Is lack of diversity restricting your ability to hire top talent?

In today’s competitive market, customers should always come first. The market is increasingly diverse, and your teams should reflect this in order to better understand your customer base. The benefits of a diverse workforce are extensive. Not only are diverse teams able to better identify opportunities in new markets, and create strategies to suit a wider range of customer needs, but they are also able to solve problems and innovate faster. 

In a 2017 study published by People Management, it was discovered that diverse teams outperform individual decision makers by up to 87%, were found to make faster decisions, and displayed a 60% improvement in their decision-making abilities. 

Attracting diverse talent

If you are looking to improve the diversity within your business, it is crucial to ensure that you have strong diversity and inclusion (D&I) policies, and actions, in place. Your commitment to D&I alone can help attract the most talented individuals. In fact, circa 50% of candidates (both male and female) research an organisation’s D&I initiatives before making a decision on whether to accept a position with the business. 

Of course, while D&I policies support this, it is the actions taken by businesses to drive change that can truly set your organisation apart from the competition. 

A recent study by Glassdoor revealed that almost 60% of hiring decision makers believed that a lack of investment in D&I was directly hindering their organisation’s ability to attract high-quality candidates. 

D&I in procurement and supply 

As specialists recruiting into the procurement sector, we have seen a movement in the D&I initiatives and policies of many businesses across different industries. For example, public sector procurement tends to support the most diverse workforce. There are typically more women employed in this sector as a whole. This means there is greater equality at the senior leadership level. In addition to this, we have seen more companies make changes to increase the number of BAME procurement professionals working within the sector. 

In private sector indirect procurement markets, including financial services and consumer/FMCG organisations, many businesses are leading the way in terms of D&I, with more women in leadership roles and senior decision-making positions. Similarly to the public sector, ethnic diversity is also improving.

These changes are occurring because of a few factors, but the main catalyst is the excellent work that internal champions for D&I are doing. Having sponsors of programmes to create more inclusive and diverse working environments enables the key issues to be brought to the forefront, challenged, and improved as a result. Without these agents of change, initiatives to improve an organisation’s culture often stall, and change is unlikely to take hold. Investment in individuals and teams focused on improving their employer’s culture is the most important step that any business can make in moving towards an environment of diversity and inclusivity. 

There is still a lot of work to be done to promote and improve D&I in the procurement and supply chain sectors. Businesses operating within industrial and manufacturing sectors, where workforce diversity is usually less advanced, need to reflect on the longer-term goals of their organisations. To ensure the future success of any business, innovation and diversity of thinking are essential.

When hiring for diversity, inclusion is crucial 

As PageGroup UK Diversity & Inclusion Director, Sheri Hughes has highlighted, diversity isn’t sustainable if you don’t have an inclusive environment. Business culture is key when it comes to building a diverse team.

“To build a truly diverse workforce, organisations must be prepared to evolve: listen to different perspectives, actively seek out a variety of opinions, and allow individuals to challenge the status quo. The key is to eliminate groupthink and encourage change, to drive business success. Organisations that do this well have been found to significantly outperform those that do not.”

RELATED ARTICLE: ‘What does it really mean to be inclusive in recruitment?

At Michael Page, we work closely with both employers looking to hire and professionals seeking new career opportunities. We take the time to understand the needs of our clients so that we can match talented candidates. If you would like to find out how inclusive your business culture is, try our new Inclusivity Mapper tool and we will send you a tailored benchmark report. 

To discuss how we can help you build a more diverse team, contact your local Michael Page office today. Alternatively, submit a job spec and one of our specialist consultants will get in touch.

Felix Hook
Business Manager, Michael Page Procurement & Supply Chain