As an employer, you have a responsibility to ensure your workforce is diverse. Not only is this an equal opportunities requirement, but it also improves your standing within your industry. This is because when you have a diverse workforce, you are able to gain insight and knowledge from people of all walks of life, and this is nothing but beneficial for everyone involved.
So, how do you go about being a diverse employer? If you’re looking to be more inclusive and recruit new people to your company, here are some top tips you can implement quickly and easily – some of which you may not have thought about before.
Hire Graduates
One of the easiest ways you can be a diverse employer is to hire graduates. A lot of managers don’t give inexperienced people the time of day because they believe they’re not qualified to do the job at hand, but this isn’t always the case.
If you’re recruiting for a senior position, then you will obviously need someone who has prior experience in order to carry out the job effectively, but if it’s not a senior position, there’s no reason why you can’t give a graduate or young person a helping hand onto the career ladder.
They might not have the same amount of life experience, but this doesn’t mean they can’t perform the way you need them to. Young people have the advantage of youth, and this means they know how to connect to audiences of their own age.
They’re also digital natives which mean technology has always been a part of their lives. The benefit of this is that they’re proficient almost from birth, and there’s no modern company where this isn’t relevant.
Make Sure Your Office Reflects the Society You Live in
As a general rule of thumb, your office should reflect the society you live in. This means recruiting people of all races and faiths, as well as of all walks of life. Sticking to the same subset of employees puts you massively on the back foot, and it’s also obvious that you’re only going for a particular group of people, and this can give the impression that you’re selectively excluding everyone who doesn’t fit into that bracket.
Learn About Important Events in Your Employees Lives
When you become a diverse employer, you need to familiarize yourself with the important events and holidays for your employees. This could be learning about the significance of Qurbani for your Muslim employees, or it could be making an effort to understand why Hindus celebrate Diwali.
Taking the time to learn more about your employees and their backgrounds shows that you care, and it also enables you to better accommodate them through annual leave and support through their special days.
Allow Flexible Working
Being a diverse employer means giving everyone a chance, and that includes those who have schedules that don’t necessarily fit the office norm. With this in mind, consider offering flexible working to your employees. This will work well for those who have caring responsibilities at home, as well as parents or those with health conditions that require frequent medical appointments.
Make Sure Your Office is Accessible
The final suggestion we have for being a diverse employer is to make sure your office is accessible. Too often, offices are up a flight of stairs with no lift, or there’s no disabled parking which means disabled employees might struggle to get in and out of their cars.
Everyone has the right to work if they feel able to, and that includes coming into the office with everyone else. If you really want to be diverse, make sure your workplace is accessible to everyone.
Summary
There’s much more that goes into being a diverse employer, but hopefully, these tips will help you become more diverse and expand your workforce in a positive way.
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