How Real-Time Data Analytics Can Increase DEI Success

This year’s Fortune 500 list included a ranking of the most progressive companies in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). However, out of all 500, just 16 companies voluntarily provided their DEI data, and DEI data was only available for half of the Fortune 500 companies on the list. This signals a huge problem among America’s top companies and a need to reinvent how leaders are measuring data within their organizations to create meaningful change.

This problem is front and center for employees, as more than half of workersOpens a new window believe their own company has failed at creating a diverse workplace. As we are in the midst of the “Great Resignation”, with 95% of workersOpens a new window considering changing jobs, employers need to consider employee priorities, including DEI.

While the last 18 months have ignited a larger focus on DEI in many organizations, caring about the issue doesn’t immediately equal success. But as DEI continues to grow in importance to employees, candidates and investors, how can companies ensure their strategies are successful?

See More: 3 Ways To Leverage Hiring Tech for DE&I Success

Utilizing Real-Time Data Analytics

While there are a variety of strategies to address DEI challenges in the workplace, data is the most critical aspect to successfully growing a diverse workforce. Without available data to understand where there are challenges in diversifying your workforce, it’s difficult to identify the most impactful levers to pull and goals to focus on. Data allows teams to track progress more effectively, provide updates to senior leadership teams, make better decisions, and ultimately move the needle substantively on DEI. Most companies likely already have a lot of data they can tap into (for example, data on how attrition, promotions, raises, etc., break down by different demographic groups). They can also benefit from thoughtfully collecting additional or more comprehensive data (for example, voluntary, anonymized demographic data from candidates, to assess the diversity of recruiting pipelines if there are drops in diversity through various stages of the interview process, identify hot spots, etc.). Having this data available in real-time allows organizations to make decisions based on the current reality of what they’re seeing, rather than creating a strategy based on data from 6 months ago.

Removing Unconscious Bias From the Hiring Process

With the right data in real-time, HR leaders can recognize if an interviewer is consistently providing feedback that presents negatively against particular demographic groups. Additionally, since unconscious bias is often caused by groupthink, technology can help eliminate the ability for one interviewer to see others’ thoughts on a candidate before submitting their own feedback. This lessens the possibility of bias and provides a more objective picture of the candidate. Furthermore, if HR teams are finding challenges in bringing diverse candidates in the door, it could be time to consider anonymized resume reviews, which helps reduce (often unconscious) biases that people may associate with names from particular genders, races, religions, etc.

Uncovering DEI Gaps in the Interview Process

If HR teams are seeing a diverse applicant pool but few diverse hires making it to the final stages, it’s time to take a critical look at the candidate funnel and interview process. Comparing data from inbound leads to the percent of candidates who make it to the final stages across various demographics can allow HR teams to uncover wherein the process there might be deficits or potential biases. For example, if there is one hiring manager consistently providing negative feedback about candidates from a particular background, HR teams can look into additional training for those involved in interviewing. On the other hand, if the data is pointing to a lack of diversity in the candidate pool as a whole, it’s a critical sign for HR teams to take a deeper look into its recruiting lead generation process and possibly leverage proactive sourcing more heavily to ensure more diversity at the top of the funnel.

For organizations struggling to attract diverse talent, updating job postings with “impact descriptions” is also a good place to start. Impact descriptions are tailored more toward the expectations of the role itself at 3, 6, and 12 months in, rather than the background qualifications of the candidates, allowing a more diverse pool to feel they would be qualified for the role and apply. For example, a candidate with a 2-year college background may be discouraged from applying to a role if there’s a bachelor’s degree requirement versus if the job description instead focuses on the role and the impact it can and should have.

See More: Improving Inclusion Within Tech: 3 Ways To Create a More Diverse Pipeline

Understanding Potential Compensation Gaps

At the end of the hiring process, and even among current employees, compensation gaps are an important indicator of potential DEI challenges. Having data on salaries across the company, broken down by race, gender, age, etc., allows HR teams to identify if one group has a higher or lower average salary than others and investigate any concerning gaps. Many companies have also opted to leverage third-party compensation benchmarks to inform comp decisions more objectively. It’s also important to check for internal parity when making offers and giving out raises to make sure people doing the same job in the same location and performing at the same level are paid equitably.

Creating Change Based on Data

After tapping into real-time data across its processes, HR leaders can also benefit from making sure that the actions its priorities are having the intended outcomes. Quantitative data — the ones this article has primarily focused on — can help demonstrate this, but so can qualitative data, such as employee surveys or pulse checks that provide valuable information on how employees feel about DEI within the organization, and if the efforts implemented are impactful. As DEI continues to be a growing priority for organizations of all sizes, it is critical for data and analytics to be a major part of HR teams’ strategies for creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment.

How is real-time data and analytics helping you improve your DEI programs? Let us know on LinkedInOpens a new window , FacebookOpens a new window , and TwitterOpens a new window