Should Australia adopt name-blind recruitment policies?

/in /by

name-blind recruitment

Should Australia adopt name-blind recruitment process?

Following recent terror attacks at home and abroad, key figures in the Muslim community are encouraging employers to give young Muslims a chance in the workplace.

Muslim candidates are claiming it’s become increasingly difficult to secure job interviews or progress through the job application process, with some suspecting an element of discrimination based on their Arabic sounding names.

It has been suggested it might be time for Australia to adopt ‘name-blind’ CVs, so hiring managers won’t be able to discount a Muslim candidate, or a candidate of any other ethnicity, on the basis of religion or cultural background.

In an address in Melbourne late last year, Australia Post CEO Ahmed Fahour, revealed the past 18 months had been particularly challenging for Australia’s Muslim community in the wake of increased activity from ISIS in the Middle East and following a number of terrorist attacks committed by Islamic extremists.

Fahour is now urging companies to support trainee schemes targeted specifically at young Muslims, to give them a leg up with employment and provide them with the foundation for a bright future.

Companies in the UK have already adopted a name-blind policy, with Prime Minister David Cameron pledging his support for a pilot program for employers to receive name-blind applications for graduate positions. Companies participating in the program include some of the UK’s biggest employers such as Deloitte, HSBC, the BBC and the NHS.

It is hoped the introduction of name-blind recruitment processes will help prevent unconscious bias and ensure that job offers are made on the basis of potential – not ethnicity, religion or gender.

The UK government hopes the change will prevent discrimination against those with ethnic-sounding names, based on stereotypes. So should Australia take the same hard line stance and introduce name-blind recruiting?

Employment Office Managing Director Tudor Marsden-Huggins says it’s a question of whether the existing state and federal legislation governing equal opportunity employment and anti-discrimination are functioning appropriately.

“The laws are in place to prevent any overt workplace discrimination on the basis of gender, ethnicity or religion, but as far as the recruitment process goes, it is very possible for the issue of name bias to fall through the cracks and not be under the same level of scrutiny as the interview stage,” he said.

And the data backs up claims that name-based discrimination, whether it’s unconscious or deliberate, is taking place in Australia.

In a 2010 study conducted by the Australian National University, economists sent out 4000 fake employment applications, which revealed the applicants with Anglo-Saxon names had significantly higher call-back rates. Applicants with Middle Eastern names had the lowest rates.

Marsden-Huggins says eliminating candidates based on their name is not only illegal and unethical, it can also result in wider ramifications for the organisation.

“Census data tells us one in four Australians are born overseas and over 40% of people have at least one overseas-born parent. If employers are eliminating applicants based on names they’re not only discriminating unfairly, but they are also closing themselves off from a wide pool of great candidates,” he said.

Marsden-Huggins says to avoid undue name bias, it is important to include tailored online screening questions before candidates reach the CV assessment stage.

“Using online e-recruitment software, it’s possible to ask candidates to submit answers to a series of tailored screening questions before they upload a personalised CV. This means a hiring manager can assess a candidate’s suitability based solely on their responses, without external factors such as name, ethnicity or gender playing a role.

“For now, Australian organisations have not implemented a name-blind recruitment process, but all employers should be mindful of their obligation not to discriminate based on name and the potential religious or ethnic backgrounds those names infer. You could not only be in contravention of the legislation, you could also be missing out on your next great hire based on a stereotype,” he said.

Recruiters become marketers: Why you need to build and engage your own talent pool

/in , /by

Recruiters Become Marketers

 Over 50 percent of employers have revealed it’s become increasingly difficult to find qualified candidates over the last five years.*  In order to appeal to modern day candidates, organisations need to act more like marketers to effectively attract and retain high-calibre candidates.

Successful talent pools emerge from using engaging recruitment marketing techniques to involve candidates with a brand before a vacant position arises.

72 percent of employers state they first look to internal resources when a position opens up, however unless candidate pools are engaged and up-to-date, the resources become useless.

Effective talent pooling targets specific candidates and categorises them based on data available such as how engaged an applicant is with a website, social media, or an EDM campaign.

Employment Office partner SCOUT eRecruitment Software creates software allowing organisations to turn recruitment processes from reactive to proactive.

General Manager of SCOUT, Andrea Davey, says in the current recruitment sphere companies need to reduce their reliance on job board advertising.

“Building a talent pool is just scratching the surface. Organisations must then use the platform to regularly engage candidates with informative content about their organisation and what it’s like to work there, keeping top talent interested for when a suitable position becomes available,” she says.

In order to get a running start on filling a vacancy, organisations must adopt a marketing mindset and focus on quality, targeted content.

“It’s not enough to attract candidates to apply with your organisation then let them sit stagnant in your database with no engagement – employers need to nurture a talent pool with relevant and interesting information,” Davey says.

So how can you begin engaging your talent pool today? Understanding your target candidate is key. Knowing where they live online allows employers to strategically drip-feed information in snack-sized bites directly into a candidate’s digital world.

Remember, the information needs to be engaging and relevant or you’ll risk losing them. Candidates are more selective than ever so deploy content to help them upskill, re-apply, or learn about your culture to ensure you spark their interest.

Focusing on engaging and effectively managing a talent pool is the way forward for recruitment and it will bring about positive changes in your organisation’s recruitment process.

Contact SCOUT today to discuss how we can build and nurture your organisation’s talent pool. Please call the team on 07 3330 2595.

* CareerBuilder’s 2015 Candidate Behavior Study

Reverse Mentoring – Unorthodox or Invaluable?

/in , /by
Reverse Mentoring

Reverse Mentoring

Embracing a millennial-driven workplace is inevitable for employers, with the demographic set to make up 50% of the global workforce by 2020. The seasoned expertise of older generations shouldn’t be undervalued, but how can businesses best capitalise on the generational shift taking place?

Some businesses are discovering the answer in a new workplace trend – reverse mentoring. This emerging business initiative partners older executives, typically Baby Boomers and Generation X, with younger, more tech-savvy, Millennials.

Reverse mentoring flips old-fashioned corporate structures on their head and encourages high-level executives to turn to younger employees for assistance with rapidly-changing business technology.

ANZ Bank Chairman David Gonski uses reverse mentoring to upskill on social media technology, and has rolled-out formal reverse-mentoring schemes throughout the organisation for the past 18-months. So far, the program has linked 70 senior ANZ executives with younger social media ambassadors.

Andrew Lafontaine, senior director of human capital strategy and transformation at Oracle also supports reverse mentoring and says exposing Millennials to senior leadership teams gives them invaluable skills and insight.

“Reverse mentoring harnesses the talent of rising stars, and increases how connected the organisation is – by forming unlikely relationships and exposing employees to areas of the company outside their normal daily routine,” he says.

Both parties benefit as younger staff engage with C-level executives where they otherwise might not have the chance. It also exposes an older generation to colleagues who have grown up with technology, who use it socially and expect to use it extensively in the workplace.

So how should your organisation embrace reverse mentoring and keep up with the impending Millennial workforce?

Reverse mentoring has occurred organically in the past, but it’s not enough to rely on motivated Millennials and progressive executives to form their own relationships. Creating a structure around the process will help, but the change needs to come from the top to ensure management teams are onboard and invested in the initiative.

Encourage mentoring relationships to be formed across departmental lines so employees are not only picking up generational insights, but are also learning about other areas of the business and seeing how roles quite different from their own impact on the organisation.

Most of all, create a collaborative work environment, where the contributions of all employees are valued and recognised. To feel comfortable sharing their skills and expertise, no matter what generation they are from, employees need to feel their advice and insights are respected and will be properly considered by their mentoring partner.