There’s a bit of a common misconception that video interviewing acts as a barrier for diverse talent. Some believe that minorities are at risk of being discriminated against when displaying the visual aspects of their diversity. However, the opposite is true. Evidence from our customer base shows that the inclusion of video makes their processes more accessible, more transparent and can actually help expose discrimination. Here’s how…

Video exposes conscious and unconscious bias

Analytics built into video software allows recruiters to see how many times video interviews have, or haven’t, been watched by the hiring manager and other stakeholders in their business. A telltale sign of discrimination would be if someone’s video hadn’t been viewed at all, or only in part, before a decision was made. For recruiters, the ability to access this  information is essential in ensuring everyone in your team is acting appropriately and complying with your D&I policies. 

Video is convenient 

It’s important to consider the accessibility of your hiring process. If you’re offering a remote or hybrid role then the option to interview remotely must be in place too. Wheelchair users might find it difficult to make their way to an interview and would rather showcase themselves from the comfort of their own homes. You don’t want to miss out on the best people for the job because of mobility. 

Video encourages collaboration 

Having the interviews recorded allows you to bring more of the team into the discussion. From a D&I perspective, this is beneficial. The more you have people involved in the evaluation process, the more likely your team is to spot bias and discrimination. When you increase the number of people in the process you also increase the diversity of perspectives. This will reduce the chance of one person’s bias having a significant impact on the hiring process. 

Video increases your candidate pool 

When you increase the number of people able to apply, you increase your chances of building a more diverse workforce. According to a report from Monster, 83% of Gen Z candidates said that a commitment to diversity and inclusion was important when selecting an employer.

Hopefully any doubts you may have had have been well and truly quashed. We have several examples from clients - agency and in-house - where the analytics provided have helped unearth conscious and unconscious bias in their organisations. The best bit, being able to take action to resolve this results in them having a more diverse workforce too. Win win!