What is HARM and 13 Ways it Manifests in Diversity Recruiting [Part I]
This is #IncreaseDiversity, a weekly newsletter series + Increase Diversity Toolbox sharing best practices for employers who want to learn how to… well, increase diversity. To see previous editions, visit JenniferTardy.com. | IG: @IncreaseDiversity | Increase Diversity - YouTube
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INCREASE DIVERSITY™ ROADMAP | The ID Roadmap is a training and consulting program designed to guide workplaces like yours to create a diverse and inclusive environment through diversity recruiting and retention programs. CLICK HERE
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At Team JTC, our #1 competitor is not another training and consulting company. Our biggest competitor is the workplace that attempts to go at the work of increasing diversity and retention alone, often leveraging people, theories, and strategies that may create more harm to its employees, talent pool, clients, and any other stakeholders that may be within reach.
So, that is why, this week, we’re facing the elephant in the room and unpacking a genuine question: what is harm? We’ll dive into how some organizations’ efforts to increase diversity and retention (un)intentionally cause more harm than good.
This is going to be a two-part newsletter. Part I digs into what harm is. And in Part II, we’ll discuss the repercussions of causing harm and, most importantly, what we can do to set things right.
Let’s get into it!
As we saw in our recent article, “The Long Journey to DEI and Diversity Recruitment,” Peter Drucker traced the origins of workplace diversity back to the 20th century, highlighting when increasing diversity as a concept began to emerge.
In the 1960s, the federal government passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and, subsequently, the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) compliance laws.
Fast forward to the ’70s and ’80s, the narrative around DEI began to shift from simply being compliant with federal law to a commitment to diversity and inclusion.
Speed through time again, and many organizations are making public commitments to increase diversity, speaking about social justice, and offering transparency through diversity reports.
But What Do We Mean By Harm, Anyway?
For Team JTC, when we say that we help employers to increase diversity without harm, here’s what we mean:
Without using language that “marks” or “others” individuals: Communication should never alienate or single out individuals from any group, especially historically underrepresented groups.
Without leaving employees feeling they are discriminating against cis-gender, able-bodied, heterosexual white men: While championing diversity, it’s crucial that no group, including cis-gender, able-bodied, heterosexual white men, feels left out of what should be an inclusive conversation.
Without making recruiters the villain OR the hero: Recruiters have a role to play but neither as a hero (i.e., “invest in recruiters, they will increase diversity for our workplace”) or as the villain (i.e., “if recruiters would just do their jobs, we would have increased representation.”).
Without centering the work just on the recruiting team: Increasing diversity is a holistic effort that involves everyone in the organization, not just a specific team or individual. This work not only includes recruiters, but also hiring managers, leaders, DEI practitioners, and even can go as far as creating actions for all employees.
Without tokenizing individuals from historically underrepresented groups: Everyone should be recognized for their skills and contributions, never reduced to just a checkbox or a representative figure.
Without hiring people based on how they identify: Hiring a person solely because of how they identify is just as illegal as not hiring a person because of how they identify. Besides, how a person identifies is not the central factor that makes increasing diversity so beneficial to workplaces, it is Lived Experience Intelligence.
Without ignoring or hiding demographic hiring and employment data: Transparency is key. Openly sharing and addressing demographic data helps in making informed and impactful decisions, especially in hiring.
Without insinuating hiring unqualified individuals: Diversity recruiting isn’t about changing qualifications; it is about changing mindsets, particularly around who is and is not qualified.
Without outsourcing the inner work to technology: While tech can aid the process, the true work of understanding and implementing diversity comes from genuine human effort and introspection.
Without outsourcing diversity recruiting solely to agency recruiters: In-house recruiting teams (+ all who are on the front lines of increasing diversity and retention) should also be actively involved and trained in diversity recruiting, ensuring a balanced and well-informed hiring process.
Without feeling personal confusion, resistance, or discomfort: Diversity recruiting initiatives should be approached with clarity, commitment, and understanding, ensuring everyone is on board and informed.
Without leaving employees feeling gaslighted: Every employee’s experiences and feelings are valid. No one should ever feel their perceptions are invalidated or dismissed.
Without making assumptions behind a computer: It’s essential to interact genuinely and directly, understanding individuals for who they are rather than making online presumptions or stereotypes.
At Team JTC, we believe in the essence of increasing diversity and retention with a primary goal: “Do No Harm.” It’s our platinum rule. Before we even think about the good we can achieve, we ensure our strategies don’t inadvertently cause harm. Every consulting service, speaking engagement, offering, and course we design has this core principle at heart, and we’re genuinely proud of that commitment. To learn more about our approach, feel free to explore our Increase Diversity Roadmap or our website.
Coming up in Part II, we will discuss the effects of harm on an organization and share insights on how to prevent it. So, keep an eye out!
In the meantime, I’m curious: Have you noticed any activities that might (un)intentionally harm your organization? Let’s get the conversation going. Drop your insights in the comments section.
