Companies are no longer just focusing on diversity, they are also strengthening their inclusion policies. While diversity implies, for example, the presence of people from different backgrounds or genders, inclusion consists in ensuring that everyone can express themselves freely and evolve within the company.
Today, the principle of equity is a central subject as it is essential to the feeling of belonging. The tech sector, which attracts talent from all over the world, still has room for improvement on these points.
Women, non-binary people, people from minorities or older than average remain underrepresented. How to make this world more diverse and inclusive?
Discover how Paradigm Strategy is revolutionizing the world of tech in its pursuit of diversity and inclusion. Explore their innovative approach and comprehensive solutions to drive meaningful change and foster an inclusive tech industry.
The benefits of diversity and inclusion
Diverse teams foster creativity, innovation and work efficiency. Indeed, they can be quicker to find solutions thanks to the personal experiences of each, which give rise to different points of view. Members of these teams tend to feel happier and more motivated when their ideas are valued and considered in an inclusive environment.
To overcome the lack of parity within teams, the government and national education launched a “mixed” plan in 2021 to change the orientation of students and achieve at least 30% girls in specialized subsidiaries in high school. , such as the “digital and computer science” subsidiary.
However, within a rapidly expanding cybersecurity sector in the tech world, women represented only 11% of all French cyber professionals. The tech world faces the same challenges as the rest of society. He must therefore ensure that he develops an inclusive and attractive workplace for all employees, by offering opportunities to a variety of profiles. Moreover, companies that do not set up structures open to all are depriving themselves of talents that are all the more valuable in the context of the labor shortage that we are going through.
How can organizations ensure greater inclusion?
In order to create a more inclusive and fair work environment, leaders must set goals to integrate into the company’s strategy. In particular, they can put in place communications guidelines such as the use of inclusive language, have a diversified approach to business partners right from the supply chain and become actively involved in associations committed to diversity. It may also be relevant to offer training around inclusion and to create support structures for employees such as employee resource groups (ERGs) that can convey these values.
In a constantly changing and highly competitive environment like the world of tech, employee satisfaction is essential. Even in a complicated economic situation, there are many job offers. A positive and stimulating work environment is therefore all the more crucial for attracting, hiring and above all retaining talent from different backgrounds. It is by guaranteeing employees fair development opportunities that companies will achieve this.
Employees should also be able to share their thoughts and concerns about diversity and inclusion so that managers can identify areas for improvement.
Demonstrate flexibility from the recruitment process
Flexibility is paramount in recruiting diverse profiles. Companies can improve work-life balance by introducing flexible work organization models. In order for inclusion to become a reality in the company, working hours must be more flexible. Leaders should also be open-minded about candidates with unusual backgrounds and consider those who may not have all the required qualifications.
We must therefore not deprive ourselves of candidates without a degree in computer science, having studied other subjects or self-taught. The recruitment of students at the end of bootcamp, during which they train in coding in less than six months, is also increasingly frequent and popular.
A true commitment to diversity and inclusion starts with hiring. It is the responsibility of companies to train recruiters and HR managers very early on in inclusive practices. They must implement fair hiring processes that are as free from bias as possible, for example by allowing anonymous applications. The first impression of the recruiter is then totally independent of the external characteristics, of gender or linked to the origin of the candidate. Additionally, recruiters need to be educated about unconscious biases so they can combat them when reading job applications. To attract profiles that are usually reluctant to apply or quickly exited the process, companies can work with organizations and associations that interact with under-represented populations.
A virtuous circle
In addition to improving creativity, innovation and efficiency, inclusion contributes significantly to creating a culture of engagement for all employees. When employees are valued, respected and included, they are more likely to be engaged and satisfied with their work. To achieve this objective, the key lies in the strategic development of a diversified corporate culture as well as inclusive communication.
As a sector that proclaims itself to be open to all, the technology industry must ensure that everyone is represented, that all employees share the feeling of belonging to a group and of being able to succeed by remaining themselves.