Changes to diversity training lead to more inclusive recruitment

Diversity training that is ‘behaviourally designed’ can improve the chances of those in underrepresented groups being hired, a new study finds.

Researchers have observed that diversity training in companies tends to be generic, while taking place too far in advance of big decisions and not being specific to the behaviours organisations want to influence.

For their study, the researchers conducted a field experiment at a large telecommunications and engineering firm that operates in over 100 countries.

Hiring managers were invited to watch a new diversity training, that was created jointly with the company and designed in the following ways:

• The training was timely, with hiring managers invited to watch a diversity training video just before shortlisting candidates.
• The training focused on hiring decisions, with managers told to base their assessment on skills and to reflect on what perspectives and characteristics were missing from teams.
• The video featured two senior company executives discussing the importance of workplace diversity, and explicitly affirmed that the company values diversity and inclusion.

It was 12% more likely for a woman to be shortlisted by a manager who had been assigned the diversity training versus a manager who had not.

Similarly, it was 13% more likely for a non-national to be shortlisted and 20% more likely for a non-national to be hired.

The researchers also explored societal factors that might have influenced the results.

Dr Cansin Arslan, lead author and senior research fellow at the University of Exeter said: “The effects of diversity training were greater in higher income countries and in countries with higher levels of gender equality. But individual factors such as the gender or seniority of the manager were not significant.”

Speaking about the importance of the findings, senior author Professor Oliver Hauser, from the University of Exeter, said: “Collectively, many organizations have spent millions of dollars and countless employee hours on diversity training. Yet there is little empirical evidence that such training increases diversity in organizations. This is an opportunity for rigorous randomized controlled trials to test what actually works.”

The randomized controlled trial was implemented at the telecommunications and engineering firm with the help of London-based behavioural consultancy, MoreThanNow.

Co-author Professor Edward Chang, from the Harvard Business School, said: “We view this research as a proof-of-concept that diversity training can work to change the diversity of hires, but its success relies on carefully considered design choices and the decision context.”

Professor Iris Bohnet and Siri Chilazi of Harvard University, co-authors of the paper and of the forthcoming book Make Work Fair, added: “Many organizations have committed to broadening their representation and want to access the full range of the talent pool. Our research offers a practical tool for leaders interested in changing behaviour to meet this commitment.”

“Behaviorally designed training leads to more diverse hiring” is published in Science.