Why diversity recruiting isn't a charity

One question we hear from time-to-time is "If diversity is such an important issue why are you guys not a not-for-profit?" and the quick response to that is that diversity recruiting isn't a charity.

Okay. So what does that mean?

Well let's first acknowledge that there are many not-for-profits and governmental organizations that do fine front-line work with those who need it the most. Ranging from language training to mentorship programs to helping with culture shock these organizations do good work with new immigrants to Canada.

For one thing diversity recruiting isn't just about new immigrants! For multi-cultural candidates diverse candidates can be found in the second and third generation of immigrant families. These are people who speak English natively, are used to the culture of Canada and in every way fully qualified and experienced candidates, who also rely on media in their own language for information and news. And all of this is just looking at visible-minority candidates who of course are only part of the diversity spectrum.

More than this is that organizationally we are committed to bringing change to the way that cultural groups are viewed and worked with across Canada.

We believe that a diverse society and by extension diverse workplace is a win for everyone. We believe that diversity gives both individual companies and our society as a whole strength. We believe that we can affect real change in both the workplace and general society when it comes to embracing diversity. And with all of this we also believe that in order to effectively affect change we need to be action leaders.

We believe that by providing real, cost-effective solutions to real, current problems that companies are facing we effect real change. Our candidates aren't people looking for special treatment, but people that companies have simply missed.

All in all the work that not-for-profits do is good, and we are actively partnering with a select number of them to help spread the word about the services they offer to those who need them. But diversity recruiting isn't about charity, it's about finding good candidates.

Strength through Diversity

What is the actual value, the bottom-line ROI, of diversity to companies? And 10,000 foot-view diversity here, not just focused on diversity recruiting and hiring. We all know that diversity recruiting opens your talent pipeline to otherwise untapped pools but what ROI does being a diverse organization have?

You can start by assigning dollar figures to the very short-term values that diversity delivers. For example, meeting legal requirements. Companies that do business with the government in Canada have to comply with the Employment Equity Act and failure to do that can result in monetary penalties ranging from fines to outright loss of the business.

So what else is there? Another value that some companies see in diversity hiring policies is the "marketing" one. Let's face it if your organization "looks" like the audience it is selling its goods and/or services to you've made the sales process that much easier. And "looks" is a flexible term as well, it's simply a question of if company is the same culture as the target but does your company reflect the community in which it operates? But putting the interesting marketing questions aside there is another value in diversity for companies here.

So there are some legal reasons, and some marketing/sales reasons. But is that all the value diversity delivers?

No. Diversity means strength.

1. The true test of strength for groups is *not* how they flourish when times are good but can they survive when times are bad.
2. The most common attribute of the hardiest groups is their diversity.

Diversity positions groups, in this case business organizations, with a wider variety of options, ideas and experiences to draw on for survival when times are tough.

This is the "hidden" value of diversity, because it is by nature difficult to measure but that doesn't make any less of a value. In fact companies who are *really* diversity employment leaders know about value of strength that diversity gives them. It's one of the reasons they do it. Because these companies also know that in the age of the global village while you have opportunities for success in multiple markets at any given time you also have opportunities for struggles in multiple markets at the very same time.

Experience and flexibility. These are the values that diversity employment practices bring to employers and while legal reasons, marketing and the talent crisis are all valid reasons to hire diversity it's important not to lose sight of the "big picture" value diversity brings.

Addressing the Talent Crisis in a Canadian way

Talent Crisis: It's a term you'll often hear in the world o' recruiting, especially in the Canadian talent market, where recruiters have been facing talent shortages in many industries for 5+ years now. But what does it mean? And is it just hype?

It's not just hype: As baby-boomers retire out of the workforce in record numbers across North America and the EU, the lower birthrates of the past 25 years mean there are more people leaving the workforce than entering it. In Canada, the consequences of this reduced workforce is exacerbated by restrictive immigration policies and other factors.

What does this mean? Five years ago, Statistics Canada predicted that by 2011 there would be 350,000 more jobs than workers; thanks to the recession, StatsCan and the Conference Board of Canada now predict the shortfall to happen sometime between 2011-2015. But talk to any Canadian recruiter today and they'll tell you: In many industries, professions and roles, the talent crisis is already in full swing and will only get worse.

According to Paul Dodd (President of Head2Head, a Canadian recruiting services firm) in The talent crisis is coming – are you ready?, "companies are already starting to see the effects of the coming talent crisis [...] employers who continue to ignore changes in the talent marketplace will find that, within five years or less, they will run into serious problems attracting, hiring and retaining top talent."

So how can TalentOyster help?

By connecting employers to new, untapped talent pools.

In Canada, there are just under 6,000,000 people who are in at least one of three of the groups designated as 'diverse' by the Employment Equity Act. But mainstream media doesn't connect with these groups in the amounts or effectiveness that they do with others and since most sourcing is driven by mainstream media the problem with accessing this potential great pool of talent becomes clear. You can't source from groups you're not touching after all.

TalentOyster is a unique job board because it's community driven. The media that does touch these groups, the hundreds of in-language print publications from coast-to-coast, the online and other media properties used by these communites, is the heart of what TalentOyster's parent company does and is. We speak to these communities, with messages they understand and appreciate every day. All of this means that TalentOyster has recruiting-industry exclusive access to an untapped pool of talent, almost 6,000,000 strong.

And that's a pretty good way to start addressing the Talent Crisis.

And we think a pretty Canadian way of addressing it too.