Improve Gender Representation in Your Candidate Pools with These Diversity Features

How can you build a more diverse pool of candidates? It’s a question that weighs heavily on many recruiters’ minds. 

Yet, translating this concern into action can be difficult. Our research shows that while 77% of talent professionals say diversity is very important to the future of recruiting, 47% believe hiring managers aren’t held accountable for interviewing a diverse slate of candidates. 

Accountability and action are key to change. Action doesn’t have to be earth shattering; more often, making small tweaks and adjustments over time has a bigger impact. 

Consider how long it has taken us to get to where we are today with gender representation.

Women have made significant strides in the workplace in recent decades. LinkedIn data shows that 46% of entry level roles globally are held by women today. It wasn’t that long ago when that kind of achievement seemed out of reach. Still, there is much work to be done. Equality becomes more elusive as you climb the seniority ladder: globally women only hold 35% of manager roles, and 25% of C-suite roles. Even in industries where women make up more than half of the workforce, such as Education or Wellness and Fitness, there’s still a distinct shortage of women in leadership positions.

Tweaking hiring practices to be more equitable can have a big impact, over time, in creating a more diverse and inclusive workforce. Of course, this extends well beyond measures to address traditional male/female gender gaps. Continuous testing, learning, and adapting are crucial.

To make it easier for recruiters and hiring managers to effect change and improve their diversity efforts, we are rolling out new features in LinkedIn Recruiter and new learning paths in LinkedIn Learning that can help. 

Expand gender representation in recruiting efforts

We have always done our best to provide representative results when you’re sourcing talent in LinkedIn Recruiter. Now, to help recruiters quickly increase the representation of women or men in their talent pools, we’re introducing Diversity Nudges. If gender representation in a given talent pool is unbalanced, a notification will pop up to let you know the Male/Female ratio of that search. You’ll also receive recommendations of Skills, Locations, and Companies you can add to your search to improve the gender balance. For example, if you’re hiring for an electrical engineer, Diversity Nudges might suggest adding skills such as data analysis, analytical skills, and Simulink to increase the number of women electrical engineers in your candidate search.

“Our world is becoming a multicultural space and companies that move forward without diversity will not sustain,” said Netta Jenkins, co-founder of Dipper and founder of Holistic Inclusion Consulting. “That’s why I co-founded ourdipper.com, to help engage companies to share their DEI efforts and list their open roles for underrepresented groups. Diversity yields a culture of energy, productivity, performance, and profitability. That’s why I look forward to seeing how these new tools in LinkedIn Recruiter will help companies create a more diverse talent pipeline.”

Give job seekers better insight into your company’s culture and values

We are seeing that job seekers are putting more emphasis on working for companies with a culture that aligns with their values. LinkedIn data shows a 67% engagement boost when company posts mention culture. We also found that 66% of Latino professionals say they would be more interested in working for an organization that makes a public commitment for equity and racial justice. 

To attract more candidates that align with a company’s values, we’re introducing a new way for companies to highlight their values and organizational commitments. Organizations will be able to add a dedicated section to their Company Page highlighting their commitments in areas such as DEI, Environmental Sustainability, Social Impact, Career Growth and Learning, and Work-Life Balance. 

“Sourcing talent intentionally from under-supported groups makes great business sense,” said Shannon Morales, founder and CEO of Tribaja. “Not only does this allow teams to have a broader perspective on how to operate, but it also provides a social impact that benefits the communities businesses intend to serve. LinkedIn continues to help companies diversify their talent pipeline with these new features.”

Build your skills for equitable hiring 

Finally, we’re unlocking free learning paths that support Learning & Development (L&D) teams’ efforts to deepen their entire company’s understanding of DEI and reach their DEI objectives, including a path specific to creating more equitable and inclusive hiring practices. 

LinkedIn Learning has invested significantly in DEI learning content over the past several years, and now offers over 475 DEI-related courses across seven languages. Learning journeys are different for everyone, so this expansive set of courses gives organizations and individuals the ability to tailor their own DEI learning journeys based on their unique goals. 

However, we know it can also be overwhelming to sort through a vast sea of options. So, we are releasing six new DEI learning paths curated to the most common DEI organizational objectives to make it easy to recommend and customize your learning. We have made the following four learning paths free until September 8, 2022: 

1. Recruit Diverse Talent and Promote Equitable Hiring
2. Manage Diverse and Inclusive Teams
3. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging for All
4. Create an Inclusive Work Culture

And to help support your learning journey around recruiting, engaging, and retaining a diverse talent pool in today’s evolving world of week, the week of August 15 we’ll be hosting  “Equity Week,” a series of four live Office Hours events hosted by LinkedIn Learning instructors.

We also know it’s important for employers to understand what actions to take to achieve their DEI goals. We sat down with DEI experts to gather practical tips to help diversify your workforce, foster an inclusive culture, and retain diverse talent. Be sure to check out what other companies are saying to help you make progress on your DEI initiatives.