A radio interview -my first!

I was sitting at the airport waiting for a flight to Cairns to work with some great clients when I received a call from Kate O'Toole from ABC radio NT asking if I was available for an interview.  I've never done a radio interview before and I noticed my brain immediately finding reasons to avoid this one.  I didn't have time, the flight would be called soon, I couldn't prepare etc.  

But ...

The lovely Kate convinced me no preparation was needed, it was just a chat. She sent me a quick link to the VIC government program that had prompted her enquiry and before I knew it I was doing a radio interview. 

It was very exciting!  Of course afterwards, on the flight, I thought of many other, wiser things I could have said, but I've since been reassured by more experienced media mouths than mine that this is a standard response.  

You can listen to the interview below and then I'll add some of the wiser points that came to mind flying Virgin Australia in the blue, blue skies above Queensland. 

How can recruiters work against unconsious bias?

As I said in the interview the research shows this is a difficul thing to do - because it is unconscious!  What you can do is

• Be very clear on the competencies needed for the job and remind yourself to check for those competencies
• Educate yourself about unconscious bias and build plans to protect yourself from falling into a biased decision.  So if, as we discussed in the interview, the applicant is from a different racial background to you acknowledge that you may be at risk of similiarty bias (where we prefer people who are like us) and spend more time checking that applicant in line with the competencies.
• If you can recruit in a team include a diverse group of recruiters in that team.
• Recognise that "cultural fit" can be a danger allowing you to recruit a homogenous group of people to a team.  And if you don't think that's dangerous read the blog I wrote about the benefits of diversity. 
• Work to increase your cultural intelligence (CQ) as this is one way to overcome unconscious bias.

If you are applying for jobs what can you do to overcome unconscious bias? 

• As I said in the interview, on your resume use the name you are called by, especially if it is easier to pronounce.  You can always explain in an interview when you have reached the stage when the recruiters are looking for further documentation that your qualifications or visa are in your more formal name.  
• Emphasise your competencies as well as your experience. 
• Use a profile right at the beginnning of the resume that talks about your competencies and what you can bring to the role.  (If you are still using the career objective at the beginnning of your resume - get rid of it now.)
• Most of all network, network, and network.  Get out and talk to people about who you are and what you can do.  On-line forums and groups where those making hiring decisions may be present are a great opportunity.  Comment and share to show your competecies. These are the most powerful actions to take in a job hunt and will overcome being one amoung many resumes.

Unconscious bias is a tough topic and what the VIC government has introduced is a great initiative.  I look forward to hearing more about how it turns out. 

And Cairns was lovely too!