Shaking hands

For many companies employees are the key resource, making it crucial for businesses to select the right type of people with the correct characteristics for each and every position. Most organisations will have detailed recruitment policies in place, which are then implemented by appropriately trained staff.

Despite these policies there are common pitfalls for companies when it comes to recruitment that can have a huge impact – not just when it comes to selecting new staff, but for the company as a whole.

It is a legal requirement for businesses to avoid any discrimination, and some companies have taken huge steps to ensure their selection process remains fair. For example, a number of firms have gone to the extent of taking names off of job seekers CV’s in order to avoid any preconceptions from interviewers – a practice known as ‘blind recruitment’.

Keep things simple

The first step to a fair recruitment process is to come to terms with the fact that the only aim of the recruitment process is to find the best candidate for the job. Race, gender, age and the like should not be a factor when it comes to making a decision.

Starting the hiring process by identifying the skills needed in order to get the job done is the first step for companies, who can then use the information to build accurate and clear job postings and descriptions.

It is important for companies to be direct about their expectations during the early stages of the process, as this helps ensure that candidates are able to assess their own abilities and find job postings that suit their expertise.

Create a level playing field

For companies the interview process is often the most integral part of a recruitment process, so to keep things fair for each candidate, the interviewer should ask each candidate the same main set of questions – although follow up questions will differ depending on the responses.

Keeping the questions focused on assessing an applicant’s ability in general areas, such as communication, experience and other skills, is a fair method for a company and is a much simpler way of understanding who is the best fit for role.

Involving a range of employees or managers in the process can also be a good strategy – it not only ensures there are multiple opinions on each applicant, but it also means each interviewer is accountable for their actions.

If you’re an employer looking to attract the best graduate talent, find out how Discovery Graduates can help.