We're proud of our important contribution to Diversity, Equity & Inclusion with our client partners.
Recently, a major organisation in the defence field asked Outsource UK to audit their hiring activities in the UK for inclusion and diversity.
According to research conducted by Scope:
- Two-thirds (67%) of the British public feel uncomfortable talking to disabled people.
- Over a third (36%) of people tend to think of disabled people as not as productive as everyone else.
- One quarter (24%) of disabled people have experienced attitudes or behaviours where other people expected less of them because of their disability.
- One fifth (21%) of 18 – 34 years old admit that they have actually avoided talking to a disabled person because they weren’t sure how to communicate with them
- (www.scope.org.uk/)
By hiring a diverse workforce, there are clear business benefits from greater innovation, higher retention, and a positive brand image, and employees will also personally benefit by learning new things about people different to them.
Our solution
Our brief was to examine the end-to-end policies, processes and systems of new staff recruitment and retention, to provide feedback on measures for increasing inclusion and diversity within a male-dominated industry.
Our initial standpoint was that the company should be directly approaching and asking, not just inviting, the client’s target audience to apply.
Included in the scope was to examine:
- Website and digital accessibility
- Building accessibility
- Candidate attraction & screening
- Inclusion once in role.
It was emphasised that certain factors would not instantly guarantee a greater influx of diverse applicants, however, it would increase the chances of a diverse audience considering the client as a future employer. We also made some recommendations on how the business could present itself further as an inclusive organisation, which may not only help to ‘sell’ the culture, but also retain current employees.
The outcomes
"Outsource UK’s brief was to examine our end-to-end policies, processes and practices for talent attraction and retention and provide feedback on measures for improving diverse representation, highlighting potential barriers for people from all walks of life, as well as social mobility.
They provided a timely report, split into a number of workstreams covering digital and physical accessibility, talent attraction and screening, brand perception and promotion, and inclusion once in the role. They also provided a number of recommendations, many of which we were able to implement ‘in-house’, whilst also offering insight into Outsource’s talent and training solutions and how they fit with our Inclusion and Diversity agenda, such as their flagship ‘Women in Cyber’ programme and returner upskilling solutions.
Their approach has always been consultative and transparent, signposting others where necessary, with no hidden agenda. I consider Outsource to be a talent partner, offering valuable ‘in-house’ consultancy services, as well as forward-thinking recruitment solutions tailored to our unique requirements."
Global Head of Resourcing & Talent, Defence Consultancy, UK
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