3 steps to create a more inclusive workplace

Companies are always looking for strategies to outperform their competitors and advance the effectiveness of their practices. Recruitment is an important element, as bringing on valuable employees helps a team continue to flourish. During the hiring process, it's critical for human resources teams to be inclusive of candidates from a variety of backgrounds. Diversity is a beneficial aspect of team building. In fact, companies that are gender-diverse are 15 percent more likely to outperform financial expectations, while those businesses that are ethnically diverse see a 35 percent chance to outdo their goals, according to a study from McKinsey and Company.

It's crucial for company leaders, especially HR personnel, to create an inclusive workplace. Not only will it be beneficial to the company, but employees will get to see a perspective that's different from their own. Businesses can work with a team with consultants, like those Triton HR can provide, to figure out the best way to alter their recruitment strategy. First, let's look at the three steps organizations can take to become less biased in the office:

Diversity in the workplace is crucial to a company's success.Diversity in the workplace is crucial to a company's success.

Find new talent pools
It's common for companies and their HR teams to utilize the same recruitment avenues over time, especially if they're found to be successful. While these routes may yield valuable candidates, they may not help businesses find diverse applicants. It's important for executives to look outside of their normal strategies to locate people from different backgrounds that will work for their enterprise.

Placing job advertisements at cultural centers or considering hiring veterans will give companies access to a pool of candidates with a strong work ethic and a different, but refreshing perspective on a number of tasks and issues, according to Forbes. Broadening their horizons will help HR leaders build a more inclusive workforce.

"Company leaders need to be on board to quell bias in the workplace."

Develop unconscious bias mitigation programs
The first step in solving a problem is realizing it exists in the first place. Although many people are familiar with this saying, putting it into practice is crucial to making a change. It's common for companies to be unaware of the exclusivity they perform on a regular basis. This unconscious bias is a major threat to a diverse workforce, as judgments and feelings continue to stem from places employees and company leaders can't name.

To combat this problem, businesses should create mitigation programs in attempt to expose apparent bias and overcome it in the long run, according to Entrepreneur. For the program to be successful, it's critical for senior leaders to be aware of the issue and on board with the plan as a whole. With these executives backing the initiative, HR teams can recognize situations of prejudice and prevent them from reoccurring in the future.

Create ways for people to connect
Building a diverse workplace requires so much more than changing the way a company hires. Instead, it's about creating opportunities for people to connect whenever possible throughout their employee lifecycle, according to Oracle. To retain a diverse worker pool, businesses need to ensure that the topics of diversity and inclusion are always up for discussion and extend past HR teams. This means every part of a worker's career should be tied to these two elements in a positive way – on-boarding, performance management, leadership training and more.

By keeping the dialogue open and continuing to focus on improving the workplace as a whole, organizations can create a more welcoming and inclusive talent group.