Just in the past year, we’ve started doing almost all of our hiring through online sources. In some ways, it works very well, but I’m becoming increasingly concerned that we’re sort of losing control of what was a pretty solid commitment to diversity. Are we exposing ourselves to discrimination and affirmative action problems by recruiting exclusively on the web, and how are we supposed to track the ethnic and racial backgrounds of Internet candidates? — Jason, People Manager in Ventura
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Your question poses several issues.
- How do you track ethnic and gender identification on Internet applicants?
- How do you attract diverse candidates on the Internet?
- Are you in compliance with the Title VII antibias law and your affirmative action obligations?
Before you begin, it would be very helpful if you clearly define what diversity means for you in your organization. Is it gender and ethnicity? Is it broader? Does it include different ages and folks with disabilities and different sexual orientations? On an even more comprehensive scale, what about differences in culture, education, linguistic skill, and personal style?
I ask these questions because somehow we often use the word “diversity” in a comprehensive way, but we are really talking about the narrower, more traditional, gender and ethnicity dimensions. For purposes of your question, the focus of the answer will be on the narrower, traditional dimensions of gender and ethnicity.
You can track gender and ethnicity the same way you have always tracked and recorded that information. If you use an applicant tracking system, that can help you document and count the statistics. You can have an online invitation to self-identify gender and ethnicity, just like you have a tear-off paper version of the same information with your paper application form. In either case, participation is voluntary. Sometimes the information is not completed and in that case you can only “count” the applicants who have completed both the gender and ethnicity requests. All this is going to be further complicated by the new EEO-1 report’s expanded groups for ethnic identification that will be used for the first time in 2007 data.
To attract a diverse candidate pool, continue outreach and notification to likely sources for possible candidates.
Use the Internet to your advantage in these ways:
- Make sure your recruiting and company information features ethnic minorities and women in photos of company staff.
- Include a statement reflecting your diversity commitment in each job announcement.
- Have all interested and qualified parties complete an online application that incorporates a self identification process.
- Develop relationships with minority professional affinity groups at target universities.
- Creatively use internships and mentoring to foster and publicize the company attitude and welcoming commitment to minority success.
- Design special and creative employee referral programs to focus on diversity targets.
Make sure you notify all of your temp and employment agencies and search organizations that you use that you want a diverse applicant and referral pool, and then measure the results. Warn them that you may discontinue the relationship if they do not produce a reasonable and balanced applicant pool. Ask them to document their diversity outreach efforts.
Make sure your company website and all computerbased information you make available to applicants have content that is supportive and demonstrative of the company commitment to diversity.
If you are a federal contractor (doing government business in excess of $50,000 in one year and having 50 or more employees), you have to comply with Executive Order 11246 and accurately track all applicants. An “applicant” is anyone who is basically qualified and shows interest in a particular job. This is not an optional step.
If you are not a federal contractor, you may still wish to track all applicants to make sure your recruiting efforts are effective and mirror a reasonable population of individuals that is qualified and lives in a reasonable recruiting area. The same measuring tools used for decades by federal contractors are often very helpful for organizations that are not contractors to evaluate the effectiveness of their recruiting efforts—Internet or not. For more comprehensive steps and definitions, check the website for the U.S. Department of Labor and for the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs.
Basically, the Internet makes diversity easier, not more difficult. Just remember to make sure that all of the company information supports the company diversity efforts, and that the image the company projects is consistent with your values and commitment to diversity. Have an easy-to-use self-identification process available to all those using the Internet to apply for jobs.
Rhoma Young is founder and head of HR consulting firm Rhoma Young & Associates in Oakland.