Taking Gender Bias Out of the Hiring Process

Whether you are in the business of hiring people or find yourself making key decisions on hiring a team for a business, there is a chance gender bias has made its way to the hiring process.

Sadly it still happens today, mostly with female applicants getting the rough end of the stick. Gender bias runs deep and it will take time for deep-rooted assumptions about women’s capability in management and leadership roles to change.

We can speed up that change to ensure the right person is hired for the job and that men and women can achieve and grow without the strain and burden of unfounded stereotypes.

Here’s how:

Male Characteristics VS Female Characteristics

Behavioural traits that display confidence, dominance, assertiveness and competitiveness are often considered masculine. Female traits are assumed to be behaviours that display caring, listening, nurturing and empathy. Somewhere along the line, it was deemed that female characteristics aren’t synonymous with good leadership where male characteristics are. In typically male dominated industries (like Tech), being successful is generally associated with possessing male characteristics, making it more difficult for women to become successful in these industries. Let’s unsubscribe to this deeply reductive view of management styles and gender. Great leaders are known to be a combination of many different behaviours, both nurturing and assertive. Men and women deserve better than this.

Understanding Why Gender Bias Needs to Be Addressed

Why is gender diversity such a hot topic? There is an abundance of research that identifies the benefits of diverse teams for organisations. Furthermore, to an extent, traditional stereotypes around a “man’s job” and “woman’s job” still play some part in the hiring process today. And most of the time, this gender bias occurs completely unconsciously. If you ever feel yourself unfocused on the plight to eradicate gender bias in the hiring process, or in fact your working environment, there are a few points that can quickly and easily get you back on track. What is the real benefit of a gender-balanced team? Well, plenty.

Gender diverse teams outperform non diverse teams. They are known to be smarter, listen to each other and give each other more time to talk without interruption. Interestingly one of the main features of a diverse team was a sense of “awkwardness” that forced them to clearly communicate, listen and hence be more effective at problem-solving.

Gender diverse teams generate significantly better returns. It’s no surprise that technology ranks among the lowest sectors in terms of gender diversity. However, tech companies who make a conscious effort to boost gender diversity can expect an average return of 5.4% more on an annual basis than the average yearly returns of their peers with less gender diversity.

Writing Inclusive Job Ads

Forget coding ninjas, digital gurus and growth-hacking gangsters. Describe the role without shrouding the description in superhero imagery. It won’t get you a wide array of quality candidates, but what will is succinct, inviting job descriptions that highlight the value the company places on diversity and inclusion! Launch Recruitment are strong advocates for encouraging women to join tech and we work hard to help tech companies reach their diversity goals. We partner with our clients to write inclusive job ads and educate on how to interview with diversity at front of mind. Read more about Launch Recruitment and our diversity program here.

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