Most recruiters understand that diversity can play a role in a company’s success. When a variety of perspectives are brought together, organizations typically benefit. They may become more innovative or be better attuned to a broader customer base, both of which can lead to higher profits.
Additionally, higher levels of diversity also have positive impacts on other business areas, including recruitment and retention.
If you are wondering why diversity should matter to you as a recruiter, here’s what you need to know.
Diverse Workforces Outperform the Competition
One of the most compelling reasons why diversity should matter to recruiters comes down to performance. If a company is in the top quartile for gender diversity, it is 15 percent more likely to secure financial returns above the national median for its industry. When it comes to ethnic and racial diversity, a company is 35 percent more likely to exceed that benchmark.
Additionally, there is a strong relationship between diversity and earnings. At the senior leadership level, for every 10 percent increase in ethnic and racial diversity, U.S. companies see an earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) increase of 0.8 percent.
Diverse Management Teams
Based on that data, one could easily see how diversity impacts the chance that an organization will be a leader in its industry. However, this point is driven home when the opposite scenario is examined.
When a company is in the bottom quartile for ethnic, racial, and gender diversity, their returns typically lag behind organizations that fell close to the average in that data set. They were statistically less likely to achieve above-average returns when compared to the average, demonstrating how a lack of diversity can hinder a business.
Innovation Leaders and Diversity
Workplace diversity can have a substantial impact on innovation. When a company is inclusive, it is 1.7 times more likely to be a leader of innovation in its industry.
Additionally, when the management team is diverse, innovation revenue was 19 percentage points above that of companies that had below-average diversity in the management tiers. Plus, companies with above-average diversity in their leadership also reported EBIT margins 9 percentage points above those that were considered below average.
Recruitment and Retention Benefits
As a recruiter, hiring and retention metrics are at the core of your professional life. When a company embraces diversity, it frequently outperforms the competition in these critical areas as well.
Workplace diversity can actually lead to higher job acceptance rates, as 67 percent of candidates consider that factor when deciding whether to accept an employment offer. For minorities, a diverse workforce is cited more frequently as a decision-making point. For women, 72 percent take it into consideration. For Latino, Asian, or black candidates, the numbers are 70, 80, and 89 percent, respectively.
Additionally, professionals want their employers to support greater levels of diversity. 57 percent of employees asserted that they want to see these kinds of initiatives.
When a workplace is diverse, employees typically feel safer and more welcome. Considering that 45 percent of workers, over the past 12 months, have experienced discrimination or harassment, it should be a surprise that inclusion is a factor in retention.
Executive-Level Buy-in
Since a recruiter is often responsible for aligning their efforts with priorities set by leadership, diversity should always matter. When it comes to diversity and inclusion, 69 percent of executives view it as a critical issue.
As a result, diversity should always be at the forefront of a recruiter’s mind. Not only does it lead to better financial returns and higher degrees of innovation, but company leaders consider it a priority. Plus, employees and job seekers also view it as important, causing it to impact recruitment and retention.
If you would like to learn more about the benefits of diversity in hiring, the staff at Cloutera can help. Contact us to discuss your questions with a member of our knowledgeable team today and see how our diversity and inclusion expertise can benefit you.
