Data: a key ingredient in the recipe for diversity and inclusive hiring practices

“50% of our applicants for engineering roles are women, but 90% of our hires are men, and we don’t know why.” This perplexing problem was plaguing a very large technology company, leaving their HR department banging their heads against the wall. They knew they had a problem, and, honestly, they suspected they knew the source […]
Does Your Referral Program Risk Compliance?

Let me start with a personal experience: I was really passionate about a specific companies mission and really wanted to work for them. I had applied several times to this very well-known, highly selective company on the West coast through their Applicant Tracking System (ATS). I never received anything but the default […]
Hiring Biases leaves great potential untapped. Would you have hired Steve Jobs?

Imagine moving to a foreign country, with little notice, and were told that you would have to get a job in three months. What, and more importantly, how would you do? Now imagine you found that perfect job; it is just like job you have now, perfectly fitting your skills and talents. So, you apply. […]
The OFCCP Will Soon Enforce Annual Affirmative Action Plan Verification—Are You Ready?

Have you been paying attention to the latest murmurs out of the Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)? If you’re a talent acquisition or HR professional of a Federal contractor, you’ll want to pay attention to a recent directive—because if you’re not prepared for it, it could cost your company dearly. […]
Is your hiring process open to those with disabilities?

Think about your current hiring process – from application to interview to offer. Maybe you’ve built in some timed assessments to put candidate skills to the test. Maybe you placed a lot of emphasis on their interpersonal skills when you meet them face to face, because you want to make sure they’ll fit in with […]
“I’m Sorry, Dave. I’m afraid I can’t do that.” – Save us from our Technology!

Science fiction has been trying to warn us for years that we are heading down a dangerous path. 2001 a Space Odyssey, The Matrix, I Robot, The Terminator… and the list goes on and on and on (and those are just the popular movies). Our culture is full of stories where tech is not always […]
Show, don’t Tell – kindergarten wisdom that will improve your hiring pipeline

Say you’re the casting director for a movie. But rather than auditioning actors, you ask them to describe their acting abilities. You’d end up hiring the actors that are best at selling their skills… not necessarily the best actors for each role. Why? The skills required to describe talent vs. showing it are totally different. […]
Finding great candidates comes down to these four questions

When it is time to post for a job, we all daydream about an unparalleled, undeniably perfect candidate sweeping through our doors and making the choice easy, so much so, we have given them names: the “unicorn” or the “purple squirrel”. In reality, there is no such thing as the perfect candidate, but there are […]
Why is applying for a job easier than buying socks?

Here’s the next big hit in singing competitions! Instead of having people try out by singing (literally, in front of judges), all they do is go to a competition website and click a big red ‘apply’ button. They fill out their name, contact information, picture, where they were trained in music and their favorite songs. […]
Do Not Hinder Diversity with Bias in your Hiring Process, Have a Plan.

Do you have a plan in place to eliminate bias from your hiring process? If not, now is the time to develop one—because bias today will hinder your diversity efforts for years to come, holding your company back creatively and hurting the bottom line. Hiring decisions plagued by conscious and unconscious bias can impact […]