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RETHINKING DIVERSITY IN RECRUITMENT AND HIRING

Building a more diverse workforce is both a business and ethical imperative. But for talent to succeed, companies must move beyond box-checking to prioritizing equity and inclusion. The national racial reckoning that has unfolded over the past two years made workplace diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) a pressing strategic priority. But in today’s historically tight labor market, recruiting top talent requires far more than simply welcoming more candidates of color into the talent pipeline. Three Chicago business leaders shared with Crain’s Content Studio how companies are rethinking recruitment to ensure new hires not only stick around—but also shine.

Which recruitment or hiring changes do you think have the greatest potential for building a more diverse workplace? Mary Person: Many firms have become much more creative with their interview process. The traditional one-on-one interview is becoming less common, and many are turning towards panel interviews. These types of changes help to remove bias and bring more diversity to candidate selection. Firms have also increasingly realized that to maximize diversity in their hiring they must reinvent their pipeline. That means recruiting at diverse universities and diversifying internship programs. John Graham: We’re at a point where most companies who have made DEI commitments have done a lot of the initial groundwork: unconscious bias training, metrics dashboards, speaker series, pay equity audits, and more. Over the next two to three years, I think more companies will invest in having diverse groups of culturally aware recruiters and hiring managers. When recruiters and hiring managers have expanded

blind spot is misunderstanding DEI work as a one-time or one-leader subject and not an organization-wide activity. Recruiting and hiring diverse talent is one aspect, but it’s just as important — if not, more so — to have the processes and systems in place to support diverse talent throughout the associate lifecycle. Once hired, are opportunities for associate growth and advancement available and easy to navigate? Do resource groups and associate communities not only exist, but thrive? Does the organization actively provide support and share resources to these groups, and do processes exist for associates to share feedback on company culture? DEI is not simply a value that organizations can claim—it’s a constant evolution. Person: It is great to bring a variety of mindsets, cultures, genders and ages into your workforce. But you must ensure that you create a culture that supports that diversity—a culture that makes these new ideas feel valued and respected. Overlooking the equity and inclusion portion of DEI can be a real blindspot for some companies.

“FIRMS HAVE INCREASINGLY REALIZED THAT TO MAXIMIZE DIVERSITY IN THEIR HIRING THEY MUST REINVENT THEIR PIPELINE.” — MARY PERSON, CLAYCO exposure and understandings of the diverse talent groups they’re seeking to hire, it helps add dignity and humanity to the candidate experience that leaves a lasting impression, whether a candidate takes the job or not. What do you see as potential blindspots, as business leaders look to recruit with DEI top of mind? Teedra Bernard: One common

Graham: I agree. Diversity, or increasing numerical representation of diverse groups of talent, is a piece of the puzzle but it’s not the puzzle. I think leaders need to be cautious of using representation as a measurement of progress and instead examine the attrition for existing employees. The increase of employees from diverse backgrounds doesn’t fix systemic issues within the culture. In fact, it can often exacerbate unaddressed culture gaps and

MARY PERSON

Senior Vice President, Public-Private Initiatives Clayco personm@claycorp.com 312-465-3994

JOHN GRAHAM

VP, Employer Brand, Diversity & Culture Shaker Recruitment Marketing John.Graham@shaker.com 708-358-0110

Together We Build Opportunity For Everyone

TEEDRA BERNARD

Chief Talent and Diversity Officer TransUnion Teedra.Bernard@transunion.com 855-681-3196

RISE TOGETHER.

CLAYCO RISING is the most comprehensive diversity and inclusion program in the industry and is the culmination of 25 years of creating meaningful opportunity and enduring structural change for our employees, our minority-owned and womenowned business partners, and the communities where we live and work. Leveraging our vast resources and strong partnerships, we are working toward one core purpose - lifting up others and helping them break through

and rise above the barriers of race, income, and gender.

We ask you to join us in helping drive real positive change and to build a safe, equitable, and diverse workplace for all!

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RETHINKING DIVERSITY IN RECRUITMENT AND HIRING

Building a more diverse workforce is both a business and ethical imperative. But for talent to succeed, companies must move beyond box-checking to prioritizing equity and inclusion. create harmful environments for diverse groups you’ve hired. At the end of the day, you can’t out-hire a bad culture. To illustrate with an example, can you share what your firm is doing to integrate DEI across recruitment and hiring decision-making? Bernard: Integrating DEI into recruiting and hiring processes starts with being introspective and reflecting on your organization’s own internal practices and principles. At TransUnion, we’ve focused on enhancing our data capabilities to better gauge progress on our commitments, and to drive and sustain long-term change. We’re focused on engaging diverse talent for open roles at TransUnion, and we’re training our recruiters to incorporate DEI best practices into our hiring processes. From there, we’ve been able to prioritize relationship-building with associations and professional groups engaging predominantly Black and Hispanic candidates, as well as networking outreach to

veterans, women in technology, the LGBTQ+ community and people with disabilities. Person: It’s imperative that companies create a culture of collaboration, in order to provide the best work environment for every employee. To do that, we must be accountable, review data and foster relationships across the company. At Clayco, we’re holding our programs accountable by setting objectives and measuring their success through data analysis, an incredibly valuable tracker in determining diversity and inclusion performance on projects. We also create a pipeline for career advancement, by providing mentorship opportunities at all levels. Graham: At Shaker, we help our clients identify the culture gaps and attrition catalysts that drive great talent out. With our datadriven approach to developing culturally inclusive employee value propositions, we hold up a mirror for clients to better understand who they are through the lens of their marginalized employee base’s experiences. We then develop an

employer brand that speaks to who they are, who they aspire to be, and how they are working to bridge the gaps between reality and aspiration for their employees. Do you see more companies integrating DEI into employer branding in the near future, or do you think this is something of a trend? Person: The only time “trend” and “diversity” should be used together in a sentence is when we say diversity is trending upward. There’s no question that pulling together the brightest minds and fueling innovation requires

part of employer branding—with good reason. People want to work for a responsible organization that shares their values. More organizations are also empowering their people to live as their true and authentic selves, and part of this empowerment is acknowledging and celebrating the diversity inherent in us. So yes, I think the move to integrate DEI into branding is here to stay. Graham: I think we’re still in the early stages, for many employers, of figuring out what it means to integrate DEI into their employer brand. The obvious first instinct clients have is increasing

and diversity. Leaders can help promote dialogue by being active participants themselves — and by actively engaging other senior leaders from the start. Associates will take note of whether their leaders are tuned in, sharing their perspective and actively learning, so I can’t stress enough how important this is for the success of any DEI work. Graham: When we think about building bridges, we often imagine two parties meeting in the middle. However, marginalized people have historically been expected to cross to the side of those in power and privilege, which only maintains the

“NUMERICAL REPRESENTATION ON ITS OWN IS A WEAK METRIC, BECAUSE IT DOESN’T PROVIDE AN INDICATOR ON HOW YOUR CULTURE IS EXPERIENCED BY MARGINALIZED TALENT.” —JOHN GRAHAM, SHAKER RECRUITMENT MARKETING creating an equitable future within organizations. Bernard: DEI has become a larger

HOW SHAKER CAN PARTNER WITH YOU ON YOUR DEI JOURNEY DEI won’t mean much if it’s not part of your employer brand and Employee Value Proposition. From our expertise in employer branding, we have learned that authentic employer brands are those that accurately reflect the lived experience of all employees. We’ll use the insight we uncover to inform your culturally honest, inclusive employer brand—to weave what is real and true into your EVP and messaging.

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the numerical representation of diverse groups of talent, but you have to also ask the tough culture questions—like, what environments are you inviting diverse groups of talent into? And is this environment one that would encourage them to stay and invite others to join? Without digging into the culture conversations, the branding that’s created will be performative at best and harmful to the brand reputation at worst. How can business leaders go beyond lip service and truly model the behaviors that help make a company more equitable and inclusive? Person: Business leaders must realize it is not one person’s job or one department’s job to ensure diversity; it’s everyone’s priority. If you partner with nonprofits that promote equity and workforce diversity, go beyond the yearly donation. For example, I am a board member for Revolution Workshop, an organization that trains minority men and women, ages 18 to 36, on the hard and soft skills they will need to succeed in the construction and woodworking industries. I don’t just attend Board Meetings. I make it a point to stop by the shop and speak to the trainees. Being present is very important. Bernard: When it comes to promoting inclusion, it’s important to acknowledge who is in the room during conversations about identity

comfort of one side. I encourage business executives to consider crossing a few bridges themselves. Spend time with people who don’t look or think like you, and whose worldviews are shaped by different socio-economic circumstances. Go to restaurants in a part of town where you are not in the majority. Make time for a conversation with someone whose first language isn’t your own. These are the experiences that will widen the apertures for leaders, increase their cultural intelligence, and reduce their fears of otherness. Can you share any insights on how to help people have honest conversations about race, equity and diversity at work? These topics have been largely taboo, so what can leaders do to help managers and workers get more comfortable being uncomfortable? Bernard: One of the more effective ways to encourage dialogue about identity and equity is to normalize candid conversations in a workplace setting. Oftentimes, what feels “uncomfortable” is the lack of precedent around speaking up, so making these opportunities more routine—and less rare and high-stakes—can offset some of the unease. Person: Yes, business leaders have to stop limiting these conversations to training sessions. Have a fireside chat or a roundtable event where

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people may feel a little more comfortable with being open. Hold sessions in smaller sizes so it’s less intimidating. Create employee resource groups for employees sharing similar experience or goals, so they can share stories and raise pertinent issues. At Clayco, for example, we’ve created business resource groups to provide support to employees. We have a Black employees resource group and a network of women, known as Clayco NOW—and, most importantly, we are still trying to find ways to do more. Graham: I’m a historian by education, so my default is to connect the dots between history and modern-day lived experience. Leaders must work to understand why there’s discomfort in the first place and to better understand the context of the challenges employees are facing. Race, equity, and diversity are not uncomfortable topics for those who’ve had to contend with them their entire lives. Along with expanding the cultural intelligence of their employees, leaders must also create space for these conversations to be had in a consequence-free environment. People need to be able to ask the questions they otherwise could not and hear the answers that might be uncomfortable. The more these conversations become normalized the less uncomfortable they will be. How can business leaders gauge the success of DEI hiring initiatives and leverage insights for the future? Bernard: A critical part of any

our momentum, from increased leadership development programs to partnering with outside organizations. Don’t discount the storytelling opportunities when determining success — that’s where lessons are learned! Person: Digging into numbers such as the diversity in your recruiting pool, your retention numbers, who’s climbing the ladder within—the list goes on and on. And just when you think you have looked at everything, look a little deeper, such as your company’s external activities, and employee engagement activities. You must be vulnerable enough to look at all the data and open minded enough to realize the metrics may tell you that you still have a lot of work to do. Graham: Numerical representation on its own is a weak metric, because it doesn’t provide an indicator on how your culture is experienced by marginalized talent. Attrition rate is a better metric, especially when paired with exit interview data. If you spend more time trying to understand why diverse groups of talent are leaving your organization or having poor experiences while there, then you have a chance at improving their experiences, as well as creating employer brand ambassadors.

TEEDRA BERNARD is the Chief Talent and Diversity Officer of TransUnion, a leading global information solutions provider using the power of information to help people around the world access financial opportunities. Bernard also serves as the executive sponsor of the African-Diaspora Alliance Network (ADAN), TransUnion’s networking resource group which advocates for a company culture rooted in diversity and inclusion by embracing all those of African descent. Prior to joining TransUnion in 2019, she was the director of HR for Hewlett Packard Enterprise Inc.

JOHN GRAHAM is VP, Employer Brand, Diversity & Culture at Shaker Recruitment Marketing, which has developed a proprietary research methodology and framework in employer brand and employee value proposition development. In his role, Graham works with clients to illuminate the experiences of marginalized employee populations and to make the necessary changes to foster equitable and inclusive environments. His bestselling book, Plantation Theory: The Black Professional’s Struggle Between Freedom & Security, has been featured in many fireside chats and Fortune 500 book clubs.

MARY PERSON is Senior Vice President of PublicPrivate Initiatives at Clayco, a full-service, turnkey real estate, architecture, engineering, designbuild and construction firm. As leader of the firm’s strategic initiatives in DEI, Person helms programmatic efforts to promote and increase diversity on Clayco projects, including the development of Clayco’s Construction Career Initiative (CCDI), which mentors and supports aspiring tradespeople of color. Prior to joining Clayco, Person worked at F.H. Paschen and the Chicago Transit Authority.

Where do you see DEI heading in the next few years? Person: My hope is that a light bulb turns on and business leaders realize that diversity isn’t only the right thing to do for business, it’s the right thing to do—period. I

“DEI IS NOT SIMPLY A VALUE THAT ORGANIZATIONS CAN CLAIM—IT’S A CONSTANT EVOLUTION.” —TEEDRA BERNARD, TRANSUNION DEI initiative is transparency, whether through data and metrics or storytelling. Metrics for gender and racial representation, for example, are incredibly telling about an organization’s DEI priorities. But I also challenge organizations to consider their overarching DEI journey — and the many incremental steps taken to achieve long-term goals and progress. For example, as part of TransUnion’s racial and gender equity commitments, we’ve pledged to reach global gender parity in our senior leadership by 2030, as well as achieving a year-over-year increase at all levels of management for underrepresented groups. We share year-over-year comparisons of these data points in our annual Diversity Report, but we also share the unique actions driving

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feel companies will begin to work together and begin to share ideas and strategies that work. Many leaders will realize that diversity isn’t just about race and that oneoff programs won’t be enough. Graham: Many companies want to embed DEI into everything they’re doing, but they aren’t yet sure how to do it. Companies that have made strong investments in DEI infrastructure will push to leverage insights to improve their culture and ensure their marketing matches reality. We’re already helping clients understand, for the first time, what their culture gaps are through the lens of marginalized talent. Not everyone is ready to take the next step yet, but it’s clear the journey forward will continue.

We Place Value in Every Voice At TransUnion, cultivating a diverse, equitable and inclusive culture isn’t an endpoint — it’s a constant evolution. Our commitment to provide a welcoming, safe and supportive professional workplace is reflected in our pledge to: →

Reach global gender parity in our senior leadership by 2030

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Achieve a year-over-year increase at all levels of management for underrepresented groups

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Continue building relationships with associations engaging with underrepresented groups, and outreach to veterans, women in technology, the LGBTQ+ community and people with disabilities

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Build upon processes and systems to assist diverse talent throughout the associate lifecycle

TransUnion remains committed to fostering inclusion and continuing our Diversity, Equity & Inclusion journey for the long-term.