Let’s start with a story.
A father and his son are travelling to an after-school club and get involved in a traffic accident. The father is relatively uninjured, but the son is rushed to hospital and straight into surgery. On seeing their latest patient, the surgeon exclaims ‘I can’t work on this patient…. he’s my son’
Apparently, when asked ‘who is the surgeon?’, 40% of people get the answer wrong, or cannot work it out.
The surgeon was the boy’s mother.
The fact that so many struggle to immediately see a woman in the role of a surgeon is an example of an unconscious bias relating to gender. Our beliefs and social norms about the role of women and men in the workplace.
And it is not just gender bias that can get in the way of recruiting the best people for the job.
For example, research finds that applicants with white-sounding names experience 50% more callbacks than equally qualified applicants with black-sounding names.
Bias is an inclination or prejudice for or against one person, or group, or thing. When we talk about unconscious biases in recruitment we are talking about unconscious thoughts and feelings we have towards other people that play a strong part in influencing our judgements away from being balanced or fair.
So what is the solution? Here are some ideas to improve your recruitment process and avoid bias:
Shortlist without seeing name, age, or other personal information:
As we saw in the research above, we can be influenced from the outset by someone’s name, their age, which part of town they live in, which school or university they went to (rather than the qualifications and experience achieved) and many other factors that will have no bearing on how well they can do the job. If you can, ask your HR team or another manager to number the CVs or application forms and separate off the personal details of the applicant before you see them. That way you can focus on selecting people for the skills and experience they will bring to the role.
Structure your interviews:
Look at the role you need to fill – what skills and experience does the individual need? What questions can you ask to find out if they have that? Once you have your questions ask the same questions of everyone you interview and make notes to record their answers. Really listen to what they are telling you and don’t make assumptions. Score your candidates against the criteria you set for the job, not against each other.
Don’t interview on your own…but have your own opinion:
Our unconscious biases are just that…unconscious. And whilst being aware of our likely bias and taking steps like these to mitigate them helps, it is always good to get a second or third opinion and encourage challenge on any assumptions you make. But. Be aware of conformity bias. People like to go along with the group, to conform (generally speaking anyway – hello to all the free thinkers out there!). Be aware of an impulse to agree too readily with everyone around you. Come to your own conclusions first, then share thoughts.
These are just a few of the ways you can achieve fair recruitment outcomes and ensure you employ the best person for the role. If you would like help with any recruitment exercise, or want to review and update your recruitment practices, contact us for more information about how we can help.
