Category: D&I

A History of Progress: African Americans in the Workforce

Posted on by edyson

From the first African slaves brought to the shores of the American colonies in the 1600s to the present day, African Americans have an active and intricate role in the history of labor in the western hemisphere and beyond. African Americans have filled a wide range of roles vital in building and sustaining the nation’s economy, even in the face of racial discrimination and persistent challenges.

Yet African Americans have often found themselves availed with few economic and career resources of their own, historically restricted to lower-paying sectors of the economy. Moreover, despite improvements in workplace diversity, African Americans have faced a long history of workplace discrimination as employees and job seekers continue to face obstacles.

At PeopleScout, we are committed to providing you with information to help guide you on your DE&I journey. We aim to cover a wide range of DE&I topics, including issues regarding BIPOC, the LGBTQ+ community, gender gaps, people with disabilities and more. In this article, we cover the history and experiences of African American workers and offer advice and recommendations for employers looking to build more inclusive workplaces.

The Complex Legacy of Slavery and African American Labor

hiring discrimination

In the 17th century, to meet the expanded labor needs of the rapidly growing North American colonies, European colonists who depended primarily on indentured servants from Europe opted for a cheaper and more plentiful labor source, African slaves. 

Historians estimate that up to 12 million African slaves made the middle passage during the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Following the Revolutionary War, the rural South’s demand for slave labor increased due to rising cotton production supplanting traditional cash crops like tobacco and sugar. The South’s demands for slave labor and growing calls for abolitionism in the Northern led to decades of political and social tension.

In 1861, the tensions between North and South erupted into civil war in America. On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation made it official that enslaved “shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free.” By freeing 4 million enslaved African Americans, the Emancipation Proclamation dealt a blow to the Confederate states’ labor force.

The Union’s victory in the Civil War granted 4 million African slaves’ freedom and in 1865, the 13th Amendment officially abolished slavery. Unfortunately, significant obstacles to full enfranchisement laid ahead during the Reconstruction era.

Racial Discrimination in the Workplace: The Emancipated Black Worker, Sharecropping and Black Codes

After the end of slavery, Southern legislators passed a series of laws also known “Black codes” intended to bar African Americans from skilled trades. While Northern states outlawed similar practices, white craftsmen resisted accepting Black workers into trade work. These restrictions on ex-slaves made them reliant on their former owners for work as landless sharecroppers.

employment discrimination

Sharecroppers exchanged their labor for tools, seeds, fertilizer, and access to land to harvest their crops. While having more independence than during slavery, sharecroppers paid substantial rent, interest and also turned over a large portion of the crop to their landlord.

To escape the the racial discrimination and oppression of the sharecropping systems and Jim Crow laws of the south, many black families migrated west and north in search of better-paying jobs in manufacturing and professional roles. However, many Black migrants were excluded from professional trades and manufacturing jobs, often confined to unskilled labor or domestic service.

A History of Progress in The Face of Racial Discrimination:

  • 1619 First African Slaves Brought to the New World: A Dutch ship brought 20 Africans ashore at the British colony of Jamestown. In the years to come, slavery spread quickly through the American colonies.
  • 1865 The Thirteenth Amendment Abolishes Slavery: The end to official slavery was perhaps the greatest labor victory in U.S. history, yet the struggle for equal rights was far from over.
  • 1866-1877 Reconstruction Era: During the Reconstruction era, the thirteenth and fourteenth amendments to the constitution ended slavery and granted citizenship to African Americans. Unfortunately, Reconstruction did not produce economic equality for millions of newly freed men and women.
  • 1881 Tuskegee Institute Founded: Booker T. Washington became the first principal of Tuskegee Institute in Tuskegee, Alabama, on July 4. Tuskegee became the leading vocational training institution for African Americans.
  • 1925 Pullman Company Porters form the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (BSCP): The first all-Black labor union in the U.S. formed in 1925 to address low wages, long hours and mistreatment from passengers. By 1935, the BSCP was the first African American union organization to be granted membership into the American Federation of Labor.
  • 1941 Black Activist Desegregate Defense Industry: In 1941, A. Philip Randolph, head of the BSCP along with other Black labor activist successfully leveraged their political organizing efforts to lobby President Franklin D. Roosevelt to end racial segregation in the defense industries.
  • 1961 Executive Order 10925 Establishes the EEOC: In 1961, President John F. Kennedy set forth Executive Order 10925, which established the President’s Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity, or EEOC. Kennedy’s order not only made it unlawful for government contractors to discriminate, but also gave the EEOC the right to impose sanctions on any organization which violated the spirit of civil rights laws.
  • 1964 The Civil Rights Act of Outlaws Workplace Discrimination: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and other major figures of the civil rights movement successfully petitioned for the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The view of African American labor as first enslaved, then free, changed when the modern civil rights movement helped expand the scope of American democracy and the rights of all.

Racial Diversity and African Americans in the Modern Workforce

African Americans continue to face both explicit racial discrimination and more subtle forms of discrimination in the workplace. According to a survey conducted by Gallup, 72% of Black professionals have experienced racial discrimination in the workplace—a higher percentage than all other ethnic group surveyed.

Although companies claim they want to overcome these explicit and implicit biases and hire and promote diverse candidates, they rarely do so in effective ways. In this section, we outline ways in which employers can address racial inequality as well as better support and promote inclusion for their African American employees.  

African American or Black?

discrimination in the workplace

Racial identity can be very personal, and the language employers use to refer to a person’s race is a reflection of that. “Black” and “African American” are not always interchangeable. African American is typically used to refer to descendants of African who were enslaved. Some individuals prefer the term Black because they do not identify as African or because being Black about more than about race, it may also carry cultural meaning as well.

Moreover, some people identify as Black and African American and use the terms interchangeably for themselves, depending on the situation. Whether someone prefers “African American” or “Black” is very much up to the person, so it is always advisable to ask an individual which term they prefer.

Employee Resource Groups Can Help Support African American Employees

Being African American in the workplace can be emotionally taxing. Research by the University of Virginia shows that because Black employees feel a strong sense of difference between themselves and their mostly white peers, and as a result their ability to contribute is diminished. This sense of isolation can take a toll.

Creating employee resource groups (ERGs) is an approach you can use to build a more inclusive environment and addresses diversity and inclusion in a more holistic, community-based way.

The first employee resource groups were initially workplace affinity groups created in response to racial strife of the civil rights era. Joseph Wilson, the former CEO of Xerox, developed the concept following race riots in Rochester, NY in 1964.

ERGs can empower underrepresented groups by giving each group a voice to discuss issues with decision-makers and leadership. ERGs support learning and development by offering formal and informal leadership opportunities and creating visibility for employees who are active. ERG groups provide resources and guidance for cooperate leadership regarding diversity issues, community needs and policy.

Discrimination in the Workplace: Systemic Inequality and Corporate Culture

Often, Black employees report feeling less supported, engaged and dedicated to their employers than their non-Black coworkers. Many employers create diversity and inclusion programs to help improve the day-to-day experience of employees, however, many initiatives often fall short.

The problem?  Many DE&I programs tend to focus on helping employees from marginalized and underrepresented groups fit into the status-quo company culture and do not take enough action to remove systemic barriers to equality within their organizations. Organizations can start by leveraging data analytics to assess whether employees feel included on their teams and are treated equitably within the organization at large.

To collect diversity information on their workforce, employers should refer to EEO data collected for compliance obligations. Once the diversity data is collected, it should be compared to the data available on the labor market. Employers should look for gaps in diversity and then draft a plan to hire and retain more members of underrepresented groups.

Support African American Employees in Being Themselves

racial diversity

Members of underrepresented groups often feel pressure to conform, suppressing personal values and feel uncomfortable bringing their whole selves to work. This can lead to a particular struggle with feeling inauthentic at work. Research by McGill University shows that the pressure to create “facades of conformity” to fit in with the culture of their employer.

African American employees might straighten their hair or “finetune” their résumés by deleting ethnic-sounding names or companies. They might suppress emotions related to racism in the workplace and in the world at large.

Employers should assess how much of themselves their Black employees feel comfortable bringing to work. Here we outline a few ways leaders can encourage employees to bring their true selves to work:

  • Leaders should listen to everyone and incorporate the views of their diverse workforce to improve the exchange of ideas, perspectives and values.
  • Encourage Black employees to speak up for racial and cultural authenticity and to be seen as individuals who are unique for reasons other than their ethnicity.
  • Create mentoring opportunities to empower Black employees to share their true selves at work rather than learning to conform to cultural expectations.

Another challenge African Americans face in the workplace are the politics of respectability. Respectability politics refers to attempts by marginalized groups to control the behavior of their own members to show the groups social values align with mainstream values instead of challenging the status qou for its failure to accept difference. Respectability politics narrow the parameters of the Black experience, and can denying employees the opportunity to be their truest selves.

Sourcing African Americans Candidates

Recruiters may come with their own set of unconscious biases that may manifest as racial discrimination when hiring, hurting an organization’s efforts to source diverse candidates. Implementing technology into the recruitment process can help decrease the unconscious bias that may take place during recruiting.

For instance, if you find that there’s a large drop in minority candidates moving between the onsite interview and skills assessment, unconscious bias training may be in order. Follow your data closely so you can make more informed decisions and continue making progress on your organization’s diversity, equity, and inclusion goals. What’s more, you should also build a team of recruiters who hail from a wide range of backgrounds.

There are also websites and job boards such as Jopwell that allow recruiters to advertise open roles to a talent pool that is full of diverse candidates so you can source from a variety of different places. Don’t rely on the same sources over and over again when seeking out new candidates. Focusing on only the sources that you know best can result in a talent pool of similar candidates and a lack of diversity.

Moreover, employers who are intentional about increasing African American diversity should look to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) who produce nearly 20% of all the African American college graduates.

Organizations can partner with these schools to find promising entry-level employees with not only the necessary skills and education, but also the drive to make an impact early in their career. With the rise and ease of virtual career fairs and other ways to engage job seekers, it’s easier than ever to access these highly desirable candidates.

What’s more, HBCUs provide to their students with career guidance and support to prepare them for the workforce, making these institutions an ideal place to recruit early talent. With an emphasis on mentorships, internships, and other ways to participate actively in the larger community, HBCUs prepare students for life outside the classroom while offering a safe, nurturing, and inspiring environment—a place to thrive.

How Employers Can Help Make Racial Discrimination in the Workplace a Thing of the Past

Racial Discrimination in the Workplace

Despite increasing corporate investment in DE&I efforts, African Americans continue to face major barriers to advancement in the workplace. Now more than ever before, organizations and society should strive to benefit from the experiences, knowledge, and skills of all, not just a few. Organizations that understand racial discrimination, the reality and history of the African American experience will be better able to embrace and champion policies and programs that help to level the playing field. This will be hard but rewarding work that helps not only African Americans, but also the entire workforce and society at large.

Talking Talent: Building an Inclusive and Equitable Employer Brand and Recruitment Process

Posted on by nfuqua

In this episode of Talking Talent, we’re going deep on an issue that is top of mind for so many employers: diversity, equity and inclusion. We’ve seen a tremendous amount of work done in this area, but there is always more to do. And we know that every organization is at a different point on its DE&I journey.

This episode specifically focuses on building an employer brand and a recruitment process that is equitable and inclusive of candidates from underrepresented backgrounds. What are the best strategies? How can you build a process that takes things like intersectionality and social mobility into account? And finally, how do you get the buy-in within your organization to make changes—especially in a challenging hiring environment?

Joining us to talk about these issues is Paula Simmons, our Director of Employer Brand & Communications Strategy. Paula’s background is a combination of PR and corporate communications, recruitment and employer branding. Her role at PeopleScout UK enables Paula to do what she enjoys most: delivering actionable insights and consultancy to clients across a range of industry sectors, nationally and internationally. In essence, helping them to understand, articulate and measure what makes them unique places to work.  Alongside this, she also leads our work to help clients better understand and engage audiences from underrepresented groups.

In this conversation, Paula explains the traditional ways that talent acquisition professionals have recruited candidates from underrepresented groups and then explains a new way forward. She explains how intersectionality and social mobility should factor into DE&I programs and provides a pathway for talent leaders to get buy-in and balance long-term goals with immediate needs.

To learn more about DE&I at PeopleScout, take a look at our Resource Center, and download our ebook about the role of talent acquisition in building a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace.

DE&I Initiatives: Assessing Program Maturity & the Role of Talent Acquisition

Posted on by nfuqua

When people of different backgrounds with different experiences come together, they drive innovation—both in the workplace and in the world at large. In fact, there’s substantial research that DE&I initiatives bring many advantages to the workplace, including increased profitability and creativity; greater productivity; and better problem-solving, among others.

Employees with diverse backgrounds also bring their own perspectives, ideas and experiences, which help to create organizations that are resilient and effective and that outperform organizations that do not invest in diversity.

Yet, despite the obvious benefits of increased diversity and inclusion in the workplace, the reality still leaves much to be desired. For instance, research from Boston Consulting Group shows that diversity and inclusion efforts have yielded sparse results: Although nearly all companies have programs in effect, only 25% of employees from diverse backgrounds feel they have personally benefited from them.

Clearly, employers must do more, and the responsibility for diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) belongs to the entire organization—including talent acquisition and HR leaders. So, in this article, we’ll cover the different areas of the business that contribute to DE&I; how you can determine your DE&I program maturity; and areas where talent acquisition leaders can have the greatest influence.

So, Who’s Responsible for DE&I Initiatives?

what is de&i?

For years, talent acquisition teams have led diversity efforts within organizations. In some cases, employers hire a chief diversity officer (CDO) and provide a budget for DE&I initiatives. However, the responsibility for DE&I initiatives is much broader, and everyone from senior leaders to entry-level employees in everything from marketing to IT has a role in creating an inclusive workplace. Here, we outline the roles that different areas of the business play in DE&I efforts.

Talent Acquisition & HR

More than any other group or individual, talent acquisition and the broader HR organization are responsible for diversity and inclusion in the workplace. According to a Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) survey, in 59% of organizations, HR and talent acquisition oversee diversity efforts and, at 64%, they’re tasked with implementing diversity initiatives.

Leadership

An organization’s leadership team is responsible for diversity outcomes at 25% of organizations, according to a Deloitte report. But, leadership must play a role in the DE&I initiatives at all organizations. In fact, having a C-suite member as the diversity and inclusion program leader is one of the biggest differentiators between organizations in which diversity is not considered a barrier to progression versus ones where it is, according to PwC’s data.

However, to be successful champions of diversity, leadership needs to be fully engaged—because an inclusive and equitable culture must be present from the top down. Notably, if time and other responsibilities that accompany their jobs make it difficult for executives to be fully engaged, organizations may want to reconsider having their C-suite remain heavily involved in their diversity efforts. In this case, you might consider appointing another individual (or individuals) who is more able to focus on the work and, as a result, bring about more change.

Diversity Committees

Not every organization has the resources to support a full-time diversity role. In fact, the larger the employer, the more likely it is to have dedicated diversity staff, according to Xpert HR. However, as SHRM found, smaller organizations may be able to aid diversity and inclusion programs by taking a cue from the 17% of employers that have an advisory group/committee comprised of volunteer staff members. This can actually be quite an effective approach, as employee sponsorship corresponds with lower levels of reported bias within an organization, according to Center for Talent Innovation research.

de&i initiatives

Identifying Gaps in the Maturity of Your DE&I Initiatives and Programs 

When it comes to really progressing your organization’s DE&I program, the best place to start is by asking yourself where your organization stands today. That way, you can best identify where to place your initial efforts in order to create the greatest influence. Below, we outline the different stages of DE&I program maturity. Note that your organization may be at different levels in different areas.

Beginner: Generally, employers at the beginner level of maturity tend to be more reactive rather than proactive; they may narrowly define workplace diversity, and leaders usually have limited involvement in driving DE&I forward within the organization.

Intermediate: Employers at the intermediate level typically focus on more purpose-driven DE&I initiatives, with leadership assuming a greater role in progressing DE&I in the workplace. At this level, the definition of diversity expands to include less-visible characteristics, like disability, religion, class, age, regionalism, sexual orientation and more. Additionally, at this stage, an employer may employ a dedicated staff and provide a budget for DE&I.

Advanced: Employers at the advanced stage focus on multi-dimensionality and intersectionality when thinking about diversity. In this situation, leaders practice inclusive leadership skills and are held accountable for creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. They also often have DE&I resources and budgets distributed throughout the organization to ensure organization-wide diversity.

Leading: Employers at this level take a sustainable approach to DE&I, in which leaders are expected to lead holistically and inclusively; be key DE&I initiatives change agents; and hold the organization accountable. In addition to their internal resources, they often have external DE&I advisory boards that guide them on leading practices.

de&i meaning

Identifying your organization’s DE&I maturity level allows you to better measure your progress on key areas of workforce diversity, including communication, employee education, company culture, resource investment and the involvement of leadership. This will help guide your next steps toward creating a more diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce, as well as allow your organization to focus on interventions that are targeted and specific. Plus, in organizational environments facing a multiplicity of DE&I issues at once, the ability to pinpoint current state, plot out the desired state and craft the roadmap to get there is critical.

What is DE&I? The Role of Talent Acquisition

While the responsibility for DE&I is spread across an organization, talent acquisition still plays a major role. Recruiters, sourcers, hiring managers and HR leaders are powerhouse roles that must work together to find the right candidate for the job, while also demonstrating an organization’s commitment to DE&I from the company’s first interactions with employees.

As talent acquisition leaders, you also play a key role in bringing to life diversity and inclusion as values that are deeply embedded in an organization. More precisely, your team plays a particularly critical role by sourcing, engaging and eventually hiring candidates from underrepresented groups.

Does your organization have a talent pool of diverse candidates? Do your interviewing practices reduce unconscious bias? Do you have a strong reputation for being a diverse workplace? These are some of the critical questions that you and your teams should attempt to answer to deliver on the organization’s diversity agenda.

By understanding your role and performing it effectively, talent acquisition teams can work with leaders in other areas of the business to build a truly holistic DE&I program. Here, we discuss some of the tactics that talent acquisition can adopt to overcome diversity sourcing, selection and hiring challenges.

Championing Diversity

Once your talent acquisition team establishes awareness and accountability, members should become champions of diversity hiring; you have a tremendous opportunity to drive the diversity agenda by reinforcing the case for diversity hiring. For instance, engaged recruiters can champion diversity and make it an everyday dialogue with hiring managers. That’s because recruiters are responsible for ensuring that all candidates are treated fairly and equally in a process that removes bias. They’re also the first step in demonstrating how the organization appreciates and celebrates its diverse employees.

Diversity Sourcing

Diversity at work

To ensure that your talent pool is representative of diverse candidates, source your candidates from a variety of talent channels. Clearly, you can’t rely on the same sources repeatedly when seeking out new candidates; focusing only on the sources that you know best can result in a talent pool of similar candidates and a lack of diversity.

Instead, seek out opportunities to source candidates from underrepresented backgrounds. For example, there are many online and offline groups dedicated to women in technology. This could be a great opportunity to meet and connect with high-caliber, female candidates directly—instead of waiting for them to find you through platforms like Indeed. And, the more initiative you take to find these channels, the more likely it is that your talent pools will be diverse.

What’s more, if you’re struggling to find diverse talent, reach out to employees from diverse backgrounds and encourage them to share your job ads with their networks; then, give them the tools they need to promote open roles within your organization. As a result, your employees and candidates will both feel that your company values their opinions and contributions, which is fantastic for team morale and engagement.

DE&I Initiatives: Building Inclusivity

Building an inclusive workplace is central to creating a workplace environment in which every employee feels valued. Granted, every organization is different, so the content and structure of an inclusion program needs to meet the conditions of your organization. To get you started, SHRM offers an inclusivity checklist for HR that provides a good place to start:

  • Make sure that company leaders understand that inclusion is about ensuring that everyone’s voice is heard, opinions are considered, and value to the team is evident.
  • Train managers to show that inclusivity is a core competency—and hold them accountable.
  • Form an inclusion council with genuine influence and power.
  • Value differences and create an environment in which people can feel comfortable bringing their authentic selves to work.
  • Identify the needs of underrepresented groups, and give them the necessary support and resources.
  • Provide workers with a safe space to voice their concerns.
  • Benchmark key aspects of your organization’s culture and understand the employee experience before making changes to promote inclusivity.
  • Remember that daily interactions are the most telling sign of whether your company has an inclusive culture.

Unconscious Bias & Candidate Selection

One of the key reasons companies lose out on diverse talent is unconscious bias, which can have detrimental effects on the diversity hiring process. The concept of unconscious bias or implicit bias was first introduced in 2006 as “the new science of unconscious mental processes that has a substantial bearing on discrimination law.”This challenged the longstanding idea that people are guided only by explicit beliefs and conscious intentions.

One example of unconscious bias is that a candidate’s last name—which implies their ethnic background—can adversely affect their chances of landing a job. Unfortunately, studies by Ghent University show that the last name appearing on a candidate’s résumé can reduce the possibility of receiving a call back by 25% in Germany; 29% in Sweden and the UK; and 50% in the U.S. Accordingly, to address unconscious biases, some companies mask candidate demographics while presenting them to the hiring team in order to shift the focus from ethnicity to experience and skills.

In another strategy highlighted by DiversityJobs, a large utility company in the U.S. moved away from the practice of long interviews with a few leaders and started exposing candidates to more interviewers in multiple, short interviews. This reduced the chance of a single, biased assessor significantly influencing a hiring decision. Additionally, the organization was also able to showcase a more diverse selection team to all new hires.

Diversity at Work: Converting Candidates From Underrepresented Groups Into Employees

However, winning over diverse candidates goes beyond just locating them and ensuring that they’re treated fairly during the hiring process. Rather, to win diverse talent, organizations should demonstrate the authenticity of their commitment to DE&I by leveraging their employer brand through career sites and social media channels, as well as by showing how diverse and inclusive they are through their employees and leadership.

Furthermore, talent acquisition can also play a role in reinforcing these messages by:

  • Adding a link to diversity and inclusion policies and practices in job advertisements and recruiters’ email signatures.
  • Minimizing adverse effects of recruitment discrimination by complementing recruiters with talent acquisition technologies like PeopleScout’s AffinixTM.
  • Ensuring job-related information is accessible to all groups. (For example, ensure your career site is accessible to those with visual impairments through design, alt text and screen readers; and ensure presentations and videos include subtitles or sign language.)
  • Scheduling interviews in locations that are accessible and convenient for all candidates, such as parking for people with disabilities; Braille script on elevators and signage; and female, male and gender-neutral restrooms.
  • Sharing relevant stories about a diverse set of employees in the organization and involving diverse employees and senior leaders in the interviewing process.
  • Respecting candidates’ gender identity. Because gender identity is internal, a person’s gender identity is not necessarily visible to others, so asking candidates what pronoun(s) they prefer to use in interviews and other communications can make a difference.

DE&I Initiatives: Talent Technology

The right talent acquisition technology can be a powerful tool for reaching your DE&I initiatives and goals. And, as you begin to recognize and fix disparities in hiring processes and work environments, data can be an important tool in determining the effectiveness of those efforts. No DE&I initiative can be successful unless it can be measured.

To that end, diversity dashboards—like those available in PeopleScout’s Affinix Analytics—can break down your hires by gender and ethnicity. Then, with that information, you can identify where the most diverse hires have been found. From there, you can focus on which recruitment strategies are most effective in bringing in candidates form underrepresented groups. And, once those initiatives are in place, you can track your success over time.

The goal of diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace should be a central pillar in any organization’s journey. Embracing a multitude of viewpoints and cultures drives innovation; improves decision-making; increases employee productivity and retention; and leads to better-served employees—and, by extension, customers. While responsibility for diversity, equity and inclusion is shared across an organization, talent acquisition leaders have a significant influence.

DE&I Insights for Talent Acquisition Leaders

Posted on by nfuqua

Getting inclusivity and diversity right for talent acquisition teams means properly sourcing, interviewing and hiring candidates from underrepresented groups. What’s more, talent teams must understand not only where different candidates search for jobs, but also the factors important to those candidates.

To that end, a PeopleScout survey of job candidates focuses on inclusion and diversity, found important differences in how diverse groups find, research and apply for jobs, and employers can use these insights to make their recruitment process more equitable and inclusive. The survey focused on job candidates throughout the U.S. from a wide variety of backgrounds. However, due to the relatively small sample size, these survey results should be taken as purely directional. Below, we share the most important insights.

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Inclusivity and Diversity: Candidates From Underrepresented Groups Find & Research Jobs Differently

Racial and ethnic minority candidates are more likely to hear about a job opportunity through word of mouth than white candidates. More precisely, nearly half of Black or African American candidates report learning about their most recent job through word of mouth, while only 35% of white candidates found their most recent job in the same way.

inclusion and diversity

Black or African American candidates are also the most likely group to research an employer or job opportunity by talking to people in their communities—at more than double the rate of white candidates.

inclusivity and diversity

Inclusivity and Diversity: What This Means for Talent Acquisition

Your current employees from underrepresented backgrounds are important partners in sourcing and recruiting diverse talent; they understand your culture and values and can share both job openings and their experience at your organization with other candidates.

Women Rely on a Larger Range of Sources When Researching Employers

Notably, women in the workplace are more likely than men to research an employer through third-party channels, whereas men are more likely to rely on your careers site. For instance, while half of men report researching an employer through the employer’s careers site, only one-third of women do the same. Women are also twice as likely as men to use employer review sites, like Glassdoor.

de&i metrics

What This Means for Talent Acquisition

Many candidates rely on your careers site for research. As such, your careers site should showcase your employer brand, but it cannot be your sole focus. Instead, also invest in improving your employer brand through employer review sites, like Glassdoor. Additionally, encourage your employees to share their positive experiences of working at your organization on social media sites, like LinkedIn.

Candidates Notice Your Diversity Efforts

Your diversity efforts can be a difference-maker for job candidates. In fact,  underrepresented groups are more likely to say that an employer’s diversity efforts make a difference in whether they decide to apply for a role. White candidates are also paying attention.

de&i goals

The way you showcase diversity efforts also makes a difference to candidates, with the biggest gap between white and Black or African American candidates. For instance, when asked about the factors that candidates consider when applying to a job, Black or African American candidates were five times as likely as white candidates to consider your diversity efforts. Black or African American candidates were also more than four times as likely to consider whether your careers site features “people who look like me.”

inclusivity and diversity

What This Means for Talent Acquisition

Your diversity efforts are important to your candidates; they want to hear about what your organization is doing to improve diversity, equity and inclusion at your organization. And, in a competitive talent market, it’s important to feature those commitments, as they could be the deciding factor for candidates.

Supporting Service Members with Career Counseling for a Major Retail Chain

Posted on by jpatel
Supporting Service Members with Career Counseling for a Major Retail Chain

Supporting Service Members with Career Counseling for a Major Retail Chain

A major multinational retail chain partnered with PeopleScout to support its counseling program for transitioning members of the military, veterans, military spouses, and National Guard and Reserves who are looking to take the next step in their career.

Dedicated career coaches for all program participants

Customizable career paths for participants 

Virtual intake meetings and ongoing calls

Situation

This retailer has partnered with PeopleScout since 2013 to support its veteran hiring initiatives. In 2013 when the program launched, veteran unemployment was higher than civilian unemployment. PeopleScout supported the client with direct placement, helping veterans honorably discharged on or after Memorial Day 2013 to find jobs at the retailer. The spouse component was added in 2018.

In 2019, while the veteran unemployment rate had dropped to just under 3%, the retailer was aware of the challenges that military service members were still facing when transitioning to civilian employment. The client wanted to reinvent the program to put an emphasis on career coaching and counseling for all service members to help them apply their leadership skills and teamwork experience to new careers.

Solution

The new program, which officially launched in May 2021, broadens the umbrella of the program to include veterans of any era and actively serving members of all branches of the military, military spouses, and National Guard and Reserves as well. It connects program participants to a plethora of resources from various organizations that have been vetted by the client.

When a new member registers for the program, PeopleScout assigns them a coach who helps facilitate the transition into civilian work. The PeopleScout coach schedules a virtual coaching session with the participant to perform an initial intake. This intake assesses skills, helps identify goals and determines the time commitment they can make to the program.

From there, participants confirm three paths: employment, education, or entrepreneurship.

EMPLOYMENT

PeopleScout career counselors help participants assess their strengths, build their resume and translate their military experience in a way that it applies to the civilian workplace. They also help service members and spouses find opportunities that match their career goals—whether that means employment with the retail client or another organization.

EDUCATION

PeopleScout coaches help participants get the educational foundation they need to reach their overall career goals.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

PeopleScout helps connect participants with the right resources to start their own businesses.

This emphasis on career counseling allows the participant to drive the program at their own pace and use their coach as much or as little as they like. Service members and spouses can take what they want from the program as they build their future.

Results

  • 3,500+ registrants since program launch

At a Glance

  • COMPANY
    Multinational retailer
  • INDUSTRY
    Retail
  • PEOPLESCOUT SOLUTIONS
    Recruitment Process Outsourcing, Talent Advisory
  • ABOUT THE RETAILER
    This U.S.-based retailer operates in 24 countries with 2.3 million employees. The organization has a rich history of supporting and hiring veterans and their spouses.
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Progress in Action: Moving Toward A Globally Diverse and Inclusive Workplace

Posted on by edyson

Progress in Action: Moving Toward A Globally Diverse and Inclusive Workplace

Improving organizational diversity is a honorable pursuit for employers across all industries and should be a consistent point of focus for forward-thinking talent teams. Building productive teams from a pool of qualified job seekers irrespective of nationality, gender-identity, ethnicity, religious background and sexual orientation is essential to creating a workplace that reflects the communities that it serves.

So, how can you help your organization better connect with, source, engage and recruit a more diverse and inclusive workforce? In this ebook, we examine how your organization can update your DE&I program with modern diversity strategies.

In this ebook you will learn:

  • How to accurately measure your DE&I program’s progress and goals
  • How to source candidates from underrepresented groups
  • Real-world DE&I success stories and more

[On-Demand]: Data and Diversity: Using Technology to Achieve Your DE&I Goals

Posted on by edyson

[On-Demand]: Data and Diversity: Using Technology to Achieve Your DE&I Goals

Leading talent professionals understand that creating an inclusive, equitable and diverse workplace is more than just the “right” thing to do. In fact, implementing an effective diversity and inclusion program can change the game by challenging the status quo and creating a vibrant and more productive workplace culture. Positioning DE&I at the heart of your talent acquisition and management program now will equip your organization for long-term success.

But how do you know if you’re making progress against your goals? Do you have the data to fine-tune and optimize your recruitment process?

Join PeopleScout’s Elizabeth Karkula, associate product manager, and Jason Kaplan, business intelligence manager, for our on-demand webinar Data and Diversity: Using Technology to Achieve Your DE&I Goals.

Elizabeth and Jason will discuss practical and immediately applicable strategies that have the potential to transform your organization’s DE&I program.

This webinar will cover:

  • Three smart ways to leverage data for DE&I success
  • How to accurately measure your DE&I program’s progress and goals
  • How to optimize your sourcing channels for candidates from diverse groups
  • Real-world DE&I success stories and more

Hispanic and Latinx Diversity and Inclusion in the Workplace

Posted on by jpatel

At PeopleScout, we are committed to providing you with information to help guide you on your DE&I journey. We aim to cover a wide range of DE&I topics, including issues regarding BIPOC, the LGBTQ+ community, gender gaps, people with disabilities and more. This article is the next in our library of DE&I resources, and specifically focuses on the Hispanic and Latinx community. 

In the U.S., National Hispanic Heritage Month is observed from September 15 to October 15 to honor the cultures and contributions of both Hispanic and Latinx Americans by celebrating the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America. 

And it’s no doubt their contributions have been great—especially in the workforce and to the economy. Consider the impact this group has had and will continue to have in the future: 

The Current and Future Workforce 
Hispanics are the nation’s second-fastest-growing racial or ethnic group in the U.S., making up 18% of the population in 2019, up from 16% in 2010 and just 5% in 1970. Nearly 60% of U.S. Latinos are Millennials or younger. 

Creators of Jobs 
Within the last decade, 86% of all new businesses in the U.S. have been launched by U.S. Latinos, with Latinas creating business six times faster than any other group. 

Increasingly Educated 
Over the past decade, the Hispanic high school dropout rate has dropped dramatically while college enrollment has increased, with about 41% of U.S. Hispanic adults ages 25 and older having at least some college experience in 2018. 

Yet, organizations still lack Hispanic representation across all seniority levels. People of Hispanic or Latinx ethnicity make up 18% of the labor force but only 4.3% of executive positions in the U.S., making the gap between the labor force and executive representation wider among Hispanics than any other group. 

So how can organizations do their part in closing this gap? Employers should make conscious efforts to attract and retain this diverse group of talent and provide them with opportunities for growth and development. 

Understanding the Many Names of this Diverse Group  

Before you can effectively attract candidates from Hispanic and Latinx backgrounds, it’s important to understand the terminology that identifies this unique group.  

According to Pew Research Center, “the terms ‘Hispanic’ and ‘Latino’ are pan-ethnic terms meant to describe—and summarize—the population of people living in the U.S. of that ethnic background.” 

Some have drawn distinctions between the two terms, and their widely used definitions can be summarized as the following: 

Hispanic: A person residing in the U.S. with descent from Spanish-speaking countries (this excludes Brazil, where Portuguese is the official language). 

Latino: A person of Latin American descent residing in the U.S. (this includes Brazil but excludes Spain). 

However, this group has mixed views on how they prefer to describe their identity, with over half describing themselves by their country of origin.

In recent years, a new term has emerged as an alternative to Hispanic and Latino: Latinx. The term is one of many in the global movement around gender-neutral language. Latinx serves as a gender-neutral alternative to Latino and Latina and aims to encompass Latin American and Hispanic people from all racial backgrounds while also including those who identify as transgender, queer, agender, non-binary, gender non-conforming or gender fluid. 

According to trend data from Google, the term first appeared online in 2004, but didn’t begin to gain momentum and wider usage until 2014. Today, it sees use around the world, most often in the U.S.  

And much like the terms ‘Hispanic’ and ‘Latino’, surveys also reveal mixed feelings on ‘Latinx’ among the population it is meant to represent. Younger people, ages 18-29, are most likely to have heard of and use the term, while older people 65 and up are least likely. Specifically, use is the highest among young Hispanic women—14% say they use it, compared to the 1% of Hispanic men in the same age range. Here are other factors that impact how likely a U.S. Hispanic person is to have heard of Latinx and use the term: 

Whether the term Latinx should be adopted as a pan-ethnic term for the U.S. Hispanic and Latino population is still up for debate, with one third of those who have heard the term believing it should be used more broadly, according to data from the Pew Research Center. 
 
Like many scholars, journalists, activists and publications, PeopleScout will opt to use the term for the remainder of this article in an attempt to better include the many groups of people who make up the Latinx population. 

Strategies to Recruit and Retain Hispanic and Latinx Candidates 

If your organization is committed to improving its diversity, equity and inclusion practices, Latinx employees are a vital group to include in this initiative. Latinx individuals come from a wide variety of backgrounds, making the group extremely diverse in culture within itself. By including people from this group across your organization and in executive positions, your business will be better equipped to evolve and innovate as time goes on. Consider these strategies for recruiting and retaining Latinx candidates. 

Recruit with Intention 
Employers need to be intentional in improving representation of Latinx employees in leadership and across the workforce. Make it a point to recruit from industries and universities that are highly diverse. 

“If you do not have intentionality with diversity and inclusion, you have nothing.” – Cid Wilson, President and CEO of the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility (via Invariant) 

Utilize Employee Testimonials 
Show candidates that your organization is home to diverse talent by showcasing those employees in your recruitment marketing tactics. You can share their experiences working for your organization through quotes, videos, personal stories or recruiting case studies. It is especially important to highlight diverse talent from all levels of your business. 

Expand Your Search 
When possible, it can be beneficial to expand your talent search nationwide, or even internationally as your organization allows. With the immense rise in remote work since the onset of the pandemic, many Latinx candidates will be looking to organizations with remote and flexible work options as they make the next move in their careers. Or, if your business requires in-person work, a competitive offer might have that top talent considering relocating for the position. 

Leverage Employee Networks 
Look to your existing Latinx employees, as well as all employees, for diverse referrals. In addition, you should seek input from these employees on how to attract candidates with similar backgrounds, as well as hear their ideas for organizational change and goals. In other words, empower them to have a voice. 

Provide Mentorship 
Even if your organization is highly diverse, any member of a minority group might feel excluded at times. By providing opportunities for mentorship both with individuals of the same background as well as those with different backgrounds, employees will feel more included. Encourage mentors to help employees meet their professional goals so they can grow within the organization. 

How to Support Your Hispanic and Latinx Employees 

Recruiting Latinx employees is the first step in improving diversity in your organization. The next is focusing on ways to make those employees feel supported and included.  

For example, at PeopleScout and the broader TrueBlue organization, we have the Hispanic Opportunity & Latin Awareness (HOLA) employee resource group to embrace and support our Latinx employees and 
associates within the communities we serve. HOLA aims to increase cultural competency and awareness around Latinx issues and concerns throughout TrueBlue, support TrueBlue’s efforts to attract and retain the best Latinx talent and provide the development and support necessary for Latinx employees to grow both personally and professionally. 

Here are examples of other companies with impressive initiatives to support their Latinx employees: 

Coca-Cola 
Coca-Cola’s “Hispanic Leadership Business Resource Group” offers its Hispanic and Latinx employees development, networking, community involvement opportunities and helps the company drive innovative business ideas. In 2017, the group had an idea for a Point-of-Sale Spanish Adaptation Tool which allowed bilingual employees to submit their interpretation of Coca-Cola taglines and phrases in different Spanish dialects to avoid the phrases losing their meaning through literal translations.  

Furthermore, the company showed their commitment to Hispanic and Latinx employees when there was uncertainty about Dreamers in the U.S. by covering the $500 DACA renewal fees for employees in the program. 

Ellucian 
Ellucian, a software and solutions development company for higher education, gave employees a sense of belonging by celebrating their heritage. The company planned volunteer events, office potlucks celebrating Latinx and Hispanic culture, highlights of influential Hispanic Americans, and an Instagram takeover for Latinx employees to share their experiences working at Ellucian. The first takeover on the company’s Instagram account came from the leader of ¡wepa!, the company’s Latinx ERG. 
 
General Motors 
General Motors, a vehicle manufacturing company, supports Hispanic employees from the very beginning by specifically targeting professional Hispanic organizations and Hispanic Serving Institutions as part of their recruiting strategy. The company focuses on raising the number of Hispanic professionals in STEM through their recruiting efforts and by providing over $5 million in scholarships for Hispanic STEM students. 

Leidos 
When the defense, aviation, IT, and biomedical research company discovered that the Hispanic and Latinx community was being disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 nationwide, they made it their priority to help. Leido’s Latinx ERG partnered with the Mayor’s Office on Latino Affairs in Washington, D.C. and Neighborhood Health in Alexandria, VA to donate more than 6,000 face masks and 1,500 bottles of hand sanitizer to help combat the spread of COVID-19 within Latinx communities in those areas. 

You can find more examples of companies who prioritize their Hispanic and Latinx employees here. 

Hispanic and Latinx Inclusion in the New World of Work 

The new world of work is not just about where and how work is done, but it’s about the people who are doing the work. It’s a candidate’s market, and people will choose employers who care about their employees as people. In order to be truly successful, organizations must fully understand their workforce, starting with their employees’ diverse backgrounds and identities.  

By understanding your underrepresented groups of people, like Hispanic and Latinx employees, consciously recruiting them, celebrating their heritage and investing in their growth, we’ll work our way toward a workforce with equal representation and strong inclusion of diverse groups across industries and at all levels of seniority. 

Women in Leadership: What it Means to Lead in 2021

Posted on by jpatel

We all know that the past year has been tough – especially for women in the workforce. In fact, job losses have disproportionally affected women, who also typically handle the lion’s share of the work at home – which is multiplied once you add lockdowns and homeschooling into the mix. But, we also know that female leaders across the globe have a wealth of knowledge – lessons they’ve learned throughout their career and lessons they’re learning now, as well as advice for other women in the workforce.

That’s why we’re sharing the stories, experiences and advice of our diverse group of female leaders at PeopleScout: We reached out to women from all around the world and at all levels of the company – from our rising leaders to our most senior executives – about what it means to be a woman in leadership in 2021, how they got to where they are, and how to create work environments where even more women can succeed. Here are some of their thoughtful insights.

What does leadership mean?

ANDREA BROGGER
chief people officer

TrueBlue, U.S.

“Leadership means flexibility and it means courage. A courageous leader knows when to step ahead and lead when no one else wants to, but they also know when to take a step back and encourage others to step forward and take over the lead. A resilient leader knows their own and their team’s strengths and weaknesses and knows when and where to tap into those as a project or situation changes. They know how to get back up and keep driving forward even when things don’t go as planned.”

CAROLINE SABETTI
senior vice president, global marketing and communications

PeopleReady, PeopleScout, U.S.

“Two key leadership practices that I find helpful are maintaining a long-term perspective and seeing the opportunity in obstacles. We all naturally have self-doubts, particularly at times of change or when taking on a high-profile, challenging project. I have found that when you remain mindful of your past successes and remember the obstacles that you have already overcome, you can own the grit, tenacity and power that you possess. Tapping into that power, believing in it, and remembering that you can face more than you may feel in the moment is empowering. And when you maintain that confident and positive outlook and raise your hand to take on more when faced with change or challenge, the biggest opportunities often come your way.”

Any good leader is a lifelong learner taking in experiences, learning from mistakes and listening to mentors. So, what lessons shape our leaders?

ALLISON BRIGDEN
interim head of business operations

PeopleScout, U.S.

“One of the lessons that has helped me in my career I learned at a very young age. I remember whenever I would mention something about my sister or brother to my parents, they would say, ‘You should focus on yourself in terms of what you need to do and what your goals and objectives are and not worry about what everyone else is doing.’ That advice has served me well in my career and focusing on what meaningful ways I can personally contribute to our mission and objectives. Everyone has a unique offering they bring that can contribute to the mission and objectives we have as an organization.”

SARAH LUNDGREN
director of MSP

PeopleScout, Australia

“After 15 years, I’ve learned many lessons, but the most important to me is that opportunities don’t just happen; you need to create them. I’ve found that networking and building relationships before I needed them were so invaluable to my future opportunities. I also found that I wasn’t afraid to say when I didn’t know something. I was able to validate a time that would work for everyone to return an answer. This also tied back into an opportunity to leverage my network and relationships that I previously built and tap into their knowledge to help me solve what I was looking for.”

SHANNON BENNETT
digital marketing manager

PeopleScout U.S.

“One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned that has contributed to my success is a mindset of learning through obstacles. The hallmark of my career has been figuring out how to accomplish big goals with a very small team. It’s challenging. And, it really has resulted in so much confidence in my ability to grow. If I don’t know something, I learn it. If I don’t have someone to teach me, I find the right resources to teach myself.”

KATE DENNIS
senior director, brand & creative

PeopleReady, PeopleScout & TrueBlue, U.S.

“Don’t be afraid to lean into responsibility and take on tasks or projects that might challenge you, even if they may not fall into your official job description. We, as humans, learn and grow through problem-solving, so we’re able to enrich our skillsets and feel accomplished when we overcome obstacles. By raising your hand often, your colleagues and leaders will learn that they can count on you. And, when you follow through on your promises to them, they learn that they can trust you.”

What advice do you have for the next generation of female leaders?

NUTAN PANDA
senior director, global support

PeopleScout, India

“There is no secret to success. It is sheer hard work and investment of the most valuable resource that you have: Your time. I believe moving out of your comfort zone and overcoming your fears by first accepting and then solving for them helps you stand strong and move forward in your career. Get real and acknowledge that you may not be able to do everything on your own. Build your tribe by staying connected with people across functions and teams.”

YENALI BOBADILLA
scrum master/agile project manager

PeopleScout, Australia

“The best advice I can give – that I’ve also received – is to be vocal and speak up. Constantly communicate which opportunities and projects you would like to be involved with. Remember, your leaders are not mind-readers, so you need to be very vocal about career goals and the support you need from them so they can help and guide you.”

SARAH CANDELARIO
senior director, marketing & communications

PeopleScout, U.S.

“I recommend finding either a mentor or a support structure, whether that’s within your family, with peers or even just friends you have in similar situations. Create a network where you can reach out; ask questions; get feedback and advice; and just talk through some of the issues that you might face being a leader or just being a woman in the workforce on a daily basis. This structure can be a place where you can communicate; talk about ideas and solutions; and get that reinforcement to help you be more confident in your day-to-day job and as a leader.”

Whether it’s family, a manager, a mentor or a friend, we all have at least one person who has contributed to our success. Who provides our female leaders with inspiration?

AISLING HOLLOWOOD
delivery director

PeopleScout, UK

“When I was approached about applying for the maternity cover of my manager, I felt a little anxious and hesitant about stepping into that role and what that would mean. A client partner in the organization who’d been there for about 20 years gave me a call [and] told it to me straight. She said, ‘If you don’t go for this, you’ll end up training your manager and knowing that you could have done it better. What do you want to do?’ Sometimes, you need those people to give you a nudge in the right direction and really lay it out for you [in] black and white.”

KASIA FUCHS
business support manager

PeopleScout, Poland

“During my career with PeopleScout, I’ve had the pleasure to meet many inspiring women whose passion, work, and impact have encouraged me to follow my career path and become empowered in my everyday work. These are women working on different seniority levels, having different experience, and coming from different cultures and backgrounds. The trust and the support within our current team of women is extremely important and makes me strong and confident.”

We all have a role in making the workplace a better and more equitable place for women and people of all backgrounds. So, how do we do that?

REBBIE HOWELL
vice president, client delivery

PeopleScout, U.S.

“I think we underestimate the empathy and the personal aspect that women bring to work. A lot of times, it’s looking to be a leader that listens and understands what’s going on from a work/life balance perspective. Yes, I want to hear about your successes at work, but I also want to get to know you and what drives you outside of work. I would also say empower. It’s fostering an environment and empowering women within the organization to feel comfortable, to be authentic and to speak up. It’s giving a safe space to be able to come to work and do that.”

ANNA TURNER
vice president of product

PeopleScout, U.S.

“One of the things we can do is being more thoughtful about the events we have and when they’re occurring. For example, with a team happy hour, one of the challenges is that evenings can be tough for women who have young kids. If you’re a leader thinking about setting up events to help build relationships, consider what might be possible during the workday to accommodate all team members. In addition, start paying attention to who is getting time to talk. The more we level the playing field and give everyone a voice, the better it is going to be for diverse perspectives to emerge.”

Want to Hear More?

Listen Now

Posted in D&I

Women in Manufacturing

Posted on by suhlarik
Women in Manufacturing

Women in Manufacturing

A leading manufacturer turned to PeopleScout for a unique, technology-powered candidate attraction campaign to increase women in their workforce.

A PeopleScout manufacturing client operates in an industry that has historically been male-dominated, but the client wants to change that perception. The manufacturer partnered with PeopleScout with the goal of increasing the number of female applicants and hires.

PeopleScout worked with the client to develop the Women in Manufacturing campaign. PeopleScout interviewed nearly 20 women who work in roles across the company and who love their jobs. Using this information, PeopleScout built out candidate personas to target women interested in the industry, and created a campaign featuring real women who work for the client.

Using Affinix®, we built a dedicated landing page and talent community for female candidates. On International Women’s Day, the four-week campaign, Women in Manufacturing, launched to showcase the woman-friendly, inclusive culture at the company. The campaign features employee spotlights, videos and stories to showcase how women are integrated into the culture of the company and integral to the company’s success.

The campaign features profiles of women who work in a range of manufacturing positions.
Employee profiles feature advice and insights for female job candidates.
The customized, targeted landing page was created with Affinix. 
The campaign is featured on the company’s social media accounts.

“To make a lasting change, you need to consider both your stakeholders and the sustainability of your effort. Throughout the process of brainstorming, designing, and executing our Women in Manufacturing recruiting campaign, the team has balanced the technological, brand consistency, and tactical challenges to produce a thoughtful program of materials to support us. Through rapid, data-based decision making, they have quickly adapted to the fluid needs on an ongoing end-to-end recruiting campaign.”

– Matt W.

Director – HR Strategy, Analytics, & Talent Acquisition

At a Glance

  • COMPANY
    Manufacturer
  • INDUSTRY
    Manufacturing & Industrial
  • PEOPLESCOUT SOLUTIONS
    Talent Advisory, Affinix
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