7 ways to remove unconscious bias from your recruitment process.

Recruitment is a critical process that shapes the composition and success of any organisation. Yet, even with the best intentions, unconscious bias can infiltrate the hiring process, leading to unfair practices and hindered diversity. 

What is unconscious bias?

Unconscious bias, also known as implicit bias, refers to unconscious forms of discrimination and stereotyping based on race, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, ability, age…. These biases are typically rooted in our background, experiences, and cultural upbringing. They can influence our perceptions and judgments about people or groups of people, often without our awareness or intention.
Left unchecked, biases can shape a company or industry’s culture and norms. By recognising and by having a robust and inclusive recruitment process in place, organisations can reduce unconscious bias and create a more equitable hiring process.

“67% of employees thought their organisation could improve on diversity practices when it comes to attraction and selection of candidates.” Source: Drake Diversity Study

How do you mitigate bias in your recruitment process? 

1. Conduct an audit of your recruitment practices.

When it comes to biases and hiring, managers need to think broadly about ways to simplify and standardise the process. Take the time to review your existing recruitment practices. This can include ensuring there is a standardised and consistent selection procedure, updating position descriptions to reflect the core qualities and skills required in the role, and a review of the channels and/or mediums utilised to source talent.

2. Implement unconscious bias training

 According to Drake’s diversity survey, 39% of employees had not received any training on unconscious bias. Awareness training is the first step to unravelling bias, allowing employees to recognise bias and identify their own. Regular training needs to be offered to anyone involved in the hiring process.  

3. Who are you talking to? Review your job descriptions & advertisements

Job descriptions & job ads play a pivotal role in attracting candidates. Organisations should carefully craft inclusive content emphasising essential qualifications and skills while avoiding unnecessary gendered or biased language. For example, the use of gender-neutral terms, such as "they" instead of "he" or "she", can help eliminate gender bias in recruitment materials. Further, there are now software programs that highlight stereotypically gendered words and neutralise language in a job ad. Additionally, showcasing an organisation's commitment to diversity and inclusion in job advertisements signals to potential applicants company values a diverse workforce.

4. Phone screening before interviewing  

Human beings are primarily visual by nature, and sight is often our most dominant sense. When screening a candidate over the phone, it removes the reliance on visual cues. This enables the interviewer to concentrate on the candidate's experience, technical skills, and character, rather than being influenced by visual factors. The objective is to minimize the impact of 'first impressions' and ensure that only candidates closely aligned with the job requirements and skill set are advanced to the interview process.

5. Implement panel interviews  

Incorporating a range of viewpoints in the interview process is a valuable strategy for mitigating biases. An interview panel should encompass diverse backgrounds and experiences, with each member contributing their distinct perspectives. This approach not only confronts unconscious biases but also promotes an equitable assessment of candidates. 

6. Standardised interview questions 

Interviews lacking structure or defined questions are often considered unreliable for predicting job success. Ideally, each candidate should be asked the same set of defined questions to standardise the interview process and minimise bias.   Questions can be given a weighting, which helps grade candidate responses to each question.  The goal is for the results to become a third independent data point.

7. Anonymous resumes. 

To counteract biases based on gender, ethnicity, or other identifiable characteristics, you can level the playing field by implementing anonymous resume practices. Today there are software programs that blind the process, stripping resumes of personal information such as name, gender, and age before they reach the hiring manager. This allows for an unbiased evaluation of candidates solely based on their qualifications, skills, and experience.

Overcoming unconscious bias in recruitment is an ongoing journey.  

By actively acknowledging and mitigating biases, organisations can start to foster a fair and inclusive hiring process.

This commitment to reducing bias is not only an ethical imperative but also a strategic advantage that empowers organisations to harness the full spectrum of talent, driving innovation, wellbeing, and ultimately, sustained success!

For more information on best practices when it comes to recruitment and selection, get in touch with our team today.