Posted by Bias is when you judge someone or something based on assumptions or ideas about them instead of facts. When bias comes up during an interview, it can hurt your company’s ability to hire the best people. You can take steps to reduce the effects of interview bias and keep it from damaging the individual. First, you need to know what interview bias is and how it affects hiring.
The good news is that your company can stop interview bias from affecting hiring choices by doing a few things.
Here are 4 ways to prevent interview bias from happening:
1. Set up a standard way to interview people.
One of the best things your company can do to avoid interview bias is to ensure that all interviewers follow the same steps. This process could include a list of top questions to ask all candidates, a set script to follow during the interview, or a fixed evaluation matrix to rate each candidate on several different factors.
Having a structure causes interviewers to look past their opinions and stereotypes and judge each candidate based on everything they bring, including skills, talent, training, attributes, and experience.
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2. Think about other ways to interview.
If your business has been doing the same one-on-one interviews for years, it may be time for a change. You can use different types of interviewing techniques to help stop bias, such as:
- Phone screenings: Doing initial phone screenings is a great way to learn more about a candidate without letting their first views change how you feel about them. This step can help you avoid the “halo and horns” effect by giving you time to learn more about a candidate before a more formal discussion.
- Panel interviews: Steering clear one-on-one questions can also help keep the interview process from being biased. Instead, use methods for interviewing a panel. Since it’s unlikely that all interviewers on the panel have the same biases, one person’s ideas or stereotypes won’t be able to control who gets hired.
- Blind interviews: This interview method is increasingly common and a great way to keep attitudes and stereotypes out of the hiring process.
- Video interviews: This is also a great choice because the employer can go back and watch the interview again to learn more about the candidate’s skills. You can also show these videos to others to get their thoughts before deciding who to hire.
3. Test people before you hire them.
With pre-hire assessments, your business can check out a candidate’s skills and talents before making a final decision about whether or not to hire them. There are many kinds of pre-employment tests, such as:
- Reviews on skills
- Tests of character
- Evaluations based on the job
- Tests of emotional intelligence
- Tests of cognitive skills
4. Changing the job description
Take time to review your job titles and change them if you need to. Make sure that these descriptions are not too vague and instead list the specific skills, experience, education, and talents needed for the job. Let hiring managers and bosses help you update these job descriptions to ensure you have the most accurate picture of the job.
This step can help you find people with the skills you need and take some of the bias out of the interviewing process. If a job description is clear and to the point, it will be easier for hiring managers to figure out what kind of person the business wants.
5. Set clear goals for diversity
If your business doesn’t have clear goals for diversity, hiring a diverse group of people will be hard. You should ensure all hiring managers and senior members understand these goals. But your business must do more than just set goals. You must also regularly look at the hiring results to ensure the company is meeting these goals. Suppose the business isn’t meeting these goals. In that case, changing the interview process and other parts of the hiring process is important as needed.
With clear goals and regular evaluations, your business can work to get rid of bias in the interview process and keep it from affecting how it hires people in general. Instead, your business can focus on building a team of high-quality candidates from many different backgrounds.
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Anisa is a writer who focuses on career and lifestyle topics in an effort to motivate both job searchers and employers towards greater fulfillment in their professional lives.
Reach me at anisa@jobstore.com.