Finding the Best Candidates: Modern Strategies for Creating Inclusive Job Descriptions to Attract a Diverse Applicant Pool

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Career Success
December 2022

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By Marina Solomos,* Neil Strotman
Merck & Co., Inc.
, Rahway, NJ, USA

 

Large US companies have worked tirelessly to increase diversity in their workforces through greater outreach, targeted recruiting practices, and heterogeneous interview teams, in addition to a strong focus on employee retention including mentorship. However, one of the first and most pivotal points of engagement with potential employees, and one that is frequently given too little attention, is the job description posted on hiring websites. Language and role requirements used in job descriptions for a given institution may seem routine and formulaic to hiring managers. With each new open role, simple modifications to previous job postings may seem sufficient to refresh language or update sought-after skillsets before posting the role and initiating a candidate search. Though this approach may work well to bring in some top talent to the company, it may also inadvertently limit the diversity of the applicant pool, and in turn, the resulting diversity of the workplace.