Have you actively looked to hire more women but just don’t seem to get the applicants? This is probably why…
We recently spoke to the team at Illustrate (an epic WordPress agency) – Melin Edomwonyi, Margaret Ascroft and Scott Jones – about the gender gap in our industry.
They spotted a pattern when posting a job application and listing the must have skills/experience…
Men would apply if they meet a few of them.
Thinking that they can easily wing the other stuff. Potentially overselling themselves.
Women would only apply if they meet every single one of the criteria and they have a tendency to undersell themselves.
Illustrate said they started to read between the lines on CVs. Instead taking more chances inviting candidates in to meet / phone calls that they felt are underselling. Evaluate candidates based on attitudes, motivation and behaviour throughout this process.
The result:
- Great hires and more diversity in thinking in the team.
- They’ve seen their agency grow stronger as a result of their female hires in their agency.
It may take more time in the recruitment process – but is worth it. It is not enough to say: “well only men applied”
You can make a difference today.
