The workforce has become far more diverse over the last decade, in part due to the rise of online recruitment and global access to talent, but also because people are realizing the failures of bias in recruitment and selection processes. Unconscious bias in recruitment has become a main focus as companies strive for a fair and equitable hiring process. The culprit, Unconscious bias, refers to unintentional prejudice toward certain individuals based on their race, gender, age, or other personal characteristics. This can manifest itself in a variety of ways during the recruitment process.

Another place that we've seen companies crack down on is unconscious bias in the workplace. Bias in the workplace examples could be anything from not hiring or promoting a person based on their gender to making decisions that favor those of the same race. The types of bias in recruitment are numerous and can lead to discrimination in the hiring process, resulting in unfairness and unequal treatment for certain candidates.

One way to combat unconscious bias in recruitment is by creating processes to ensure diversity and fair selection practices without relying on an individual’s opinion. This can be done through the use of standardized job descriptions, objective hiring criteria, and anonymized resumes to eliminate any personal biases that a recruiter may have. Additionally, utilizing an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to filter out unqualified candidates based on their skills and credentials will help narrow down the applicant pool to those who are most qualified for the job.

Another way of eliminating unconscious bias in the workplace is through using interview intelligence software by Pillar throughout the hiring and recruitment processes. Pillar's video interview platform was built specifically to help companies increase diversity in hiring and quickly assess job candidates. The software uses AI to identify patterns of bias and allows recruiters to evaluate applicants in a more comprehensive and equitable way, eliminating the potential for bias-based decisions.

Types of Bias In Recruitment

There are many types of bias and let's be honest, none of us wants to admit that we'd allow any form of bias to creep into the recruitment or hiring process and affect someone's future. However, it is important to be aware of and acknowledge the different types of bias in recruitment.

The most common types of bias in recruitment are:

- Unconscious Bias in Hiring – This type of bias occurs when people make decisions based on stereotypes or other personal preferences rather than the facts. It can manifest itself in a variety of ways during the hiring process, including favoring candidates who come from similar backgrounds.

- Affirmative Action Bias – This type of bias occurs when employers attempt to actively seek out minority or disadvantaged applicants in an effort to promote diversity. However, this can result in discrimination against other potential candidates and is also called reverse racism.

- Gender Bias – This form of bias is based on the idea that men or women are better suited for certain roles or jobs, which can lead to unequal treatment of candidates of either gender.

- Preference Bias – This type of bias occurs when someone favors a candidate based on their personal preference rather than professional qualifications and performance.

- Ageism – This is prejudice against job seekers because they are older or younger than the desired age range. It can manifest itself as age-specific job requirements or assumptions about an applicant's ability to perform the job based on their age.

- Cultural Bias – This type of bias occurs when someone favors a candidate because they come from the same cultural background. It can lead to discrimination against those with different backgrounds, cultures, and religions.

These are just some of the types of bias in recruitment that can lead to discrimination in the hiring process and limit a person’s opportunity for advancement. It is important to recognize these biases and take steps to ensure that all applicants are evaluated fairly, without any form of prejudice or favoritism.

Interviewing is the first place where we see many of these biases take shape. Avoiding unconscious bias in interviewing is critical to a company’s competitive success, as it allows for the best candidates to be selected and can result in better job performance. Companies can use interview intelligence software like Pillar to ensure that their recruitment process is fair and equitable. Pillar's platform has built-in interviewer coaching tools that will help you eliminate biases from your recruitment and selection processes.

Unconscious Bias Training

Unconscious bias training is one of the most significant ways you can make your team aware of how biases may be affecting their decisions. Unconscious bias training is about understanding why certain biases exist, how these biases can manifest themselves in our work, and what we can do to be more conscious of them.

Unconscious Bias training typically includes:

- Exploring how unconscious biases are formed and reinforced
- Examining the impact on diversity and inclusion initiatives
- Discussing how to overcome unconscious bias
- Learning how to create a more inclusive environment
- Activity-based learning to reinforce the concepts discussed

By taking part in unconscious bias training, teams can become aware of their own potential biases and take steps to ensure that they are not impacting decision-making or hiring processes. Unconscious bias examples are all around us, and recognizing these biases is the first step to creating a workplace that is fair and equitable for all. Creating an environment of fairness and equality is critical for any company’s success, as it ensures fairness in decision-making and promotes diversity within the organization. By understanding unconscious bias in recruitment and taking part in unconscious bias training, your team can work together to create a more inclusive and equitable workplace.

To give you an idea of how these trainings have affected the diversity hiring processes and culture of inclusion in other companies, let's look at examples from Google, Apple, Meta, and others to see how the fastest moving most innovative technology companies create inclusive workforces.

‍Google's Unconscious Bias workshops focus on understanding the different types of bias, recognizing how they manifest themselves in the workplace, and identifying strategies to combat these biases. Apple has a Diversity Network that provides resources and education to Apple employees on topics such as Unconscious Bias, Racial Equity, Inclusion & belonging, and Intersectionality. Meta is using machine learning algorithms to help hire more diverse teams by removing bias from the recruiting process.

But what about reverse racism, you may be asking? We've seen a lot about this in the news lately. How can your hiring processes be so focussed on objectivity that you remove personal traits from the hiring process altogether? The answer is, we can't. In a perfect world, all hiring practices would be free from bias, racism, sexism, and discrimination. But that is simply not realistic. The best way to combat reverse racism is through conscious effort and by creating a culture of inclusion that reflects the diversity of our world. This can be achieved through initiatives like the unconscious bias training mentioned above and by finding diverse internal champions that foster an environment in which everyone feels respected and valued for their unique contributions.

The first step is recognition. By recognizing and understanding the types of biases that can occur during recruitment and taking part in unconscious bias training, companies can create an environment where everyone is given a fair chance at success. With conscious effort and technology solutions like Pillar’s Interview Intelligence software, you can reduce bias in the hiring process and promote diversity throughout your organization.

Discrimination In The Hiring Process

One thing I have no tolerance for is discrimination. Especially discrimination in the hiring process. Discrimination is when a person is treated unfairly or not given access to opportunities simply based on their age, race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or other characteristics. This type of behavior is not only illegal and can lead to severe consequences for the company involved.

Discrimination in the hiring process starts with unconscious biases in hiring. It’s when we make decisions without considering all of the available evidence or without considering the impact of our decisions on others. Unconscious bias can cause individuals to make assumptions about a person’s skills, experience, or potential based on personal traits, surface-level factors, or other characteristics that have nothing to do with their own skills and ability to contribute to the team.

To prevent unconscious biases and discrimination in the hiring process, organizations need to take active steps to ensure their recruitment processes are fair and equitable for all. Companies should consider implementing unconscious bias training to make sure that everyone involved in the recruitment process is aware of how their own biases could be impacting decisions. Companies should also make sure they are collecting data on their hiring practices to identify any potential areas where discrimination may be occurring and take steps to address it.

Bias in the hiring process no matter what it is is unacceptable. There are many types of unconscious bias, but staying alert to them and taking proactive steps to ensure a fair and equitable hiring process is the best way to ensure that everyone has an equal chance of success.

To see how Pillar has helped companies build better, more diverse teams with lower turnover rates, book your demo today and see what powerful interview intelligence software can do for you.