Diversity and Inclusion in the workplace is becoming a growing issue within tech companies. Even though it is has been proven to enhance employee engagement, drive performance and increase creativity, some companies are still not there yet. Women and minorities are those who are struggling to make a career in tech. Even if they are successful in receiving a job offer, they then find it hard to grow within the company due to them not seeing signs a company values diversity and the lack of diversity.
There are several things to look for when applying for a job to ensure the company you’re aspiring to work for is diverse or at least has diversity policies in place. However, there’s no single indicator to look for which can determine an organisations overall workplace culture. It is recommended that if you want to work for an organisation that implements diversity and gives every individual an opportunity, then there are some signs to look out for. Here are some tips on what to do and where to look for signs a company values diversity.
Before accepting an offer from an organisation, or even applying for one, it is recommended to look at a variety of job descriptions. This will enable you to get a feel for a company’s culture, how they value the employees they hire and signs a company values diversity. Company’s subconsciously default to languages which only appeal to one gender, therefore reading multiple job descriptions can help you identify patterns and differences.
The use of social media and company reports can help you asses if they are diverse or not. When searching on these social platforms, look for signs of commitment to building a diverse and inclusive workforce, are they involved in a community or do they just have images showing their involvement? Using LinkedIn to search your future employer is also beneficial, because you can see what career journeys current employees have had and how they interact with other companies and individuals.
Researching third party review sites is also another way of seeing signs a company values diversity. There are a few online resources that you can use to find out about company culture and diversity policies. The sites are also useful to learn demographic information and read a variety of views from current employees. However, you should keep in mind that there is always bias when reading experiences, so ensure you look for patterns which form a larger problem than looking at one negative review. Some of the sites you can use are:
It is also useful to look at a company’s leadership team and board of directors if applicable. Here you will be able to see if they have a diverse group of leaders representing their business. The diverse group can range from age, gender, ethnicity and culture, all of which bring value to the organisation. You can do this through a company’s website as large company’s normally have annual reports showing these statistics. However, some small businesses do not show these statistics, but it is still useful to find signs a company values diversity on their website.
Hopefully before you attend an interview you have done your research on the company and your questions have been answered. However, if they haven’t and you are still wondering what diversity policies a company has, then you can still find out more during the interview process. When being interviewed, consider the interview panel and who you interact with during the process. If every interviewer thinks and talks the same about the company, then this doesn’t give a good indication that the company is self-aware around diversity and inclusion.
Don’t hesitate to ask questions in the interview regarding diversity and inclusion policies. If it is important to you, have some questions ready for the end of the interview process, as this is when you are normally given the opportunity to ask questions. You will be able to gauge if a company values diversity and inclusion by the answers they give and how quickly they give them. Here are some example questions you could ask in an interview:
If you are still unsure after the interview or still have more questions, then it is advised to discuss these with HR if you get an offer. This gives you the opportunity to receive more answers about your future employer.