Organisations don’t have to be homogenous to be efficient. They need to be open and welcoming places.
If a company wants to be able to recruit from the widest pool of potential candidates it needs to have good Equity, Diversity & Inclusion practices. Because it will want to attract EVERYONE who has the right skills and experience to apply for its roles. Likewise, if it wants to retain its workforce it will want to deliver the best employee experience for all. And that too requires, amongst many other things, good equity, diversity and inclusion practices. Here at Comma, we have all undertaken APSCo’s Equity, Diversity and Inclusion training to make sure we are doing all we can from our end – for candidates and clients.
So, what exactly do we mean when we talk about good E, D and I practices? Each word has so many interpretations attached that it can be a minefield talking about the topic.
Equity?
It’s about providing a level playing field for everyone, recognising that every person has different circumstances but by giving the resources and opportunities needed they can reach an equal outcome.
Diversity?
Diversity can mean many things but it’s generally about valuing the difference between people. It’s often used when talking about race but comes in many forms – diversity of thought, sexuality, culture, age, religion, politics. It should not matter one iota when recruiting someone. We’ve all read in the papers and in magazines about ‘fattest’ issues, ageist issues, sexuality and race issues. Organisations don’t have to be homogenous to be efficient.
Inclusion?
Inclusion is a topic itself but also covers equity and diversity. It means, organisations need to be open and welcoming places for everyone. Thoughts and opinions should be treated as relevant, irrespective of who they come from, their level, age or service. Tolerance should rein when people less articulate than others wish to make a point, or when their thought processes are different or slower than others. Whether someone speaks slowly or quickly, has one arm, one eye or one leg, is pink with yellow spots – they should feel as though they are able to speak up, to join a discussion, to have a view, to challenge views and be listened to.
There has been a lot of progress in the last 20-30 years. Today we have a much greater melting pot in organisations than we once had. We are seeing more women in jobs previously thought of as male jobs, we have seen more of the ‘average kid’ moving into sectors which previously felt closed to them. Hiding someone’s sexuality is no longer felt necessary. But there is always more we can do. As recruiters we are trying to play our part. We hope you will see and experience this in our recruitment practices and will call us out if you don’t.
Watch this space – more to come on this topic shortly.
