To build a diverse talent pipeline, you must set measurable goals, engage with underrepresented talent communities, run inclusive interview panels, and embed diversity into onboarding. These steps will help you source broader talent and improve candidate retention.

Did you know that based on global LinkedIn data, diversity roles in companies have increased by 71% from 2015-2020?

The growth of diversity and inclusion of employees in companies have significantly improved and companies nowadays are putting all in to make sure that these numbers keep progressing. Recruiters have surely understood the benefits of diversity hiring in today’s age and thereby have been seen implementing and blending it more into their recruitment playbook.

Before anything else, companies need to understand the worth of underrepresented groups. People of colour and women have been represented less in leadership positions until a few years ago.

Though organizations around the globe have gathered that people from various geographical locations, age, gender, sex, personalities and so on have been fostering creativity and adding on to the benefit of the company, there is still a need to build more recruitment strategies that will feed diversity into the workforce.

Keeping the advantages of diversity hiring in mind, here are 5 such strategies that recruiters can implement when building a more diverse talent pipeline.

How to build a more diverse talent pipeline?

With improved productivity, more creative solutions, and better inputs, let’s look at the top 5 ways a recruiter can build a diverse talent pipeline.

1. Stop focusing only on one particular group

A diverse talent pipeline is not about creating a perfect male-to-female ratio or about trying your best to include one group and exclude the other.

A truly diverse workplace will contain employees who were not hired based on preference over their age, sex, ethnicity or background.

Recruiters must keep this in mind that they shouldn’t inadvertently overlook any group. The need to focus on only one group must end to create a truly diverse talent pipeline.

2. Set effective hiring goals

This is by far the most important recruitment strategy that recruiters can implement.

There’s a saying that whatever you can measure, can be achieved.

Set a clear-cut goal with your colleagues and hiring manager and take stock of where you’re currently at with regards to inclusion. If the calculated result is not something which your recruitment agency or your client aims towards, then it’s high time you start working towards it.

Include some of these goals below into your diversity hiring strategy:

  • Try dynamically sourcing 15 candidates from underrepresented groups for every role in your client’s company
  • Help and proactively train at least 35% of your company’s employees into understanding everything about unconscious bias.
  • Rewrite 5 evergreen job descriptions in such a manner that it clearly evokes how the company you’re hiring for prioritizes diversity hiring.

3. Get more involved with minority institutions

Get involved with sponsor institutions that support people from underrepresented groups and build effective rapport with members. These might include women and LGBTQ organizations, or even several minority professional groups.

Some of the examples are as follows:

  • Blacks in Technology
  • National Organization on Disability
  • National Association of Asian American Professionals

And so on.

4. Set diverse interview panels

A different group of questioners at the interview panel might be more qualified to distinguish the interesting attributes that would, or would not, make every candidate a decent worker. It can likewise help the candidate feel calmer to realise they wouldn’t be the lone representative from an underrepresented group.

Take your optimal competitor profile and work out an organized meeting measure, in which every applicant experiences similar advances and is posed a similar arrangement of inquiries.

Consolidate abilities appraisal, for example, a plan, practice, or artificial deals call, to get a more targeted comprehension of how every applicant could have an effect on your organization.

5. Build a srong employee onboarding process

Employee onboarding is a significant go-between venture between candidates and recruiters. Build a comprehensive employee onboarding experience to guarantee you don’t lose your priority candidates.

For instance, ask for favored names and pronouns, learn dietary inclinations, and accommodate workspace set-up inclinations. You need to ensure you can hold your diverse employee force for future events and promotions.

Apart from the above diversity hiring strategies, recruiters can try providing targeted internship opportunities to people from various backgrounds, help your client develop a employer brand that showcases how much importance they give towards the very idea of diversity.

At the end, it’s important to understand that companies that are more diverse always have a competitive advantage over those that are not.

Summary

Recruiters can build a diverse talent pipeline by using 5 easy strategies:

  • Engage with diverse communities of candidates instead of focusing on one particular group
  • Set measurable and achievable recruitment goals
  • Engage with institutions that support minority communities 
  • Set diverse interview panels
  • Have a strong employee onboarding process