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Conversations around diversity and inclusion reached new levels after the events of 2020. Brands across every industry made pledges to become more diverse and to do more to truly listen to employees and customers from historically underrepresented and marginalized groups.
Despite this, many companies continue to lag behind in their diversity and inclusion efforts. While there are many reasons that can contribute to these failures, a recruiter’s ability to find qualified talent shouldn’t be one of them.
Ilit Raz, co-founder and CEO of Joonko, is aiming to upend perceived challenges associated with hiring underrepresented groups, creating true win-win scenarios for job candidates and employers alike. Hoping to build off the momentum the tech startup experienced in 2020, Raz and her team hope to use increased awareness to make diversity even more of a priority in the workplace.
Which Groups Are Underrepresented?
“Women and people of color account for only 14 percent of Fortune 500 CEOs, which is a shame,” Raz says. “ If it wasn’t the case, the ‘business world’ could have benefited from diverse leadership that drives new innovations and growth; the loss is all ours.”
There are many factors which can result in a largely homogenous company. A lack of diversity among leadership can affect hiring decisions throughout the company, where hiring processes might lack inclusion as a priority.
As just one example, this can cause applicants from historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) to be overlooked in favor of students from “traditional” recruiting powerhouses.
Such issues create an exclusive company culture that might fear change. Individuals who share similar racial, educational, religious or political backgrounds fit right in due to affinity bias, which makes us naturally seek out people who look and think the same as we do. But those from diverse backgrounds may not even get a chance to make an impact. Cultural change must take place at all levels of the company, including the hiring process.
How Joonko Builds Its Applicant Pool
“At Joonko we understand that many recruiters have a hard time locating and attracting top talent, and filling out multiple positions with underrepresented applicants,” Raz points out. “By drawing on the ‘silver medalist’ talent, we’ve built a powerful pool of qualified applicants.”
To date, Joonko has accumulated a pool of over 100,000 job candidates that come from underrepresented groups and are referred to as “silver medalist” candidates because they were finalists for other competitive positions. They may not have been hired by one company, but this doesn’t discount their potential value for a different one.
Each individual who enters the Joonko talent pool is vetted by one of the partner companies. “The best job finalists who were not selected by one of our partner companies can be another company’s winning talent,” Raz explains. “This partnership-style approach allows recruiting managers to capitalize on candidates that are at a higher potential match to the role than if they simply went to standard job boards, saving them immense time on manual sourcing.”
How Joonko Links Talent to Employers
Aiding companies that have made diversity and inclusion a priority is an important goal for Raz and her team. “When recruiters can save time on sourcing and attracting underrepresented candidates to their open roles , they can focus on vetting these individuals and finding the absolute best match.”
Joonko accomplishes this through the use of an AI-powered algorithm that connects to its partner companies’ applicant tracking systems (ATS). The algorithm identifies prequalified, diverse candidates who were ultimately not hired for a particular opening and then matches them to other relevant listings within Joonko’s network.
“Artificial intelligence is a powerful tool for detecting conscious and unconscious biases that exist during the hiring process,” Raz explains. “It can further enhance diversity efforts when it is specifically tasked with locating underrepresented groups to meet your hiring goals.”
The use of AI has helped Joonko streamline the hiring process for major brands such as Adidas, American Express, PayPal and Intuit. With a steady flow of diverse applicants, these companies have been able to take important strides in their diversity and inclusion efforts, while having confidence that they are getting top-quality talent.
Creating a More Diverse Workforce
“From what I see, and this is backed by numerous studies — diversity offers a direct path to a better workforce: more productive, more innovative, and more profitable, Raz shares. “When companies hire professionals from underrepresented backgrounds, they gain access to new perspectives and reap the multiple benefits that such talent brings to the table, by creating a winning culture for everyone. This shouldn’t just be a nice goal to have — it should be a top business priority.”
Companies with diverse management increase revenue by 19 percent. Increasing racial and ethnic diversity alone makes companies 35 percent more likely to experience above-average financial returns. As companies utilize resources such as Joonko to enhance the diversity of their workforce, they can ensure that they don’t fall into a “tokenism” trap and generate real results by creating a more equitable and inclusive environment.
