Request a call Login

  • It’s no secret that attracting and retaining top talent is challenging for businesses of all sizes and industries. However, many companies understand the value of having exceptional employees and prioritize it during their recruitment efforts.

    In the ever-tightening labor market, business owners have to shift their hiring strategies away from traditional efforts to remain competitive. Traditional hiring processes often lean on degree requirements and limit the number of eligible applicants. While you may attract talent that has technically met your company standards, they may still lack the relevant experience to be successful in the role. Only 53.7% of the US workforce has some college background, meaning traditional job requirements weed out nearly half the workforce from the start.

    Many companies have adopted skills-based hiring strategies to combat this issue and cast a broader net of workers. Factors contributing to this shift include:

    1. Structural change: In the last decade, the perpetual demand for a skilled workforce has outpaced the availability of talent. In response, employers have had to reevaluate the significance of traditional degree requirements. The focus has pivoted towards identifying individuals with the specific skill sets needed to excel in roles, irrespective of any degrees they may or may not hold.
    2. Cyclical reset: The unprecedented upheaval caused by the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the embrace of skills-based hiring practices. The abrupt urgency to secure adept professionals prompted many companies to temporarily set aside stringent degree requirements and acknowledge that practical expertise often trumps theoretical education, particularly in times of rapid change.

    What Is Skills-Based Hiring?

    Skills-based hiring removes previously standard hiring benchmarks, such as college majors and degrees, from the screening process to focus on a candidate’s specific skills and competencies. In the past, the hiring process revolved around education qualifications, specific credentials, and prior experience to evaluate candidates. The concept of skills-based hiring has gained significant traction, particularly for entry-level and mid-career positions.

    So, what sets skills-based hiring apart? To put it simply, it embraces a fresh perspective on career progression. Skills-based hiring shifts the focus from more generalized and often arbitrary markers to a more nuanced candidate evaluation.

    It recognizes that a candidate’s potential exceeds traditional qualification confines and values the specific capabilities and proficiencies they can bring to the table. This hiring method enables you, as an employer, to make more informed hiring decisions based on your company’s particular needs. As a result, this approach widens the pool of capable prospects and opens opportunities for individuals who are traditionally overlooked due to their unconventional career paths.

    Advantages Of Skills-Based Hiring

    Recruiting new talent comes with a hefty price tag. In addition to the time and money you invest in the hiring process, when your team is short-staffed, the workload on existing employees increases, creating significant stress that can impact productivity. Though it’s tempting to rush through the hiring process, it’s important to note that however costly the process is, a bad hire will cost you significantly more in the long term. The average cost of a bad hire is nearly 30% of the employee’s salary. Additionally, a bad hire can be detrimental to your company’s culture, staff morale, and productivity. Take the time to find the right candidate for your company’s needs.

    Skills-based hiring allows you to attract more quality candidates and significantly reduce mis-hire rates. Companies that have adopted skills-based hiring report that their mis-hire rates decreased by nearly 25%. In addition to the improved quality of your candidates and reduced number of mis-hires, a skills-based approach can:

    • Reduce hiring costs: Opting for skills-focused hiring can expedite the recruitment timeline. This decreases the overall hiring timeline and translates to substantial cost savings for your organization. Moreover, adopting this approach draws in candidates with the necessary expertise to be successful contributors. They’ll require little-to-no training and a significantly shorter onboarding process, saving you time and money.
    • Increase employee performance and productivity: Companies prioritizing skills-based recruitment are better positioned to discover employees who consistently aim for excellence across all their responsibilities. A skills-based workforce tends to surpass performance benchmarks by proactively seeking avenues for enhancement.
    • Diversify your staff: College is becoming increasingly more expensive. In the last ten years alone, the price has increased by nearly 25%. Additionally, people from historically marginalized groups are less likely to have college degrees. A skills-based approach lowers the barrier of entry while still attracting qualified candidates.
    • Assist with retention: Workers in positions that match their skills and credentials tend to find greater satisfaction in their roles. Skills-based hires stay at companies more than 34% longer than employees with traditional degrees and career paths.

    Writing A Skills-Based Job Description

    Steering clear of conventional job descriptions and prerequisites might appear daunting at first. However, there are effective ways to draw competent and high-caliber candidates without relying on these customary filtering methods. Embracing a skills-based approach doesn’t mean discarding requirements altogether, rather, a shift in perspective. Through a skills-based job description, you can emphasize both hard and soft skills, industry or position-specific expertise, and much more.

    Writing a skills-based job description should:

    1. Prioritize specific needs: Begin by clearly defining what the position demands. Provide an outline of the expectations and daily responsibilities the new hire will handle. This involves pinpointing hard skills (such as technical expertise or programming skills) and soft skills (such as problem-solving and communication). By concentrating on your desired outcomes, you can craft a job description that spotlights the essential skills and proficiencies, going beyond a four-year degree, which may or may not be directly related to the role.
    2. Relax your language: Instead of fixating on “requirements,” lean towards “responsibilities.” In the United States, positions that emphasize responsibilities instead of strict requirements witness a 14% increase in applicants.
    3. Keep it short and to the point: Time is of the essence; candidates spend a mere 14 seconds scanning a job post before deciding whether or not they will apply. Optimize this window by arranging the most crucial and captivating details first. Keep your message brief, between 300-700 words, and utilize bullet points wherever possible.
    4. Avoid clichés: Unless your business utilizes quirky phrases regularly, steer clear of using worn-out terms such as “rockstar,” “shining star,” or “ninja.” Seasoned experts seek clarity about your company’s identity and the role’s expectations, and the presence of clichés can swiftly disengage potential candidates.
    5. Be as straightforward as possible: Though being concise is crucial, make it a priority to embrace clarity. Be as specific and detailed as possible. Ambiguity or omitting critical information about your company or the position is the best way to attract a bad hire.
    6. Specify the location: As the job market evolves to encompass remote, hybrid, and in-person roles, it’s imperative to outline your organization’s preferences within the job description. This will quickly weed out candidates who don’t align with the position’s needs.

    By embracing these strategies, you can attract a wider talent pool and engage potential candidates more effectively, ensuring your workforce remains successful.

    Let Us Help

    Recruiting, training, and retaining employees has never been more challenging for small and mid-sized businesses. Creating a job ad, finding the right candidate, and providing opportunities for employee development are significant expenses.

    Partnering with a professional employer organization (PEO) like GMS can take the administrative burden out of recruiting and hiring so you can focus on other aspects of your business. With our employee training and recruiting services, we can streamline the hiring process. Our applicant tracking system tracks every part of the hiring process so you know what platforms candidates are coming from and how long the process takes for your organization. Contact us today, and let us help you find your next hire.

  • Finding quality and proficient workers has always been a challenge for businesses. However, since the COVID-19 pandemic, talent scarcity has increased across industries. In fact, 55% of business owners and recruiters struggle to find qualified applicants for open positions. In addition to the talent shortage, generational transitions with Gen Z stepping into the workforce have significantly shifted employee expectations, leading to dramatic events, including quiet quitting and the Great Resignation. In light of these circumstances, finding quality talent that will be committed to your business is more challenging than ever.

    As the U.S. faces one of the most alarming labor crunches it has ever seen, your recruitment efforts must be as streamlined as possible. On average, hiring expenses amount to nearly $4,000 per new hire, and the process itself takes approximately 42 days. With the advancement of technology, recruitment software has become essential for finding top talent. Recruitment automation tools streamline the hiring process, enhance candidate attraction, and improve engagement. These tools leverage cutting-edge technology to automate repetitive tasks, allowing recruiters to focus on building meaningful connections with potential candidates.

    Moreover, in the face of talent scarcity and shifting employee expectations, candidate experience has emerged as a pivotal factor in recruitment success. Recruitment automation tools enable personalized and tailored interactions with candidates, ensuring they have a positive experience throughout the hiring journey. From intuitive application processes and automated status updates to prompt and customized communications, these tools enable recruiters to deliver an exceptional candidate experience that fosters engagement and sets the stage for a long-term commitment. We understand the difficulties in managing the hiring process, which is why we’re making a case for automated recruitment software.

    The Importance Of Automated Recruiting Software 

    Businesses are rapidly adopting recruiting automation tools to help streamline their hiring process. One of the most significant benefits of using recruiting automation software is that it saves you time by automating tedious tasks, which include screening resumes, scheduling and conducting interviews, and engaging with candidates throughout the hiring process.

    As a business owner, the multitude of tasks to handle within a single day can be overwhelming. However, leveraging recruiting automation software can alleviate some of this burden and make your workload more manageable. Implementing automation tools allows you to swiftly identify top talent, resulting in faster hiring processes and quicker onboarding of new candidates.

    Reasons why you should leverage recruiting automation tools:

    • Increases productivity: Recruiting automation tools streamline various tasks involved in the recruitment process, such as job posting, resume screening, interview scheduling, and candidate communication. You can focus more on strategic initiatives by automating these time-consuming and repetitive tasks. 
    • Improves quality of hire: Recruiting automation tools often with features such as applicant tracking systems (ATS) and pre-employment assessments that help evaluate candidates more effectively. These tools enable you to identify the most qualified candidates based on specific criteria, leading to better hiring decisions and ultimately improving the quality of the hires. 
    • Bias-free hiring: Leveraging recruiting automation tools can help mitigate unconscious biases often influencing the hiring process. By implementing standardized procedures and using objective evaluation criteria, these tools minimize the impact of discrimination, ensuring a fair assessment of candidates based on their skills, qualifications, and experience.
    • Assesses candidate skills effectively: Many recruiting automation tools provide skill assessment features, allowing recruiters to evaluate candidates’ abilities accurately. These tools may include coding tests, cognitive assessments, or behavioral assessments tailored to the job’s specific requirements. By utilizing these assessments, you can make a more informed decision about a candidate’s skill set.
    • Reduces the time to hire: With recruiting automation tools, recruiters can automate and expedite various stages of the hiring process. By eliminating manual tasks and streamlining workflows, these tools significantly reduce the time required to identify, evaluate, and hire suitable candidates.
    • Reduces the cost per hire: Traditional recruitment methods often involve significant expenses, such as job postings, travel costs for interviews, and recruitment agency fees. You can minimize or eliminate many of these costs by leveraging recruiting automation tools. Automated processes reduce the need for manual intervention, decrease administrative overhead, and optimize the recruitment process, leading to cost savings in the long run.
    • Enhances the candidate’s experience: Automation tools can provide a seamless and user-friendly experience for candidates throughout the recruitment process. Features such as online application forms, automated status updates, and self-scheduling interviews empower candidates, making the process more transparent and convenient. A positive candidate experience can improve the organization’s reputation and help attract top talent.
    • Increases diversity: Recruiting automation tools can contribute to diversity and inclusion efforts by promoting fair hiring practices. They can help identify and eliminate biases in job descriptions or selection processes, ensuring honest candidate evaluation.

    Recruiting automation tools ultimately help you attract and engage candidates by giving them a positive experience. In today’s competitive market, ensuring you’re providing an excellent candidate experience is essential. While many recruiting tools are available, it’s important to research to find the right tool for your business. Additionally, it’s vital that you take the time to understand and define your goals before implementing automation software. This approach not only assists in selecting the right tool but also simplifies your responsibilities in the long run, as you have a clear vision of your objectives and what you aim to achieve.

    Onboarding Process

    Hiring a qualified candidate is just the first step. A well-executed onboarding process is essential to ensure a seamless transition for the new hire. In addition to streamlining the hiring process, specific recruiting automation tools can assist you beyond recruitment efforts with features such as onboarding modules. The modules simplify onboarding by automating paperwork, providing relevant resources, and guiding new hires through necessary steps. These tools help to facilitate the smooth integration of your new hires.

    The implementation of such tools can have several benefits. First and foremost, it reduces the administrative burden on HR professionals, allowing them to focus on more strategic aspects of talent management. Moreover, a simplified onboarding process enhances the new employee’s experience, immediately making them feel valued and supported. In turn, this increases employee engagement and loyalty toward your organization.

    Lastly, a well-structured onboarding process accelerates the new hire’s time to productivity. By providing them with the necessary tools, information, and guidance, they can quickly grasp their responsibilities and make meaningful contributions to the team. Overall, leveraging recruiting automation tools with comprehensive onboarding modules can assist your business in creating a positive and efficient transition for new hires.

    Let’s Find The Candidates You Want And Need

    While the right candidate is out there, it’s up to you to wow them from start to finish. With GMS as a partner, you can find the candidates you want and need. We understand that finding, hiring, and developing the right people for your business requires extensive time and effort between ongoing training and employee recruitment services. GMS provides the necessary tools and resources to take on these responsibilities while improving your recruiting, hiring, and training efforts. We work with you to create enticing job descriptions that will attract top talent, conduct the initial interview with candidates, and provide you with training software to set your employees up from the beginning. Stop wasting valuable time in areas that GMS specializes in. Contact us today!

  • Are you tired of writing job descriptions that fail to attract top talent? Or perhaps you’re struggling to accurately capture the essence of a position and effectively communicate the required skills and qualifications? Does the solution lie in the power of artificial intelligence (AI)? With AI-powered tools and technologies becoming increasingly popular, you can revolutionize your approach to job description writing, creating engaging and informative descriptions while saving time and effort. That sounds like a no-brainer, right? Not so fast…

    AI In Today’s Economy

    The world was taken by storm, being introduced to AI platforms such as ChatGPT, CopyAI, Jasper, Sudowrite, and more. However, AI has been around for decades and has helped businesses automate critical tasks and make their operations more efficient. AI is a wide-ranging branch of computer science concerned with building smart machines capable of performing tasks that typically require human intelligence. Since the emergence of ChatGPT in late 2022, studies show that one in four companies have replaced their employees with it.

    The impact of AI on the economy cannot be overstated. From manufacturing to health care, AI-powered technologies have revolutionized the way we work. More specifically, for HR professionals, AI offers a wealth of opportunities to streamline recruitment, optimize workforce planning, and improve employee engagement. However, with these benefits come new challenges and ethical considerations. As the use of AI continues to grow rapidly, HR experts must carefully consider the potential risks and benefits while staying up-to-date on the latest developments.

    The Good And Bad Of Utilizing AI For Job Descriptions

    As we continue to hear more and more about the various AI tools that could help business owners with time-consuming tasks, one should be aware of the pros and cons. While AI can help HR professionals in many aspects of their work life, we’re discussing the good and bad when using AI specifically to write job descriptions.

    The good

    AI-powered tools can save HR professionals time and effort by automating the writing process and generating descriptions more likely to attract top talent. In addition, AI is beneficial as it focuses on the following:

    • Consistency: AI-generated job descriptions are oftentimes more consistent than those manually written, ensuring that all job postings have the same level of detail and quality.
    • Inclusivity: AI can help create more inclusive job descriptions by flagging potentially biased language by suggesting alternative phrasing.
    • Keyword optimization: AI tools and resources can optimize job descriptions for search engines, making them more likely to appear in job search results.

    The bad

    While there are a handful of positives to utilizing AI, there are also potential downsides. Let’s take a look at the downsides AI could have when using it to write job descriptions:

    • Lack of personal touch: AI-generated job descriptions lack human touch and personality and fail to capture the unique aspects of a particular role or company culture. Many argue that AI-generated job descriptions sound like a series of buzz-words strung together.
    • Limited creativity: AI may be limited in terms of generating job descriptions that are creative and engaging, which can be crucial in specific industries or for certain roles. Can a robot really capture the culture of your company?
    • Inaccuracies: Utilizing AI for job descriptions may contain inaccuracies or errors if the algorithm is not trained correctly or if there are gaps in the data.

    Let’s Put AI To The Test

    Considering the pros and cons of using AI to write job descriptions, why don’t we put AI to the test and see what happens? When you ask ChatGPT to “write a job description for a sales representative in the manufacturing industry,” it comes up with the following:

    Job Title: Sales Representative – Manufacturing Industry

    We are a leading manufacturing company seeking a highly motivated Sales Representative to join our team. As a Sales Representative, you will be responsible for building and maintaining client relationships, generating new leads, and driving sales in the manufacturing industry.

    Responsibilities:

    • Identify new business opportunities and generate leads through research, networking, and referrals
    • Build and maintain relationships with current and potential clients, including manufacturers, distributors, and retailers
    • Develop and execute sales strategies to achieve sales targets and increase revenue
    • Conduct product presentations and demonstrations to prospective clients
    • Negotiate and close sales deals in a timely and professional manner
    • Attend trade shows and other industry events to stay up-to-date on industry trends and establish new contacts
    • Provide exceptional customer service to ensure client satisfaction and loyalty
    • Collaborate with internal teams to ensure timely delivery and successful completion of projects

    Qualifications:

    • Bachelor’s degree in business administration, marketing, or a related field
    • 2-3 years of sales experience in the manufacturing industry, with a proven track record of meeting or exceeding sales targets
    • Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build and maintain relationships with clients and colleagues
    • Excellent negotiation and closing skills
    • Knowledge of manufacturing processes, materials, and industry trends
    • Ability to work independently and as part of a team, with a strong sense of initiative and a results-oriented mindset
    • Proficiency in Microsoft Office and CRM software

    If you are a self-motivated and results-driven sales professional with a passion for the manufacturing industry, we encourage you to apply. In return, we offer a competitive salary and benefits package, as well as opportunities for career advancement and personal growth. Join our team and help us shape the future of manufacturing!

    While this extensive job description gives the applicant an excellent overview of the role, it’s still missing the extra detail and human touch writing your own job description would include. For a Sales Representative role, you’d want to have numbers and goals they are responsible for hitting. It’s essential to include the expectations of the position, so they know what to expect, at least within their first few months at your company. In addition, the description is missing the benefits included with the position, such as paid time off (PTO), medical, dental and vision insurance, territory (if applicable), and more. In addition, it doesn’t include the salary, as most sales positions typically earn a base salary, or it’s strictly commission. That’s important for the applicant to know when applying for the job. Above all else, it’s simply not enticing – there’s no character or charisma to be found.

    Is AI Worth It?

    While AI will provide you with a job description that will save you time, you’ll quickly find your candidate pool diminishing from a lack of interest. It’s your responsibility as a business owner to attract the talent your business wants and needs to succeed in this challenging labor market. Have you considered partnering with a professional employer organization (PEO)? Partnering with a PEO such as GMS can be highly beneficial for business owners who don’t have enough time to craft the perfect job description. GMS’ HR experts help businesses create job descriptions that accurately reflect the company’s needs while highlighting the unique benefits and opportunities of working with your business. Ultimately, working with a PEO can help companies to streamline their hiring process, save time and resources, and build a stronger, more effective workforce. Let’s find you the employees you’ve been searching for. Contact us today!

  • Various cities and states have begun announcing the implementation of pay transparency. As of November 1st, New York City employers are required to disclose the salary range on job advertisements. Pay transparency must be placed on job advertisements rather than being placed only in offer letters or upon request of applicants or employees.

    The city’s law correlates with what has been picked up by other jurisdictions such as:

    • California
    • Colorado
    • Washington

    Start With Your Job Listings

    According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), employers with at least four employees must include the following in any advertisement for a job, promotion, or transfer opportunity:

    • Minimum annual salary
    • Maximum annual salary
    • Hourly range of compensation

    When it’s a commission-only position, employers are not required to post the exact salary. Instead, the posting can be satisfied by general statements. Employers are covered by stating the commission ranges. When writing job descriptions for your open positions, ensure they are direct and specific. It’s essential to provide the candidate with an understanding of the job by including the basic job functions.

    Rely On GMS

    As a business owner, it’s challenging to remain compliant when regulations constantly change. However, when you partner with GMS, our HR professionals have you covered. Our HR specialists are aware of changes as they occur within your state. In addition, our recruiting team can build competitive job descriptions that meet regulations to protect your business. GMS will also conduct market analyses to provide you with a pay range that aligns with your open positions. Learn more today!

  • Hiring the right person isn’t an easy task. It’s even harder to do so in a timely fashion. When your business is ready to hire, it benefits you to do so quickly. Not only do long hiring processes cost you time and money, they also delay you from filling a needed role on your team (and that’s not including your onboarding process).

    Every hour spent during the hiring process is an hour taken away from other essential business tasks. However, it’s also vital to recognize that rushing a hire can lead to other costly issues. Settling for a bad fit – or worse, dealing with negligent hiring – will only set your business back even further. Hiring means you need to perform an important balancing act – speed up the hiring process while finding the right candidate.

    While tricky, it’s not impossible to speed up the hiring process without rushing. Here are ways you can streamline your hiring process to get the candidates you need quicker than before.

    A job candidate interview by a company that wants to quickly hire employees. 

    Templatize Your Job Descriptions

    Every job description you write from scratch is extra time and effort you can avoid. Using a consistent format for new postings will not only help you draft descriptions quicker than before, but it can also make them easier to scan for potential applicants. 

    In terms of what format you should use, it can depend on exactly what type of position you need for your business. If you had a past job description that worked out well, you can use that as a base and modify it as necessary. If not, the following format is a good start:

    • Job summary (what it is and why it’s appealing)
    • Qualifications for the ideal candidate (both mandatory and ones that would be beneficial)
    • Company benefits
    • Clear call to action for how to apply and next steps

    From there, you can add in different sections based on what’s important to you and your business. Is company culture a huge part of your hiring process? Include a section about it in the format. You can also fill in specific parts of each description ahead of time, such as specific benefits that would apply to every potential employee. Adding these details to a base template now will only save you time on every description in the future.

    Write Clear Job Descriptions

    While a template will help, it’s important to make sure that your descriptions are specific enough to weed out certain applicants. One way to sidetrack your hiring process is to accidentally attract the wrong types of candidates. It’s important to be very clear about exactly what you want in a potential new employee to clear up any confusion from people who either aren’t right for the job or simply don’t have the qualifications. That means thinking very carefully about the following factors:

    • Which objectives the position should achieve
    • The core skills required to meet these objectives
    • Description of a typical day in the position, including regular duties, occasional tasks, etc.

    By spending a little extra time going into detail about necessary skills and objectives, you can signal to unqualified applicants that the job isn’t right for them. This in turn will save you from going through these applications (and potentially interviewing extra unqualified candidates).

    Be More Selective About the Candidates You Bring in for an Interview

    While a good description can cut out some less satisfactory applicants, you’ll still likely receive some resumes that don’t quite meet your standards. However, some people are tempted to still interview some of these applicants to try and reach a nice, round number of candidates. 

    The problem with this approach is that it’s more important to interview the right candidates instead of trying to hit a quota. If you’re only impressed by two or three candidates, focus on just them instead of hoping that a fringe applicant might exceed expectations. This also applies to people during the first-round interviews as well. If someone isn’t impressive, it’s best not to give them more of your time just because you had hoped for a certain number of finalists. In the end, being discerning will save you hours of wasted time, especially if you have a more rigorous hiring process.

    Cut Out Unnecessary Steps

    Speaking of a rigorous hiring process, try and see if you truly need every step to find the right candidate. The hiring process is different for every company, so you may be able to eliminate some measures that aren’t as important for you.

    A good example of this is the traditional request for references. If you don’t find that much value in talking to a candidate’s references, don’t include it in your process. You could also wait to ask for references for a few key candidates after you’ve interviewed them. This will cut down on the amount of calls you need to make or having to wait for these contacts to respond to your message – and that’s if you decide you need to talk to them at all. Try and identify which steps are really important for your search. If you find some are just there for show, get rid of them and use that time for something else.

    Have a Prepared List of Interview Questions

    Like your job description, it’s good to have a base list of interview questions made ahead of time. This list will make sure you’re asking the right questions every time to quickly see if a candidate is right for your position. It can also help you from going into an interview and asking all your questions off the cuff – nobody wants to accidentally bring up a taboo interview topic that can lead to problems.

    In terms of which questions to include, you’ll want to focus on inquiries that will identify certain skills and behaviors. Monster.com suggests breaking questions down into a few different groups:

    • Icebreakers to build rapport and help candidates relax
    • Traditional questions to gather general information about a candidate’s skills and experience
    • Situational questions to understand what a candidate would do in a specific, relevant situations
    • Behavioral questions to learn about how a candidate handled a past experience.
    • Culture fit questions to gauge whether a candidate would thrive in your workplace environment.

    Consider Group Interviews

    Sometimes, you have openings with several qualified candidates, but it’s hard to devote enough time to give every person a one-on-one interview. Instead of cutting a few promising people because of a time crunch, consider having multiple people participate in one interview at a time. 

    Not only will this create massive time savings, but it also has some interesting advantages. For one, multiple candidates mean that you’ll get different perspectives (and the opportunity to see how other candidates react to those perspectives). In addition, group interviews can help interviewers from getting too comfortable with a candidate. While it’s good to feel relaxed with a candidate, that newfound comfort level can prevent some people from asking some of the tougher questions that will help you gather information. 

    A Better, More Efficient Hiring Process

    When it comes to hiring, you don’t need to choose between hiring quickly or finding the perfect person. By tweaking your approach, you can achieve both goals for your business.

    Need some help streamlining your hiring efforts? Contact GMS today to talk to one of our experts about how we can save you time and money by managing your employee recruitment and onboarding processes.

  • The hiring process is already difficult enough. The time, money, and energy it takes to conduct a thorough search for the right people is a serious commitment. Unfortunately, unconscious bias adds yet another hurdle for both your company and potential job candidates.

    The goal of hiring is to find the right person for your company. Unconscious bias can cause your company to eliminate or overvalue prospects based on first impressions, preconceived notions, and other factors that aren’t true indicators of talent. Regardless of why and how they occur, it’s important to mitigate the impact of unconscious bias so that you can focus on what matters: hiring the best talent for your business.

    A job interview conducted with practices that help eliminate unconscious bias from the hiring process.

    What Can Unconscious Bias Affect in the Hiring Process?

    First and foremost, unconscious bias can cost you the best candidate. In a pool of prospects, you may unwittingly eliminate a top candidate because of certain predispositions or unintended consequences from certain hiring practices. By updating your hiring process, you can increase your odds of identifying the perfect people for open positions. 

    It’s important to note that bias extends beyond practices deemed discriminatory. In addition to explicit bias against race, gender, disability, and more, there are many other implicit biases. These unconscious biases may seem harmless at first, but can cause people to eliminate certain candidates or overvalue others. For example, certain hiring practices may not intend to exclude certain groups of people. However, these actions may cause companies to unknowingly make decisions based on secondary or tertiary factors instead of identifying who is right for your company. 

    8 Ways to Help Prevent Unconscious Bias in the Hiring Process

    It can be difficult to eliminate unconscious bias – it’s called unconscious bias, after all. However, there are some actions you can take throughout the hiring process to help remove these involuntary actions as you focus on finding the best possible candidate for your business.

    Evaluate word choice in job descriptions

    Words matter. Job descriptions play a critical role in attracting top talent. However, certain language can dissuade certain applicants from applying if you’re not careful. 

    For example, using words like “guys” or “journeyman” in a job description can act as a red flags to female prospects. There are also less obvious gender-biased language that may deter qualified candidates. According to social role theory, certain word choices can reflect unconscious biases based on stereotypical roles and behaviors. As such, terms like “competitive” are typically geared to appeal to men, whereas words like “collaborative” attract more women than men.

    The best way to avoid accidental bias in job descriptions is to carefully examine how they’re written. Once you spot a potential issue, experiment with wording to find an acceptable replacement that appeals to a wider audience. While certain terms are easier to identify than others, there are tools available to help in this endeavor. Both Gender Decoder and Textio can evaluate text to help spot questionable words to prepare your job descriptions for everyone. 

    Find new talent sources

    When it comes time to hire a new employee, many companies use the same methods that have worked in the past. This process makes sense to a degree – don’t fix what isn’t broken. However, this mindset also prevents you from potentially opening up your recruitment and sourcing efforts to a more diverse audience.

    If you’ve turned to the same sources for years, odds are you’ll get more of the same pool of applicants in the future. By widening your search, you can open your company up to a more diverse group of talent than before. In addition, research shows that diversity is good for business. A McKinsey study analyzed 366 public companies and discovered that the organizations were “more likely to have financial returns above their respective national industry medians.”

    This doesn’t mean you should abandon past sourcing methods – LinkedIn and referrals are tried and true for a reason. Instead, consider increasing the visibility of your openings by utilizing new resources, whether that means listing jobs on a career advancement platform like Jopwell, partnering with different colleges, and identifying other ways to diversify your applicant pool.

    Consider “blind” resume reviews

    It doesn’t take much to develop a preconceived notion about a candidate. In fact, unconscious bias can start as soon as you spot some basic information. 

    Names, educational backgrounds, and locations can all trigger hidden biases that can both favor and disfavor candidates for a multitude of reasons. These justifications can be as silly as a candidate went to a rival college – you never know when the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry will rear its ugly head. Research also indicates that people with foreign-sounding names are 28 percent less likely to land an interview than those with more “Anglo”-sounding names. 

    To avoid these issues, take a blind approach to reviewing resumes and block out any surface demographic characteristics that don’t directly impact the quality of a potential employee. Removing details like names can help you focus on what matters – is this person qualified for this job? This way you and anyone else reviewing resumes can concentrate on important details instead of adding false value to secondary criteria.

    Standardize interviews

    Not only can establishing a set list for every candidate speed up the hiring process, it can also help you avoid any accidental bias.

    Unstructured interviews without any defined questions can put candidates on different playing fields. One interviewee may provide a great answer to one question, but you can’t compare those responses if you ask different questions or present them in a different manner. Standardized interviews allow you to minimize bias by focusing on important factors and being able to analyze each candidate as evenly as possible.

    Avoid snap judgments

    According to Monster, “job applicants have on average just 6 minutes and 25 seconds during the first meeting to impress interviewers.” Other studies suggest that some interviewers made hiring decisions after just 15 seconds. First impressions are important, but banking on initial observations is quick path to unconscious bias.

    Simply put, it’s easy to judge people at first glance. The problem is that interviewers shouldn’t let superficial factors cloud the entire interview. It’s crucial to focus on factors that will directly impact job performance instead of personal details. For example, visible tattoos, hair color, and body weight can all play into a person’s first impression, but shouldn’t affect a candidate’s standing unless it’s a direct negative for the position. 

    Snap judgments also go both ways. There can be situations where an interview may be unconsciously biased toward a candidate because of a first impression. Even something as simple as going to the same high school or being proud Corgi owners can add a sense of “likability” that may color your perception of a candidate’s answers. Instead be hyper-aware that the quality of the interview should focus on a candidate’s qualifications and fit for the company, not some secondary factor.

    Don’t ask for salary history

    While you may be curious to know what candidates earned in the past, that information may do more harm than good. First, certain states have made it illegal to ask applicants about their salary history. Even if you’re in a state that still allows the practice, that information can lead to incorrect misconceptions about certain candidates.

    One reason for this is that it can be easy to try and relate people’s current and past salaries to their abilities and level of responsibility. However, that’s not necessarily the case. Every company approaches compensation differently, so it’s impossible to truly know if a lower salary is an indication of lesser talent or if employees are applying because it’s a better opportunity.

    For example, the presence of unconscious gender bias plays a part in why women’s median annual earnings are $9,766 less than men’s. In the end, it can be close to impossible to definitively use salary history to judge a candidate’s ability. Instead, it’s best to avoid the question and remove any possibility of unconscious bias based on the results.

    Provide a salary range

    While asking for salary history can prove problematic, providing a salary range is a good way to keep everyone on the same page. Salary ranges provide a few distinct benefits. Notably, they allow you to set a salary expectation upfront and streamline or even eliminate salary negotiations from the hiring process. An added benefit of this tactic is that it can help eliminate some unexpected biases as well.

    As with asking for a salary history, the salary negotiation process can create some unconscious preconceptions that aren’t a true indicator of a candidate’s ability or fit. For example, some interviewers may find it odd if talented candidates ask for notably less than what you expect to pay them. A possible reaction would be to assume that these candidates aren’t as good as they seem in an interview and on paper. They may simply come from a business that paid them notably less – especially if their salaries are impacted by the aforementioned pay gap. By setting a salary range, you can avoid these questions altogether and build trust with candidates who appreciate transparency. 

    Use skill assessments and work sample tests

    If you’re trying to find the best possible person for a certain role, it may be best to test out their skills first. Resumes, interviews, and other sources can provide great insight. Unfortunately, it’s no secret that some candidates will exaggerate their abilities. However, you may be more likely to believe them based on a snap judgment or some other preconceived notion. Work sample tests and skill assessments can give you additional evidence of just how well a candidate can perform a job or if they have what it takes to succeed.

    If you want an indicator of whether an employee has what it takes, skill assessments can give you extra insight into that person’s capabilities. From personality tests to situational judgment assessments, these examinations can help you confirm or deny any initial suspicions so that your company isn’t banking on gut decisions alone. The exact skill assessments you choose can vary greatly. To help, TalentLyft provides a comprehensive list of different skill assessment tools available.

    Work sample tests offer extra insight in that you’ll get to see how a candidate may do with a real project or task. These tests are different than requesting past work samples – you have full control over what is assigned. In addition, the test you use for an opening should be the same for every candidate who makes it to that point in the process. This will allow you to compare each candidate based on the quality of their work instead of outside factors.

    Identify the Perfect Candidates for Your Company

    The hiring process is complicated. While it may seem simple – find and hire the best candidate – there are a multitude of factors that impact every step of the process. However, all the time and effort spent is worth it when you find that perfect person to fill a position.

    Of course, there are always ways to help streamline and improve the hiring process. GMS can help you create a new, more efficient hiring process to not only help you find the right people for your business, but also help you use your time to focus on growing your business in other ways. Contact GMS today to talk about employee recruitment and onboarding management.