

So if you want your business to stay ahead of the game, it’s time to start prioritizing inclusion. By fostering a culture of inclusivity, you can tap into the potential of diverse perspectives, experiences, and ideas that can give your company an edge over the competition. It’s time to take the first step towards creating a more inclusive workplace that’s ready to take on the world.

Foster a more innovative workforce

Inclusion hiring is not just the right thing to do; it’s also good for business. By creating a diverse and inclusive workforce, companies can reap a variety of benefits that can help them succeed in today’s global marketplace.

One of the most significant advantages of inclusion hiring is the ability to drive innovation. When teams are made up of people from different backgrounds and experiences, they bring a unique perspective to problem-solving and idea generation. This diversity of thought can lead to more creative solutions, increased productivity, and better decision-making.

Furthermore, research has shown that companies with more diverse teams are more likely to come up with new and innovative ideas. A study by Boston Consulting Group found that companies with diverse management teams had 19% higher revenue due to innovation.

So, if you want to stay competitive in today’s fast-paced and ever-changing business world, inclusion hiring is a must. By prioritizing diversity and creating an inclusive culture, you can unlock the full potential of your team and drive innovation that sets your business apart from the competition.

A group of camdidates preparing for an interview

Promotes employee engagement

In today’s world, promoting inclusivity in the workplace is more important than ever before. Creating an inclusive workplace culture can bring a range of benefits, not only to employees but also to businesses. The formation of a diverse team is among the advantages that can be derived.

Diverse teams bring together individuals from different backgrounds and experiences, leading to a broader range of ideas and perspectives. This empowers teams to be more innovative and creative, leading to better problem-solving and decision-making. Additionally, promoting inclusive hiring practices can help businesses attract and retain top talent, including individuals from underrepresented groups who may bring unique skills and perspectives to the table. 

Finally, creating an inclusive workplace culture can lead to higher employee engagement and satisfaction, ultimately leading to improved performance and success for the organization.

How Applicant Tracking Systems Foster Inclusive Hiring Practices?

Are you tired of the same old biased and discriminatory hiring practices? It’s time to shake things up with inclusive hiring! And guess what? Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) can help.

Ready to shake things up in the hiring world? Let’s dive into how an ATS can help eliminate barriers and promote inclusivity in the recruitment process.

Screen candidates more carefully

The end goal in recruitment isn’t a secret. It’s simple to hire great, talented people. But to get to that point, there are a series of steps, interviews, or assessments to complete. Only then can you sit back and enjoy making the right hire.

All too often, it can take recruiters endless days, several weeks, and maybe even a couple of meltdowns to screen and successfully find the right fit. Even after all of that, many of them aren’t too lucky.

Then, entering the stage; is an applicant tracking system.

An ATS is a trusted, safe, and unbiased tool that enables you to source and screen candidates in no time. Sparing more than 80% of your time, an ATS gives you a chance to focus more on what really matters. Which is the human aspect of screening, evaluating, and hiring candidates. No more second-guessing your decisions or using your gut feeling as your trusted guide. No more rushing to make the right hires.

Goodbye bias, hello inclusivity!

An ATS can help you organize and manage applications to fairly rule out the candidates who don’t meet the qualifications for the job. To illustrate further, our ATS can help you match candidates to jobs and rank them from highest to lowest match based on a matching percentage.

This matching percentage is generated as soon as recruiters give weights to a certain criterion. Such as the candidates’ willingness to travel, location, experience, and so on. This way, recruiters can implement inclusive hiring practices by fairly screening candidates.

A group of recruiters discussing hiring startegies

Measure inclusivity through data

We can all agree that to successfully implement inclusive hiring practices, a data-driven approach is a must. Simply said, if you don’t know the ethnicity of your workforce and you don’t have the right data, how can you make sure that your diversity initiatives are working?

Many applicant tracking systems enable talent leaders to make more inclusive hiring decisions by providing a comprehensive range of analytics. Through these metrics, recruiters can quickly identify areas of improvement in each stage. Also, you can even get alerts when certain metrics drop below a certain threshold.

Even better, an ATS can reveal who you’re hiring and unravel their demographics to help you continually boost your inclusive hiring practices.

Based on its functionalities, some companies can also use their ATS to set their own goals and promote diversity. For example, they might use the data it provides to make sure they balance the gender ratio of the company and hire an equal percentage of both genders.

By taking a more proactive approach with data-driven analytics, you can effortlessly enrich your insights to make better and more inclusive talent decisions.

Mitigate unconscious bias through AI

Sometimes, unconscious bias can be hard to scrape off. Even when recruiters are consciously making an effort to keep biases at bay, they still tend to spring out unconsciously. Luckily, an ATS takes a more objective approach when screening and filtering candidates.

It doesn’t focus on the name, gender, age, or ethnicity of the candidate. Rather, it focuses on skill sets and qualifications that are necessary for the job. It recommends candidates based on competence-based job matching and gives equal chances to all.

Let’s take our ATS, EVA-REC, as an example. It allows recruiters to drag and drop a mass number of resumes all at once. Then, it will automatically parse the information and create an individual profile for each candidate. With the click of a button, recruiters can match these candidates fairly to the right jobs.

And if recruiters are looking for candidates with specific career levels, majors, or job titles, they can simply provide EVA-REC with certain keywords that they expect to see in the candidates’ resumes. Consequently, the ATS will then filter through these resumes to find the best candidates and rank them from highest to lowest match.

As a result, the ATS won’t unfairly exclude any candidates from the hiring process since it screens them based on merit, not ethnicity.

Recruiters looking for candidates and promote inclusive hiring

Showcase inclusivity through career pages

Companies like Marriot, Johnson and Johnson, and Pepsi all fully support diversity and inclusion and make it clear on their career pages too. From just one page, you can see how much they value cultivating a diverse workplace.

On the bright side, with modern applicant tracking systems, you can design a beautiful career page that is easy to build and manage. This modern career page cant be tailored to help you showcase your company’s inclusivity. 

Through this page, you can include employee testimonials and add tons of pictures and videos, which make it incredibly easier for candidates to visualize what it’s like to work for your company.

This way, you can entice candidates across borders to apply for a job on your career page, despite their backgrounds or nationalities. Inclusive hiring practices and diversity are tough cases to crack. However, with an advanced ATS, businesses can market their companies as diverse and an incredible place to work.

Leverage ‘’blind-hiring’’

To become less clouded by biases, many recruiters today are resorting towards blind hiring. It’s the simple process where recruiters assess candidates based on abilities alone and obscure demographics like age, gender, or race. Blind hiring eliminates unconscious bias, assesses candidates based on merit, builds a diverse workforce, and improves inclusivity efforts.

Many applicant tracking systems nowadays support blind hiring and allow recruiters to temporarily hide a candidate’s personal data and leave out only job-related information.

So once a candidate lands into a stage that has been anonymous, the ATS will automatically mask their personal information. This enables recruiters to boost their inclusive hiring practices and focus on the candidate’s qualities rather than other factors.

In short

All in all, “when everyone is included, everyone wins.” This is exactly the case with inclusive hiring practices. An ATS is a wonderful add-on and asset for every recruiting team. It supports them in driving a fair and inclusive hiring process and improves their chances of hiring the right candidates.

EVA-REC is an AI-powered ATS that helps small businesses to corporate giants build skillful workforces and hire top talent at scale. It makes it far easier for recruiters to find, attract, and hire diverse candidates in less time. With world-class integrations and AI features, EVA-REC creates a rich and immersive hiring experience for HR teams and candidates alike.

Turn top talent to employees fast

Hire, assess, onboard and manage top talent for every job. See how Elevatus streamlines everything; from acquire to new hire.

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Author

Reem Al-Tamimi

Reem Al-Tamimi

Turn top talent to employees fast

Hire, assess, onboard and manage top talent for every job. See how Elevatus streamlines everything; from acquire to new hire.

Request a demo