Ola Kolade
Employment and Skills Director, Business in the Community
Inclusive recruitment is vital to build a truly inclusive workforce where all employees feel valued, included and like they belong. This can have tangible business benefits.
Business in the Community (BITC) strives to create a fairer world, and inclusivity sits at the heart of this. With over 1 million working-age adults in the UK unemployed and looking for work,1 and employers looking to hire for nearly 1 million vacancies, it is crucial that employers use inclusive recruitment practices to fill hard-to-fill vacancies and address the UK’s skills gap.2
To help employers address this, BITC’s Opening Doors campaign helps employers prioritise inclusive recruitment to access more diverse talent,3 reaping tangible business benefits.
Accessing more diverse talent
Recruitment practices should be accessible at all stages, from outreach to assessment. Partnering with organisations that support disadvantaged groups into work is an excellent first step in accessing a diverse talent pool.
Employers should make job advertisements inclusive and transparent by advertising salary, using inclusive language and removing jargon. Research shows that 7 out of 10 graduates would be discouraged from applying due to jargon in job posts.4
Employers must prioritise essential skills over formal experience when assessing a candidate’s suitability for a role. This will ensure that people who are entering the workforce or have been out of work for some time are not overlooked. Additionally, by prioritising accessibility and publicising inclusive policies, such as flexible working policies, employers will be more likely to attract and retain talent.
7 out of 10 graduates would be discouraged
from applying due to jargon in job posts.
Business benefits of inclusive recruitment
By reaching out to disadvantaged groups and making the recruitment process as inclusive as possible, employers can reach more diverse talent. Having a diverse workforce that reflects the customers and communities they serve has proven benefits for employers, such as better decision-making and problem-solving, with diverse teams over 35% more productive.5
If inclusive recruitment is embedded effectively into business strategies, employers could see an increase in employer attractiveness and improved brand reputation.6 Organisations that train hiring managers on inclusivity are 15% more successful in inclusive recruitment and more likely to hire people from disadvantaged groups, such as women, ethnically diverse people and people with disabilities.7 Employers should be open to all jobseekers, and they will reap the benefits of doing so.
[1] Employment in the UK – Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk)
[2] Vacancies and jobs in the UK – Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk)
[3] Opening Doors to Diverse Talent – Business in the Community (bitc.org.uk)
[4] Jobseekers are turned off by jargon in job adverts | Milkround
[5] Embracing diversity and inclusion: Unveiling employees’ attitudes in the American workplace (yougov.com)
[6] Inclusive Recruitment Training Benefits Everyone | Odgers Berndtson
[7] Inclusive Recruitment Training Benefits Everyone | Odgers Berndtson