You seldom find what you're NOT looking for!

 

I want to acknowledge Dennis Scott, an old friend and leader in the African-Canadian community for his input to this blog.

 

I spent nearly 75% of my working career working in positions in which I had the responsibility to hire others. My ‘teams’ ranged from a few to a few hundred.  These responsibilities began in the mid 70’s and continued until my retirement some 40 years later.

With the 20/20 lens of hindsight, and with the understanding I have gained since then, I realize that I seldom found what I was NOT looking for.  While I never practiced active discrimination, I confess that I did not practice active inclusion.  Hence, my teams often reflected my own world, that is, they were predominantly white males. 

Looking back I can easily rationalize some of my decisions.  I worked most of my career in the electronic security industry and that industry tended to be somewhat incestuous.  People moved from one company to another and while it was not a closed loop, the trend was towards the status quo.  If you were on the outside, you almost needed an invitation to join the party.

Over time things did change.  Women, people of colour and others from marginalized groups gradually cracked open the implicit, albeit unintentional, barriers to entry and thus made the community more diversified…and a truer representation of society at large.  When I left the formal workforce, my team was almost 50-50 gender split and represented individuals from around the world.  Our pot luck lunches were a culinary delight of smells and tastes that were unimaginable in my early years.

My failures were not errors of commission.  They were errors of omission.  My recruiting failed to deliberately encourage a broader range of candidates to apply. I was never chastised nor challenged for my choices because HR and personnel agencies simply forwarded candidates that fit the profile of the team.

Today’s hiring practices are much more sophisticated than in the past.  But biases still exist.  As the leader it is your responsibility…no it is your DUTY…to ensure that your team reflects the diversity of society.  It is not only a case of good business; it is your moral and ethical response to the privilege of leadership that has been entrusted to you.

May I suggest the following:

1.    Cast a wide net in your search. 

2.    Use conventional and unconventional means to get your hiring message communicated.

3.    Be blind in reviewing resumes. Have references to gender, ethnicity etc. eliminated from the process so that qualifications become the primary determinant for selection.

4.    Recognize and acknowledge your personal biases by objectively evaluating the culture of your team.  It will be a reflection of your comfort with diversity.  Seek independent input if you see a trend in your hiring practices that appear to reveal any bias.

5.    Embrace diversity and change.  There was a time that I thought bell bottom jeans were God’s answer to sartorial splendor, but I got over that too.

If your team reflects the fabric of our society, congratulations.  If it does not, do your personal ‘mea culpa’ and get on with the changes that are necessary. You have been entrusted with a responsibility in which you alone are accountable.