Event reviews

Citation

Barr, K. (2013), "Event reviews", Strategic HR Review, Vol. 12 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/shr.2013.37212caa.010

Event reviews

Article Type: Event reviews From: Strategic HR Review, Volume 12, Issue 3

Oasis HR Resourcing Think Tank: tackling diversity and disability in recruitment, London, UK, July 2012

As many organizations are increasing their support to the diversity agenda, ensuring a recruitment process is inclusive and workforce representative is no easy task. However, conclusions generated from the HR Think Tank Series highlight that good intentions are in no short supply. However, there seems to be a misunderstanding with regards to the types of questions and associated wording deemed appropriate for use during the recruitment process. People seem to be so concerned about putting a foot wrong that often diversity can end up being a neglected initiative. Confidence and knowledge desperately needs to be instilled in many recruiters to assure them that it is okay to talk about diversity; they just need to get to grips with the “know-how.”

When engaging with candidates, it is crucial to be aware that often people will:

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  not feel able to express a disability for fear of weakening their job application or being treated differently by an employer; and

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  not even be aware that they indeed have a disability, for example dyslexia or impaired hearing.

Additionally, there seems to be a difference with people not considering themselves to have a disability if they developed it in later life, compared to if they were born with it. A candidate’s age is also suggested to influence the type of information they will divulge during the recruitment process. For younger candidates, the subject of learning difficulties is typically widely addressed during education and this positively impacts on the likelihood of them discussing it. Moreover, candidates are often not aware of what is acceptable to ask their perspective employers in terms of reasonable adjustments.

Ultimately, hiring a diverse workforce needs to be more than a “tick-box” exercise, and surely the optimum goal is developing a fully inclusive and representative recruitment process, whereby diverse candidates are hired naturally and on their own merits. Often the internal culture within an organization needs to be changed and challenged, which can be a frustrating and thankless task. However breaking down barriers, understanding why a company is lacking diversity and then embedding the correct knowledge are without a doubt the best starting points.

For more information

The HR Think Tank series is a collection of free invitation only networking events held exclusively for senior strategically-focused HR professionals – held currently in the UK and Singapore. The events portfolio, founded and facilitated by specialist recruitment agency Oasis HR, was initially developed in 2008 and has grown to around 800 members. For more information telephone +44 (0) 207 11 88 444.

Katie Barr