Equitable Interviewing to Include Neurodiverse Candidates

Is your workplace welcoming for everyone? And no, not like, when they walk in or log on does it feel cozy with flowers and cool virtual backgrounds. Can ANYONE apply and interview and feel like the deck isn’t stacked against them? What about candidates who are neurodiverse? What about candidates that haven’t been diagnosed as neurodiverse – yet? What about people who will never be diagnosed? Does your interview approach really provide the best environment for all candidates to shine?

Anxiety underpins nearly every person’s interview experience – but how each individual manages it has a larger impact on their ability to perform well in an interview more so than their capability to perform the job well. If your goal is to hire the best people for the job, and not to hire the best person to perform under artificial pressure – it’s time to rethink the mechanics of how you interview.

So, how can you make your hiring process welcoming for everyone? What can you do during the hiring and interview process to make sure it’s a level playing field?

We tacked this topic and welcomed Jackye Clayton, VP of Talent Acquisition and DEI at Textio to lead the conversation.

Jacyke isn’t just passionate about this topic, she’s living it by implementing strategies that work:

• Prepping candidates

• Providing questions early

• Ensuring accommodations aren’t creating bias

But it’s more than that; before, during, and after interviews life is happening to all candidates. Future employees have kids, parents, houses, life things. Life doesn’t get put on hold so people can take time to make their next career move. Let’s take a step back, remember that candidates are people – and make sure that they can thrive. Our goal as employers is to help them be successful – so they can thrive in their new role and be passionate about working for and with us.