
For a long time now workplace diversity has been a focus for businesses both large and small. It is no longer hyped as the latest HR buzzword. There are many reasons why recruitment policies that promote diversity are a good idea, but the most recent research really underscores the benefits that a truly diverse workforce can deliver to organisations.
Using diversity and inclusion to drive business performance
Headline findings from a report published by Bersin by Deloitte last November reveal that
The findings from Bersin by Deloitte – the end result of a two-year study involving 450 global businesses with a combined revenue of $750 million – certainly tie in with other research on workplace diversity.
An earlier report by McKinsey shows that
How video interviewing can help increase diversity
Let’s be frank: current recruiting trends show that there is considerable room for improvement in how businesses go about finding and hiring the best candidates. Our own HR Recruitment Trends Survey reveals that most companies struggle to find qualified candidates to fill positions, with recruitment budgets constantly being squeezed. With 39 per cent of recruiters looking to streamline the hiring process, and 31 per cent wanting to reduce the overall time taken to hire new recruits, any tool that can help to save time and money – while also helping to boost diversity – can only be a good thing.
Video interviewing is a relatively new addition to the recruitment toolbox, but one that is perfectly aligned with the methods that candidates – especially tech-savvy millennials – are using to find work; our research shows that 89 per cent of job searches are made on mobile devices, and 90 per cent of all job applications submitted online or by email. Recruiters are moving in the right direction, with 39 per cent utilising online social networks in talent acquisition; however companies are proving that adding video interviewing into the recruitment process is an important next step in making the best use of the available technology to attract and hire the best candidates.
A number of common recruitment practices – including discarding potential candidates at the application stage due to insufficient academic qualifications or “irrelevant” work experience – do little to promote gender, cultural or age diversity, and arguably may serve to make the recruitment process longer and deliver less satisfactory results. Video interviews can be an efficient and cost-effective way of sorting candidates at an early stage and, crucially, getting a better feel for each candidate’s unique personality, strengths and how likely they are to fit in with your company’s culture. Relevant past experiences and transferrable skills, which may not be clear from the information on an application form, can come through in a candidate’s responses to video interview questions.
The benefits are even clearer when it comes to candidates in geographically diverse locations, whether that’s within the same country – avoiding the mutual costs and effort of arranging face-to-face interviews – or building diversity by hiring talent from other countries to work on a remote or telecommuting basis.