Consciously or unconsciously there is hiring bias attached to each decision we make. Settling on the correct choice while hiring is essential to any organization as it will decide whether the new hire will be an ideal match for the required aptitudes, the team attitude, and the organizational culture. Today, technology and data have been of enormous help while making recruitment decisions. We have more data, and we can combine this data to settle on the best possible choice for any occasion.

Nevertheless, the ones who will make the choice, at last, are individuals, and as humans, our choices at times depend on facts and logic as well as on emotions and personal experiences also. We are vulnerable to bias as we regularly settle on decisions based on age, race, ethnicity, beliefs, and gender of their candidates. Such choices directly affect the quality of the person who will be hired at the end of the process.

The reasoning is that while choosing people in view of the previously mentioned viewpoints, we miss the chance to consider candidates who may better match the required knowledge and the necessary skills and attitude for the position we are hiring for.

Common Types of Hiring Bias

Halo and Horns Effect: Halo effect is the phenomenon when we expect that since individuals are great at completing one thing right, they will be great at doing other things perfectly as well. It is closely connected with the first impression. If we create a first good impression about somebody, it is difficult for us to change the way we see this individual later. The inverse occurs under the "Horns effect".

If we formulate a negative impression about a candidate when we initially meet him/her, at that point we have a tendency to overlook any of his/her positive attributes and focus just on unfavorable ones.

Expectation Anchor: This specific kind of inclination happens when a recruiter does the screening of several CVs and likes one of them more than the others. In this manner, the recruiter while interviewing all the candidates will expect the competitor with the CV that he/she got a kick out of the chance to perform superior to the other applicants. The recruiter will settle on choices which are agreeable to this one individual whose CV he/she loved during the pre-screening process.

Subsequently, all other candidates are at a disadvantage compared to the candidate recruiter favors.

Affinity Bias: We apply affinity bias when we search for individuals who went to the college as we did, or who grew up in the same city as we did. We do not focus on the essential aptitudes or knowledge yet focus on similarities we may have with the candidate concerning our personal, educational, and professional background. All things considered, finding someone from a similar home city or somebody who owns the same educational qualification as we do, can lead us to compromise on matching the desired skills and the full job requirements for our own similarities.

Judging individuals' capacity to perform well based on their body weight/shape, their appearance, or their tattoos is very illogical. Everyone is special in his or her unique way, and no one has the right to make assumptions based on the previously mentioned characteristics. Recruiters should abstain from settling on choices in view of the way somebody looks, and recruiters should abstain from being biased as far as how the performance of a candidate could be related to his/her superficial characteristics.

Avoiding Hiring Bias

  • Go Blind for the Resume Review: Ensure that you are focused on your candidate's specific qualification, talent and not surface demographic characteristics.

  • Give a Work Sample Test: Put them on a task that they will be doing on the job if hired. It is the best indicator of future job performance.

  • Simplify and Standardize the Process: Pre-formulate the questions that you will ask the candidate. Avoid asking bias-based and sensitive questions.

Role of jiTalent in Reducing Hiring Bias

Today, you can keep away from the worry of making the wrong decision while hiring someone. With the help of jiTalent, you do not need to stress any longer over how much bias you unconsciously bring in while assessing someone, influencing you to hire someone who does not match all the desired skills and job requirements. jiTalent provides us with the chance to assess an applicant's abilities prior to meeting the candidate in person or meeting his/her demographic and superficial characteristics. 

It allows organizations to conduct tests to screen technical candidates. It automatically creates challenges, remotely assesses candidates, and gives detailed and objective insights on their technical skills. Recruiters can use such software to hire without bias during the recruitment process which could otherwise adversely influence their final decision and disappoint amid performance reviews later on. Implement jiTalent as soon as possible in your organization to make the right decision at the right time.