As the world becomes more understanding and inclusive, it is important to make sure your business adapts and allows for all types of people to progress unhindered. This can be a difficult process as things change quickly. This cannot be used as an excuse however and you need to be on the ball. Not only will this increase your reputation as a good place to work but will make sure that you are not on the wrong side of a court case. This article will help give you an idea of how to maintain a diverse and inclusive workplace and ensure no one is left out.
Contracts
One way in which to reduce the amount of bias, unconscious or conscious, in the workplace is to create open contracts that can be applied to everyone. This means creating contracts looking solely at the role rather than ideal candidates. You can partner this with blind recruitment to mitigate any unconscious bias that you may have. No matter how aware you are of the current cultural state, you may find yourself making decisions based on quick judgments.
Creating contracts with blind recruitment in mind will help to stop this. To do this it may be worth having a labor lawyer look over the contracts. The best labor lawyer will be able to guide you in the right direction to ensure you are not only being inclusive but getting the best candidate for the job.
Data
Using data to track the work and output of your employees can create an extremely efficient workplace. It eliminates your bias such as looking at people you are closest with, age, gender, or race. It can help you see where your employees are struggling and where some may need extra assistance. A word of warning, however, you should not base all of your decisions on data. Never forget that your employees are more than just numbers on a spreadsheet. Speak openly with them to gain their support and improve their work.
Encourage Diversity
This means more than just hiring people from different backgrounds for the sake of it. Very few people have the same experiences and as such can each provide a unique perspective or solution to a problem. Not only this by exposing yourself to more diverse belief systems and backgrounds, but you can also gain a far wider understanding of situations and thus deal with them in different ways. It is important to get as many different opinions on your problems or work solutions as you may find that someone who you would least expect can provide the perfect answer.
Be honest with yourself
Another tip is, to be honest with yourself about your own biases and recognize when you are making pre-emptive judgments. This can be a hard task to do but is necessary when running a business. Allow people the opportunity to prove themselves. Your prejudices may be the reason that you cannot find that perfect candidate for a role. Nobody likes to be told that they are judgmental but sometimes you have to tackle that truth to move on and progress your business.