Strategies for Centering Equity in a Search Process

Mitigating Bias at Every Stage of a Search

Bias can enter the search process at nearly every juncture, when we often must make decisions about people based on very limited information. Mitigating bias requires time and intentionality. Some of the strategies we implement in every search include:

1. Recognizing that inclusivity takes time: cutting corners and trying to move through a search too quickly will almost always come at the expense of inclusion and community-building.
2. Ensuring a diversity of perspectives are at the table: assembling a diverse search committee that includes staff helps to ensure a variety of perspectives are part of the conversation and informs equity-based decision making.
3. Embedding equity training: facilitating search committee discussions and/or training specifically related to equity and anti-bias in the search process so that the team is better able to center equity at each stage.
4. Reducing unnecessary gatekeeping: examining and eliminating unnecessary requirements that may limit the applicant pool - everything from having a particular degree to the ability to lift 25 lbs.
5. Broadening qualification criteria: building search criteria that take into account the multitude of ways a candidate may gain skills and experiences relevant to the role, beyond advanced degrees or a traditional career path.
6. Championing authentic representation: clearly articulating specific equity-related skills, lived experiences and community connections needed for the role, enabling candidates to showcase their genuine commitment and expertise.
7. Promoting pay transparency: Disclosing salary ranges in all announcements to help level the playing field for historically underpaid and underrepresented applicants.
8. Highlighting the organization’s equity commitment: creating job announcements that are explicit about an organization’s commitment to equity, so that potential candidates can envision themselves thriving in an environment committed to equity.
9. Diversifying candidate outreach: actively posting job openings on inclusive and diverse job boards, social media groups, and listservs to reach a diverse candidate pool.
10. Cultivating candidate relationships: making ourselves readily available to answer questions and/or meet with all potential candidates, as well as exploring innovative ways to reach new audiences.
11. Employing multi-perspective resume screening: ensuring multiple team members carefully review each resume to reduce the risk of overlooking potentially strong candidates due to individual bias.
12. Tailoring screening and interviewing for diverse strengths: Designing a screening process and interviewing rounds that recognize different candidates shine in different settings.
13. Minimizing uncompensated candidate labor: limiting candidate's uncompensated time and effort in a search, and/or compensating finalist candidates for their time.

We work closely with our clients to identify additional, organization-specific steps we can take to promote equity. As we learn from each search, this list continues to grow.