How Diversity Data Collection Can Help Strengthen DEI Hiring Efforts

Creating a diversity recruitment plan gives your organization a roadmap of what you need to do to hire historically underrepresented candidates. However, if you don’t do diversity data collection throughout your hiring process, you may be more likely to hit speed bumps as you move forward with your plan. Diversity data collection provides the pertinent information you need to understand how effective your recruitment strategies are, as well as give you a clear picture of how diverse your workforce is and what areas you need to make improvements on. 

Today, what most recruiters rely on for candidate diversity data is the EEOC questionnaire that’s part of application processes. But due to the low EEOC completion rate, recruiters cannot truly see how diverse their pipelines are— making diversity hiring ineffective.   

Setting, tracking, and hitting DEI goals cannot be easily achieved without reliable data. But with the right tools, like our platform, you only need to sync your Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to reveal the diversity of your candidate pipeline. 

Continue reading for more information on how data can help you increase your DEI hiring efforts and create the workforce you want.

How to Collect Diversity Data and Use Diversity Analytics to Your DEI Advantage  

In order for your diversity data collection to be effective, you must first determine what data points you need to measure. Whether you have an issue getting Black women to interview for open positions or retaining members of the LGBTQ+ community after working at your organization for a few years, you need to have the specific numbers to address the specific problems you’re trying to solve. 

After you understand how data fits into your goals, your company should make sure that there are policies and procedures in place so you don’t violate applicable laws.  When you collect data, you can use digital platforms or paper forms—and be sure to let job candidates and current employees know why you’re asking the questions and what the data will be used for.

There are several advantages to collecting diversity data, including:

Identifying gaps in the workforce

Ongoing data collection helps organizations understand the demographics of their current workforce. Workplace diversity data will help you identify what groups of people are not represented in your company so you can create strategies for attracting those workers. 

Understanding the candidate pipeline

Without data collection, you’ll have no way of knowing if your diversity recruitment plan and strategies are effective. You need to understand what candidates are applying for positions at your organization, which positions they’re applying for, and how many untapped candidates end up being shortlisted and ultimately hired.

‍Getting a clear picture of employee experience

How do employees feel about working at your company? Are they getting the support from management they need? What improvements would they like to see? By collecting data on employee experience, you can give them a voice to express what’s going on with them at work on a day-to-day basis. This will go a long way toward understanding the needs of historically excluded employees so you can make the workplace more inclusive for them.‍

Tracking turnover

It’s important to understand that hiring diverse teams is only half the battle—your organization still needs to retain these workers to create a diverse environment. By tracking turnover, as well as demographic data, you will understand what groups of people are likely to leave your organization, when they leave, and why they leave.

Detecting equity shortfalls.

In order to help prevent high turnover among untapped talent, your company must create an equitable environment where they can thrive. Tracking data about salaries, raises, promotions, bonuses, and other perks can help you get an idea of who is receiving these benefits, how much people are receiving, and whether or not they are being distributed equally among all employees. If compensation for underrepresented workers falls short, this needs to be corrected to reduce turnover.

What Impact Does Diversity Data Collection Have on Your Organization?

When recruiters are armed with information, it can have a huge impact on diversity recruiting. Some of the ways diversity data collect can impact your organization includes:

• Better data means a greater impact on DEI efforts. Data can be part of the foundation that an effective DEI plan is built on. By regularly tracking information, you know where your organization stands and what needs to change. As a result, diversity data provides an invaluable look at what you have done toward your DEI efforts, and what more you need to do.
  

• Adapt and learn from the diversity data collected. Tackling DEI is an ongoing process that is ever-changing. By having demographic data readily available, recruiters can identify how they may have fallen short on their goals so they can learn from it and correct the issues. These insights help organizations understand where they should be investing their resources and how they can become more effective in meeting their diversity hiring and retention goals.
  

• Organizations can use data to break cultural barriers. With more and more talent considering the diversity and inclusion of an organization when deciding where to work, showcasing diversity data can help companies illustrate their dedication to DEI. This kind of transparency can signal to job seekers that your company shares their values and you embrace talent from different backgrounds, thus helping to break cultural barriers that may have kept certain communities from considering your company as a viable place to work.  
  

Collect and Use Data With a Diversity Recruiting Platform

A diversity recruiting platform, or DRP, is a software tool that recruiters can use to obtain insights on representation gaps they need to fill. These tools are effective because they allow organizations to easily identify, source, and engage with different talent demographics so they can attract and hire talent from underserved populations. In addition, DRPs help companies track their diversity initiatives, identify and remove bias in the hiring process, and eliminate the guesswork of hiring diverse teams.

With a DRP, like out platform, talent teams will be able to move beyond relying solely on limited EEOC data. We have an 87% diversity data completion rate to eliminate the guesswork in hiring diverse teams and enables recruiters to clearly see where gaps in diversity exist.  

Diversity data collection helps organizations bolster DEI hiring efforts, as well as use information to ensure their workplace is more welcoming to the underserved talent they hire. By using a diversity recruiting platform, such as the data analytics product offered by us, companies are better positioned to reach their D&I goals.