Over the past few years, employers have been actively building Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion into mission statements and core values, and enhancing diversity training for employees.  However, the most effective way to make DE&I a sustainable effort is to implement diversity recruiting strategies.  By embedding DE&I at the entry point to the organization, employers can ensure they’re building a workforce comprised of people of differing backgrounds, skills, and strengths—setting the organization up for lasting success.

Here are a few areas HR and hiring managers should focus on while creating diversity recruiting strategies:  

1. Sourcing

Waiting for diverse candidates to come knocking on the door isn’t enough.  Organizations need to actively expand the sources from which they draw talent—using resources like job boards for underrepresented communities, networking events, referral programs, and internal employee resource groups.  Recruiters and HR managers can also attract more diverse applicants by revamping their talent brand, illustrating the company’s commitment to DE&I on its website and in recruitment materials.  Consider partnering with a staffing agency like Elite Personnel that has deep experience in diversity recruiting strategies.  Building a staffing partnership can help an organization understand its current brand and strengthen its appeal to diverse audiences.

 2. Hiring

Building a diverse slate of candidates is an important first step. Next, you need to ensure equity throughout the hiring process.  The best diversity recruiting strategies are designed to reduce hiring bias, which is an unavoidable reality, no matter how well-intentioned the organization.  Using mechanisms like structured hiring, which relies on standardized assessments, and interview panels with diverse representation can carry the commitment to DE&I throughout the hiring process.

 3. Outcomes

Once organizations have implemented an end-to-end DE&I strategy for recruiting and hiring, the work doesn’t end.  The success of such initiatives must be continuously measured and assessed so revisions can be made.  Track the number of diverse applicants, the success of such candidates, the communities represented by new hires, and more to see where there is continued room for growth.  

Also, pay attention to promotions, rewards, and departures to shed light on the sustainability of your DE&I strategy.  By ensuring the decisions around your diversity recruiting strategies are data-driven, you can not only make the best talent selections but also live up to the company’s promise of delivering a bias-free hiring process.

Diversity recruiting strategies will look different for all organizations, depending on their unique workforce, business goals, and trajectory. However, by focusing on diversifying the talent pipeline, reducing hiring bias, relying on data to make decisions, and partnering with trained experts like those at Elite Personnel, HR leaders and hiring managers are best equipped to see their DE&I goals come to fruition.