5 Ways New DEI Initiatives Will Impact Your Job Search

In the past year, employers have taken a hard look at their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and started to make changes, so here are the top five ways these initiatives will (or already have) impact your job search.

Longer Recruitment Processes

Job seekers may experience longer recruitment processes as recruiters spend more time sourcing for a diverse set of candidates that don’t readily pop-up in their LinkedIn search or other traditional sourcing approaches. It also means recruiters will be presenting candidates who don’t check every box on the hiring manager’s wish list in an effort to present candidates who demonstrate the capability of doing the job, rather than the preferred prior experience. And companies are being more flexible with interview scheduling to accommodate candidates’ current work or childcare schedules.

Don’t be surprised if the median time to hire between 33 and 49 days creeps up five days or so. While a longer recruitment process is dreaded by all, if it brings more diverse candidates to the table, that’s a good thing.

More Transparency Around Equitable Pay

21 states have now banned employers from asking candidates about their current or prior salary history in an effort to reduce the gender and race wage gaps. Just in December, NYC Council passed a bill requiring employers to list the salary range in job postings. And my own employer, Abt Associates, now lists the salary range in all our U.S. job postings. This has made for a more transparent and trustworthy hiring process from the get go.

For positions where the salary range listed is a bit lower than what you’re going for, I still recommend applying to the job and asking the recruiter or hiring manager during the screening call if there is any room for negotiation beyond what is listed in the posting. Depending on the role and department/team budget, there may be some wiggle room on salary for strong candidates, so don’t hesitate to ask. Also, the benefits offered may improve the overall comp package, so be sure to look beyond the base salary range listed in a job posting.

On the other side, there are some employers who have foregone negotiating altogether like Reddit, and establish a non-negotiable rate up front. Putting more emphasis on fair and equitable pay might also be the reason negotiations are tougher for candidates. Don’t be surprised if a hiring manager or recruiter can’t go any higher on their offer due to equity. Employers are putting together policies where equity reviews are required as part of developing an offer for a candidate.

Diverse Professionals Contacted by More Recruiters

Diverse candidates, especially those who promote their diversity on their professional profiles, may be contacted more than they have in the past by recruiters and hiring managers. This has its pros and cons. Having more opportunities come to you without actively seeking them out has its obvious advantages. However, if you’re a diverse candidate getting hit up left and right by recruiters for positions you aren’t qualified for, you may question why you’re being contacted. Diverse professionals aren’t looking to be a company’s token diversity hire. They want to be hired based on what they can bring to the position and company.

If you’re being contacted by recruiters with opportunities you’re interested in, but may not meet a majority of the qualifications in the job posting, I recommend taking that recruiter’s call. You can directly ask the recruiter what qualifications the hiring team is prioritizing. If there is specific experience you lack, ask the recruiter how important that is to the job and hiring team. This way you’ll have a better idea if it’s worth your time to continue the conversation and submit a formal application. At minimum, you now have a new connection with a recruiter that you can contact directly if you see a future opportunity available that is the right fit for you.

Goodbye Reference Checks

More U.S. employers are nixing their reference check policies since there’s research that supports references are not a reliable performance measure. And most reference checks come back positive since candidates are only going to provide names of colleagues and former co-workers who will speak positively about their work.

For those not-so-stellar references, as someone that recruits senior professionals, I fully expect candidates to have one or two people that may not have the greatest things to say about their work because performance assessment is subjective from one person to another. You shouldn’t lose out on future opportunities because of one-off instances or previous jobs that were hard, but valuable learning experiences.

Employers are putting more emphasis on asking better questions during the interview process or giving candidates interview assignments to better assess certain skills. “Fit” and potential are becoming the preferred approach to assessing whether a candidate will perform well in the job.

Job Seekers Prioritizing Employers with Legit DEI Programs

In the past year, companies have really kicked their DEI programs into high gear. At the same time, job seekers, especially millennials and Gen Z, have added “commitment to DEI” to their list of job must-haves. At this intersection, job seekers and employers should be prepared to have a discussion about DEI during the recruitment process. Specifically, interview panels should be ready to answer serious questions from candidates about what they have done to recruit, hire, nurture, and retain a diverse workforce.  Employers should be prepared to answer questions such as:

“There appears to be a lack of diversity on your board and executive leadership team. Are you doing anything to address this?”

“What employee resource groups (ERGs) do you have?”

“What has been your financial commitment to DEI programs?”

“Can I speak with someone [insert diverse demographic in target job function] to gain a better feel for the culture here?”

Job seekers also need to realize that some companies are just starting to take DEI seriously and it takes time to invest, implement, and realize results from new initiatives. So it’s important to assess not only what employers have done, but where they have room for improvement. This means giving favor to honest and balanced responses in interviews. I’d be wary of any company that talks about their DEI with glowing pride without balanced rhetoric around where they need to improve.