Your future hires want to understand your diversity strategy

08 November 2017 -

A new report from Glassdoor reveals that talented job-seekers are hungry for information about diversity. This has serious consequences for employers

Matt Scott

More than one in three hiring decision-makers are expecting to increase resources dedicated to improving diversity, according to new research from Glassdoor.

The job site found that 35% were expecting to increase investment in such diversity improvements, whereas only 3% were expecting it to decrease.

Glassdoor chief human resources officer Carmel Galvin said a focus on improving diversity was increasingly important in today’s modern workplaces.

“In today’s era of the informed candidate, job seekers are hungry for as much information about a company as possible before they take a job,” she said. “Job seekers want insights into what businesses are doing to build a workforce that is diverse in all aspects of the word be it age, gender, ethnicity or thought.

“Driving towards greater diversity in the workplace is a high priority effort for many businesses. With increased investment in diversity and inclusion programmes, it signals that employers are recognising the value these efforts are having on recruiting and on financial performance.”

The research also found that recruiting is less effective when companies do not invest in diversity and inclusion programmes, with some 59% of hiring decision-makers report that a lack of investment in diversity and inclusion is a barrier or challenge their organisation faces in attracting and hiring quality candidates.

Candidate demographics are also a highly important measure of recruiting success – only the costs a company incurs for generating applicants and securing a hire are more important than candidate demographics.

Furthermore, one in five (18%) of those surveyed report that diversity and inclusion initiatives are among the top elements that have the greatest influence on a candidate’s decision to join their organisation.

Galvin said: “The opportunity today for employers is to highlight and leverage their company’s diversity and inclusion efforts by enabling their recruiters, employees and others to speak about it online and off so that job seekers can gain access to this valuable information where and when they need it.”

Worth the Effort

While only one in four (28%) of those surveyed by Glassdoor are optimistic that they will make further progress towards achieving their diversity and inclusion goals in the next 12 months, the benefits of achieving those goals can be quite fruitful.

Of this group, more than half (52%) responded that they expect quality of hire to improve compared to 20% that expect quality of hire to worsen.

CMI’s own research has found that effective investment in improving diversity can have a positive impact on business performance. Indeed CMI’s Delivering Diversity report estimated that full BAME representation could be worth £24bn every year to the British economy.

CMI head of research Patrick Woodman said: “Glassdoor’s research shows that employers face an uphill struggle to recruit new talent if they fail to invest in BAME diversity. This should be a big warning to business leaders and managers – according to CMI research into FTSE 100 companies, just 54% of senior managers are seen to be actively championing diversity and inclusion programmes.

“Under-representation of BAME workers is especially pronounced in management roles, where they hold just 6% of jobs. To build on this we need to learn from what works, which means committed leadership from the top and from managers at every level, much better data on diversity throughout the management pipeline, and more transparency about progress.”

“We have to keep a spotlight on the issue,” he added.

Find out more about CMI’s Delivering Diversity research and how diversity enhances productivity: www.managers.org.uk/deliveringdiversity

CMI recently conducted research with Glassdoor about Britain’s most highly rated companies for leadership and culture. Be inspired by the full list. http://www.managers.org.uk/insights/news/2017/october/introducing-the-cmi-glassdoor-top-20-rating-leadership-and-culture-at-work