Training Industry Magazine - March/April 2021 - 40

5. Cultural intelligence: They are
sensitive to cultural differences and
adapt to accommodate and include
them.
6. Effective collaboration: Inclusive
leaders
empower
teams
by
encouraging diversity of thought,
psychological safety and team
cohesion.

How to Address Bias in Hiring
Practices
Objective hiring practices are essential for
creating diverse and inclusive workplaces.
These simple changes can address biases
in recruiting:
* Set firm goals for a diverse candidate
pool. If the organization is not attracting a
diverse group of applicants, they should
look closely at the job description and
their overall reputation as an employer.
* Use blind applications in the candidate
review process. One study found
that, when companies used blind
applications, a woman was 25 to 46%
more likely to be hired. Use a special
software or simply a black marker to
hide identifying information like names,
age or gender from resumes before the
hiring team reviews applications.
* Limit referral hiring. It is easy to fall
into the affinity bias trap when relying
on referrals. Referred candidates are
usually from a common social circle
and likely look, speak and think like the
hiring team, decreasing the chances of
building a diverse workforce.
* Standardize interview questions.
Unstructured
interviews
are
unreliable for predicting success.
Using standardized questions and
an interview scorecard minimizes
bias and allows the interviewer to
compare candidates objectively.

Equalize Access to Leadership
Access to company leadership must be
driven by business demands and the team's
needs rather than what employees want or
expect. Some feel more comfortable asking
for their boss's time than others, often for

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cultural reasons. Inclusive managers make
an effort to reach out to every employee
to ensure they are comfortable asking for
time when they need it. They encourage
quieter team members to contribute by
asking probing questions, and they refrain
from holding meetings outside of business
hours. After-hours meetings are difficult
for caregivers, students and people with
demanding personal lives - providing an
unfair advantage to anyone with fewer
outside commitments.

Addressing Bias Through
Development
Managers can improve inclusivity in
their teams through the thoughtful
development of employees. Creating
clear, documented evaluation criteria
for performance evaluations is essential.
Focus on performance - not potential
- and distinguish personality traits from
skills to prevent assessments from
becoming about employees' likeability,
which could be attributed to unconscious
bias. It also avoids vague evaluations that
don't help employees improve and grow.
Organizations can also set clear policies
regarding promotions and pay raises
and share them with all employees.
Transparency about staffing and salary
decisions reduces pay disparities.
Quality anti-bias training and leadership
development can give leaders the

tools they need to create an inclusive
workplace. Author of " Making Diversity
a Competitive Advantage, " Dr. Tyrone
Holmes, tells us that employee
development should " help individuals
develop the skills they need to effectively
communicate, resolve conflict, and solve
problems in diverse settings. Such skills
include the ability to communicate across
cultural differences, the ability to resolve
diversity-based conflicts, the ability to
provide coaching and mentoring for a
diverse range of employees, and the
ability to contribute to the creation of
culturally inclusive environments. "

The Time for Change
is Now
The world is facing challenges that
require effective leaders and teams.
Leaders must examine their own
unconscious bias and take ownership
of their role in creating a more equitable
world. Leaders that face today's
challenges with humility and curiosity
while committing to meaningful change
will build diverse, high-performing teams
that are well-positioned to thrive in
the future.
Emily Hastings writes for Crestcom
International, a trusted leadership
development partner that transforms
managers into great leaders with a resultsdriven approach. Email Emily.

Inclusivity Improves Organizational Performance
There are many types of bias: gender bias, racial bias, confirmation
bias, age bias and more. Improving diversity and inclusion at work is
not only the right thing to do but is also good for an organization's
overall performance.
A McKinsey & Company study revealed that gender-diverse
companies are 15% more likely to outperform competitors and
ethnically diverse companies outperform others by 35%. Highly
inclusive companies see 1.4 times more revenue than similar
organizations. However, 57% of employees say they believe their
companies should improve diversity in their workforce, and nearly
25% of employees report they have experienced discrimination in
their current workplace. Workers are expecting more progress from
the companies that employ them.
https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/why-diversity-matters
Training Industry Magazine - March/April 2021

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