Avoid Unconscious Interviewing Biases – for interviewer and interviewee – to get your dream job / team member

Whether you’re the interviewer or interviewee, everyone has unconscious biases – here’re are 12 things to implement / look out for to avoid missing out on your dream team member or dream job.

12 ways to avoid unconscious bias when interviewing job applicants

The last two episodes have covered unconscious bias when interviewing with the goal of not only shedding the light on unconscious bias at your clinic.  This also helps you get a more diverse team.  As we all know, the more diverse the opinions and experience you have in a team, the stronger that team is.

If you’re a veterinarian or veterinary nurse looking to make your next move, your unconscious bias still exists.  It applies in exactly the same way as it does from the clinic’s hiring perspective.   Just in reverse.   All the biases we’ve talked about from the interviewer side apply equally to the interviewee as well.

If you want to be hired into a diverse team, then look out for these cues at the clinic you’re being interviewed at.  You obviously won’t be able to see every one of them, but a few you will.

So keep your eyes and mind wide open.

Keep in mind that diverse experience isn’t just related to work experience … it also relates to life experience – where someone grew up, went to school, the types of friends and upbringing they had, exposure to different cultural, religious and liberal (or not) family dynamics.

We each have our own unconscious biases that relate to these different cultural diversities.

They’re all important and we each have our own opinions on those – conscious and unconscious.

#1 – Confession to Redemption and Acknowledgement to Actualisation

First things first – admit that everyone – you, me, the owner of your clinic, your kids and significant others – everyone – all have unconscious biases.

With confession comes redemption, right?

In an ideal world, you’d put your entire team through unconscious bias training.  [This is something that we can help with]

If team training isn’t possible then at least make sure everyone involved in an interview – and I mean everyone – gets unconscious bias training.

Who should be included in unconscious bias training

Depending on the size of your clinic it could be the owner(s), the practice manager, HR manager, the person who sifts through CVs, the lead vet and head nurse.

Everyone who has some input of any kind in the selection – from shortlisting CVs when they arrive at your clinic, through to the offer.

Why everyone?   Because this helps eliminate bias #11 I talked about last week “conformity bias” and/or #13 “contrast effect / judgement bias” and/or #14 “bandwagon bias”

#2 – Use an interviewing rubric

Make sure everyone involved uses the same rubric for each position and job applicant.

It doesn’t matter whether you use a 1-5 scale or Poor through to Excellent, just s’long as you consistently use one.

You’ll already use different types of rubrics in your clinic.  You probably just don’t recognise them as that.

I’m pretty certain you would’ve been marked against a rubric during your practical exams.  The scoring might have been a range from “proficient”, “competent”, and “novice” through to “unacceptable”.

Use a rubric that works for your team.    If you’re already using a rubric that’s 1-5 then continue using that unit of measurement because it’s familiar to your team.

If you already use words like “competent” in your rubric – or matrix – or whatever you call it, then use that methodology in your recruitment process because, again, it’s familiar.   You don’t need to reinvent the wheel, you just need to add a couple of spokes to it 😉

#3 – evidence based

Just as you look for evidence in your animal diagnoses, do the same when interviewing.

Check out episode 114 – relying on your gut, your intuition, when interviewing is a bias – unless you’ve got as many hours under your belt interviewing as you have as a vet or a nurse – when experience allows you to trust your intuition or gut feelings – then opt for evidence to back up your opinion, not a hunch.

Every time.

When interviewing look for evidence.

If you think someone might not be a good cultural fit, ask why?   Why won’t they fit?

If you – or someone else on the interviewing team – cannot put your finger on something specific, then ignore it.

You want evidence and specifics.

When it comes to cultural (mis)fit, a specific answer could be something like:  they’re too black and white or they were wishy-washy with their answer or they blamed everyone else, nothing was their fault or responsibility.

If you had to defend your answer – it could happen – make sure you hand-on-heart have strong evidence to back up your decision.

#4 – consistency

Ensure everyone – every job applicant – is asked the same questions.

The exact same questions.  Every time for each position.  Use the same format.   The same layout.   The same questionnaire.   The same rubric.

There’s a reason pilots have checklists.   It’s because they work.  So make up a checklist of questions.

Be consistent with Referees as well

Consistency includes the questions asked of each job applicant and their referees.

Ensure all referees are asked the same questions.  Ensure referees are provided with context for the position you’re hiring for.  Make sure that context is provided in the exact same way for each referee for every applicant so that you avoid skewing and/or influencing responses and answers.

#5 – Teamwork

If possible, ensure it’s not just one person doing the hiring.   Include as many people as you possibly can and then ensure you have a safe psychological space for everyone to be able to freely provide their opinions and input.

If you don’t have a safe psychological space for people to speak up, you might as well have an interview panel of one because you’ll end up with around three, maybe more, unconscious biases having the opportunity to come out to play.

For example, bandwagon bias, conformity bias and group think bias all playing out.

#6 – neutralise your advertisement language

The words we use in job advertisements encourage people to self-filter themselves out.

Now, obviously, in the veterinary sector, professional qualifications are required and the university a veterinarian originally qualified at is critical, you can’t do anything about that pre-selection.

However, what you can do is be careful of the words you use that may be overly feminine or overly masculine in their meaning or interpretation.

Likewise, some words are age biased.

If your vacancy would suit a new grad – which implies early/mid-20s – back that statement up with the (hopefully!) fact that you’ve got a new grad mentor prog at your clinic to support them … not because you’re only looking for someone who’s in their 20s.

#6 – neutralise your job advertisement language continued…

Some words have been identified as being particularly masculine – for example:

• Drive
• Competitive
• Analysis

If your parental leave policy exceeds the statutory minimum, make sure you refer to it as parental leave, rather than maternity leave, or mat.leave.  Parental leave is gender neutral.

According to ongig, here’re the top ten masculine words found in job descriptions in 2022 and an alternative you could use:

1. Strong => able
2. Lead => guide
3. Independent => unsupervised
4. Objectives => aims
5. Tackles => handles
6. Assert => affirm
7. Analysis => research
8. Competence => ability
9. Decisions => choices
10. Driven => inspired

If you’d like a list of some biased” words and their alternatives, email me and I’ll send you a checklist of these words plus some alternatives you can use.

Women are/can be strong and independent

I’m not saying that women aren’t strong and can’t be independent.

However, there is is data proving that women as a group will apply to jobs at a lower rate when certain masculine words are in the job posting.  I’ll put links to that published research in the show notes for this episode.

The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology which published a research study called Evidence That Gendered Wording in Job Advertisements Exists and Sustains Gender Inequality by Danielle Gaucher, Justin Friesen, and Aaron C. Kay.

Also, be aware of the adjective and descriptors you use in your job descriptions – for example, energetic, fast-paced or who can give 110%  indicate your clinic is searching for a young employee who can work long hours.

Now, some of those adjectives obviously apply to an after-hours clinic because fast paced is what happens.

But if you’re using that to describe the fact your clinic runs 10-minute consults, then say that and stop wasting applicants’ time who’re not interested in that kind of consult setup.

Adjectives like those could also imply that your clinic isn’t keen on working around the demands that come with families or that work-life balance isn’t necessary, valued or respected.

Whereas in fact, an experienced vet or nurse might just thrive on 10-minute consults but your wording might put them off and it means you’ve missed out on a great applicant.

Your clinic’s job descriptions and advertisements should be inclusive of people from all backgrounds, regardless of age, marital status, family status, ethnicity, religious beliefs or sexual orientation.

Just last year we had a clinic want to work with us because they wanted us to find a female professional to join their team.  We politely told them it was against the Human Rights Act to advertise for such a requirement and that we wouldn’t be specifying gender in the advertisement.   The advertisement never got written by us and that professional relationship was over before it even started.

#7 – go blind and go anonymous

If possible and where possible, before elevating CVs up your chain of command for consideration, remove identifying components and anonymise as much as possible.

This includes:

• Name
• University & year of graduation (you only need to know they’re eligible for registration)
• Limit work experience to the last 5-10 years (so you don’t age someone)
• Remove start / finish dates from work experience
• Personal Hobbies and interests (if listed)
• Any “fun fact” some job applicants include in their CV

Even if you don’t use a recruitment agency for your entire recruitment process, contracting one to advertise your positions, write your job descriptions, receive your CVs and then anonymise them, is a service worth considering – especially if you’re a small team.

Again, this is a service we can help with.

#8 – set diversity goals

Now, I’m 100% for hiring the best person for the position and I’m totally anti ‘token’ hires because it makes your team ‘balanced’.   But having said all of that, having diversity goals will make a difference and (hopefully!) keep you “eyes wide open” to possible biases.

#9 – have working interviews

After you’ve shortlisted, invite candidates in for a working interview and then ensure your assessment process is strong, like I’ve already mentioned today.

Make sure everyone is familiar with your assessment rubrics, that there’s full psychological safety and make sure everyone gets equal input when it comes to assessing the candidate to hire or not.

#10 – do the opposite of your natural tendencies

Be cynical with those you like and be very open minded about those you’re not so keen on.

With those you like look for their shortcomings and weaknesses.

With those you’re not so keen on, dig for their strengths, skills and assets.

When you take the blinkers – or blinders – off, you’re more likely to be neutral and unbiased.

#11 – sleep on your decisions

Before you make any job offer, sleep on your decision.   In other words, don’t make any rash or snap judgements and decisions.   Give yourself time to move slowly.   It’s unlikely one more day isn’t going to be make or break.

Yes – I get we’re in a tight job market where job applicants may have other offers on the table.  But if you’re right for them, they’ll wait another day provided you’ve been honest with them all the way through and you haven’t mucked them around.

#12 – make all offers subject to satisfactory reference and background checks

This is self-explanatory and nothing more needs to be said on this.   If you don’t understand why, then get in touch with Julie South.

Part 1 – Unconscious Bias when Interviewing

Unconscious Biases 1-6 from last week

Part 2- Unconscious Bias when Interviewing

Unconscious Biases 7-12 from last week