How to: A five-step plan to recruit more diversity to your workplace

Anyone who has applied for a job knows that the process can be long, complicated, and, if we’re honest, painful. 

Applicants are expected to prepare for and attend multiple interviews, create and present original work, and wait weeks to hear the next steps—if they hear back at all. 

If you’re a member of a marginalized community, these hurdles are especially high. 

After George Floyd’s murder in 2020, organizations realized they needed to do something to appear as if they were serious about creating inclusive workplaces. Some elevated Black or racialized folks into leadership positions. Others posted black squares online with well-written messages saying diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) were necessary. 

But while the optics may have looked good, there weren’t many serious discussions about creating truly inclusive and belonging workplaces from recruiting through to hiring and beyond.  

Non-profit organizations are no different. Imagine Canada’s 2023 report, ‘Shifting power dynamics: Equity, diversity, and inclusion in the nonprofit sector’ found that organizations are striving to improve equity in their human resource practices, but those led by predominantly white leadership are often hesitant to adopt measures that could have a substantial impact. 

The report highlighted a concerning trend: small—and mid-sized organizations, particularly those with white leadership, demonstrate the lowest inclination to intentionally implement or actively pursue DEI policies.

The case for change is obvious: Addressing systemic racism requires us to remove its roots from our workplaces and institutions, and research shows that diverse workplaces outperform less diverse workplaces. 

If revising our practices could make a bigger impact on the communities we serve, why wouldn’t we do the work to find diverse applicants and create environments to help them succeed? 

Because it’s easier to do what we’ve always done. The same predominantly white recruiters connect with the same people through the same channels and the result is a homogenous workplace that doesn’t represent our communities. 

And, when they’ve finally decided to truly diversify their workplaces, recruiters don’t know where to start.

If we are serious about implementing DEI practices into recruiting in the non-profit sector, we need to do things differently and with intention. 

Review your “required” job qualifications

The problem isn’t that there aren’t enough qualified racialized candidates in the talent pool, it’s that organizations aren’t willing to proactively find and support these candidates through the application process. 

Let’s start with the job posting. Organizations often reuse job postings without assessing whether the required experience, skills, or qualifications are truly necessary to succeed in the role. 

Often many of these requirements, such as a post-secondary degree, aren’t needed to perform the job effectively, and they present major barriers to qualified people who don’t have these arbitrary credentials. 

We also suggest offering payment to candidates chosen for interviews. While we recognize this could be challenging for smaller non-profits, offering a nominal amount can be the difference between a great candidate not applying because they can’t afford to take the time off for an interview, and one who decides to.

Redefine your candidate search

Now that you’ve reviewed your job posting, you’re ready to find applicants. 

Are you posting your job to the same job boards and networking in the same places? Pulling from the same candidate pool means finding the same type of applicant. 

To widen your recruitment net, you must change things up. Consider your hiring committee. Traditionally, especially for executive recruitment, hiring committees are predominantly white board members or senior executives. 

These committees reflect your organization, so be mindful of how you design them. Whose voices are on the committee and whose voices are silent? There is value in having diverse perspectives, including more junior team members. 

Recruiters must be creative and widen their search by networking with Black or racialized organizations. 

Post your jobs on niche job boards focused on Black and racialized candidates—but finding diverse candidates and getting them to apply is just the first step.

Redesign your hiring process

Think through your hiring process from the candidate’s perspective: what structures and supports could make them feel more comfortable? What impressions of your organizations would you like to leave them with? 

Remember, this is your most important opportunity to lay the foundation for a great working relationship.

 From your first communications, strive to be transparent about everything from who’s on the hiring committee to how much time is between interviews to the salary range.

Rethink your interview script

Most of us have gone into an interview prepared, but were caught off guard by the questions or drew a blank because of nervousness. 

We’ve found that sharing the interview questions in advance helps candidates show their true selves. It also gives neurodiverse candidates more time to process the questions and think through their answers. 

This also reduces barriers to applicants whose first language isn’t English.

Next, skip the take-home assignments. Candidates are often asked to develop plans or presentations as part of the interview process, which can add hours of unpaid labour onto their plates. 

We spoke to a job seeker who created a full fundraising plan for a potential employer. Although they weren’t hired, their work was used without their approval or compensation.

Ultimately, recruitment is about first impressions. If a candidate’s first impression of your organization is trick interview questions or the expectation of free work, will that attract the best people to your workplace? 

Interviewing is like dating—it’s not one-sided. During the interview process, you want to get to know your candidate and give them the opportunity to learn more about you. Here are some tips:

• Try to understand a candidate’s professional development goals. Ask during interviews, “If you were successful in this role, what type of coaching might be helpful for you? And how much budget should we put aside to support those goals that you might have?”
• Consider co-creating the interview. During our last recruitment process at Evenings & Weekends Consulting, we wrote half of the interview questions and asked candidates to write the other half. 
• Don’t be offended by questions about psychological safety. Give people the opportunity and freedom to ask uncomfortable questions, like “How anti-Black is this institution?” or “What are the microaggressions like?”

Remedy your workplace

The most critical way to support candidates to succeed is to maintain environments where they can thrive. Investing in workplace changes to create a supportive, anti-racist environment is ongoing work that sets up staff for success and supports retention.

Change won’t happen without commitment, intentionality, and resources to counter oppression and remove the barriers facing marginalized candidates. 

If we all work to change our hiring practices and our workplaces, we can build a more inclusive, equitable, and effective sector for everyone.