Diversity of Thought

Diversity is taking on a new meaning among businesses that are recruiting key people to deliver their strategic goals. Most large businesses today utilise diversity initiatives to provide suitable jobs and career opportunities for minorities. These initiatives typically target race and gender but recruitment policies rarely target candidates who think differently and do not fit the culture in place since the company was founded. Diversity of thought is becoming an important recruitment strategy for today’s leading businesses.

Many clients understand the concept of race and gender initiatives but worry at the thought of hiring candidates who don’t “fit” their culture. The idea of thinking outside the box or challenging conventional opinions is alien. They consider uniform thinking a positive outcome of a productive meeting. 

To take a company from good to great you need leaders who on the one hand argue and debate -sometimes vehemently – in pursuit of the best solutions, but are prepared to take collective responsibility regardless of personal interests. Groups can be intelligent and can often be cleverer than the cleverest individuals in them. Intelligent groups need diversity of opinion, independent thinking and a good method of accumulating opinions.

The growing dependency on assessment testing for selection needs to be considered. While determining if someone is qualified for a specific role is entirely appropriate, testing for culture fit can result in corporate sameness. It will eliminate those candidates who challenge outdated strategies, confront the status quo and present fresh ideas. Those who fit seamlessly into the existing culture are more likely to be moderate-not superior-performers. However assessment testing to identify the key factors that make top performers excel and selecting for those factors in new recruits is the way forward.

Changing how you recruit is not enough. Companies must train leaders in identifying, recruiting and ultimately maximising the potential of candidates who think differently. Aligning diversity of thought with a company’s business strategy ultimately sets it up for success. It takes much less effort to stay within our comfort zones and surround our selves with people who think like us. It’s also a good way to lose customers and market share.

One of the keys to implementing this change is to alter the key elements of the recruitment process. First it requires review and change to job descriptions ensuring that they broaden the requirements of the role and no longer contain language that perpetuates hiring the same type of candidates. Soft skills, intelligence and non-industry experience should be areas of focus. Secondly the utilisation of assessment tests should be modified to measure more broadly. Lastly, and most importantly, the change needs to be embraced at the very top of the organisation. Businesses that are committed to identifying diversity opportunities and to hiring differently will thrive.  

Call us on +44 (0)1442 863254 or Email us at enquiry@kilpatrick.uk.com