The Art of Inclusive Interviewing

Accessibility Introduction

What makes a job interview non-inclusive?

A non-inclusive interview is when a candidate is unfairly disadvantaged due to their intersectional identity, background or circumstances.

How is intersectionality relevant to the art of inclusive interviewing? Sometimes when we think about inclusion, we naturally think about one aspect of someone's identity: race, ethnicity, gender or disability.

The reality is that candidates often face disadvantages (or unearned advantages) due to multiple aspects of their identity.

For example, a woman with autism and caring responsibilities face different barriers than a neurotypical woman without caring responsibilities.

Both may face barriers due to their gender.

So we cannot base the art of inclusive interviewing on one under-represented group; inclusive interviewing has to be a set of principles rather than a one size fits all approach.

Inclusive interviewing is not about accommodating those who might not "fit in".

If, as an interviewer, you find yourself worrying about a candidate not fitting in, the chances are that you have an over-representation of one type of person in your business or team. And that concern is actually your natural bias as a human to fear what is different.

Inclusive interviewing starts with recognising and acknowledging where a candidate's privilege gives them an unearned advantage for example, having the ability to attend an interview at any time of the day or a neurotypical brain that can easily process a conventional interview.

Four principles to consider for an inclusive interview

Accessibility Accessibility

It is crucial to establish psychological safety with candidates from the beginning of the recruitment process, regardless of how they entered (application, recruitment consultancy, headhunter, or internal recruiter). This creates an environment where they feel comfortable disclosing any disabilities or aspects of their identity that may put them at a disadvantage.

Build trust with candidates by consistently communicating that they can request any necessary adjustments or accommodations. This way, interviewers can offer a fair and accessible experience that caters to each individual's requirements. Adjustments for each candidate may differ, ranging from providing interview questions and structure in advance to arranging physical access to the building or a sign language interpreter. Each candidate is unique, so the approach will always be individualised.

Accessibility Assessment

During interviews, it is essential to follow a uniform structure and method of questioning for all candidates, unless special arrangements are necessary, such as an alternative format.

Prior to the interview, it is crucial to establish the desired qualities, skills, and experience, and the questions posed should be directly related to them. This allows candidates to showcase their aptitudes and capabilities.

It is a good idea to pose questions that help to relax the candidate and make them feel comfortable during the interview, but caution should be exercised.

Vague and open-ended questions such as "Tell me about yourself" can place neurodivergent candidates at a disadvantage. They can also unfairly advantage candidates who are naturally confident interviewers.

Accessibility Assessment

It's important to avoid asking questions that may reveal a candidate's protected characteristics. Even seemingly harmless inquiries like "What do you do in your free time?" can be perceived as intimidating for individuals who have faced discrimination in the past.

While questions about hobbies and interests may seem like a good way to break the ice, they can actually lead to Affinity Bias. It's important to keep in mind that during an interview, our focus should be on gathering factual information rather than emotions.

During an interview, it's critical to question our emotions since they may be influenced by biases. To ensure fairness, use a scoring matrix to thoughtfully evaluate each candidate's information and prevent dismissing them too quickly.

AccessibilityCandidate Experience

Candidates want kindness, curiosity, empathy, and transparency.

It is crucial to provide a dedicated space for candidates to ask questions. This is especially important for candidates from underrepresented backgrounds, as they may have concerns about diverse representation within the company. Simply discussing the company's diversity celebration calendar is unlikely to address their concerns, as many companies use such events as a performative display of DEI.

Instead, consider transparently discussing where the company currently stands on its DEI journey. Admit imperfections and share plans for progress. I

Attracting underrepresented talent is not about projecting a false image, but rather being truthful about the company culture and the candidate's expectations, while also communicating the ongoing changes.

Accessibility Managing Bias

When conducting interviews, it's essential for the interviewer to be aware of typical recruitment biases, including their own, and to be ready to confront them. To reduce the impact of these biases, it's effective to implement various strategies and interventions, such as:

Keeping CVs anonymous until the interview stage to avoid Affinity and Confirmation Bias

Inviting impartial colleagues to join the interview team to counteract GroupThink

Providing individual feedback on interviews (without shared discussion amongst the interviewers) to reduce the influence of Conformity Bias.

By employing these approaches, interviewers can increase the accuracy and fairness of their assessments and ensure they are making informed decisions based on the candidate's skills, abilities, and experience.

Accessibility Summary

The Art of Inclusive Interviewing is

Understanding intersectionality and acknowledging the part privilege plays in interview outcomes.

Creating psychological safety for all candidates to request the equity and accessibility they need to compete on a level playing field.

Creating a warm and welcoming interview that focuses on gathering facts and evidence.

Fair and consistent assessment methods.

Awareness of bias and interventions/strategies to mitigate bias. Kindness, curiosity, transparency and empathy to create a positive candidate experience.

Meaningful and factual feedback.

MEETJENNIE

I'm the Founder of Balance.

After almost twenty years in recruitment, most of which I spent building leading UK and Global internal hiring and talent teams, I launched Balance in 2019.

Having worked for big brands, including WPP Brand Consulting, Ogilvy & Mather, Omnicom Media Group, AKQA, and GroupM, in the latter years of my career, I felt a deep calling to make a positive impact in the world of Inclusive, Equitable and Accessible Recruitment. I knew starting my consultancy was the best way to achieve that goal.

My work within Balance sees me deliver audits and inclusive recruitment workshops for recruiters and hiring managers. I also work closely with agency and internal recruitment teams to audit and reshape their approaches to hiring and connect recruitment to their broader Equity, Diversity and Inclusion strategy.