I’ve been doing research into how organisations can successfully recruit candidates from diverse backgrounds, and I figured a good way of finding best practice examples would be to search on Diversity & Inclusion roles. Surely, of all advertised positions, organisations would be recruiting for diverse candidates to fulfil Diversity, Inclusion and Gender roles.
Completing two searches in Australia on the job search engine ‘Seek’ using the terms ‘Gender’ and ‘Diversity’, twelve relevant roles came up.
“Great!” I thought, “Companies are really focussing on diversity and inclusion. Exciting stuff.” And then I went through the advertisements in more detail to determine which I could apply for if I were job hunting.
Erm, none. Zero roles. Zero roles out of the twelve roles advertised were suitable for me.
Why? They were all full-time roles. Every single one of the roles was advertised as full-time, without a mention or even hint at flexible working, negotiable hours or part-time arrangements.
So those companies demonstrating the importance of a diverse workforce by recruiting for Diversity & Inclusion professionals are actually searching for:
Men or women without families, or any caring obligations.
Parents who have a supportive partner willing to take on the majority of domestic life responsibilities.
Superhero-type parents whose children are in full-time care, and who take on the majority of domestic life responsibilities, managing to hold it together…just about.
And by advertising the roles as full-time, the companies who proclaim to value diversity are missing out on:
Women who have recently had babies, and would like to ease back into work.
Parents with pre-schoolers who aren’t willing for them to be in full-time care, and can afford to work reduced hours or can work flexibly around part-time childcare.
Parents who have older children, and would like to collect them from school a couple of times a week, and would be happy to make up the hours on other days.
Disabled people who can work a few days per week, but perhaps not full-time.
Older people who are winding down their career, but would still like to work part-time.
People who work a long distance from the employer, and can only be in the office a few days per week.
People who have caring obligations for disabled children or elderly relatives, and need to work part-time or flexibly.
People who are studying, and can only take on a part-time role.
People who have a time-consuming hobby or personal interest, and can afford to work part-time, or would like to work flexible hours.
The list of potentially missed quality candidates is endless.
I constantly hear from women who take on a full-time role, planning on making a positive impact in their first six months, and then persuading or begging their employer to reduce their hours or agree to flexible hours. The pressure and unrealistic expectations are neither fair to the employee nor their employer.
So before investing in a Diversity & Inclusion employee, maybe companies should focus on getting a few of the basics right first. Advertise part-time working. Advertise job shares. Advertise flexible working. Advertise negotiable hours. Advertise remote working. It’s a quicker way of acheiving a diverse workforce than on-boarding a Diversity & Inclusion professional. And if you’ve recruited the right person, they’ll be telling you to do the same.
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Dr Nicole Richardson is a Director of Engaged Group, helping businesses and schools become more sustainable and inclusive. Engaged Group provides consulting services, workshops, research and recommended suppliers to enable organisations to move forward positively. Contact Engaged Group to find out how we can help you.
www.engagedgroup.com.au
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