To reduce biases in the job selection process, employers should follow best practices such as using the same structured interview questions for all candidates, having multiple interviewers rate responses to individual questions, and not discussing candidates until all feedback is gathered. Employers should also receive training, take detailed notes during interviews without prompting candidates, and base hiring decisions on statistical analyses of ratings rather than individual opinions.

1. 15 TIPS TO
ENSURE THE JOB SELECTION
PROCESS IS FAIR FOR ALL APPLICANTS
Unconscious biases have a problematic effect on our hiring decisions.
They cause us to make decisions in favor of one person or group to the
detriment of others, and can also shape a company’s culture and norms.
Follow these best practices to ensure that you can recognize and
reduce biases in job selection processes at your organization.
3. LIMIT PROMPTING
2. SAME QUESTIONS
Structured interview should be
really well-prepared, and there
should only be a single scenario
for all the candidates.
This means that each candidate
should get exactly the same
questions.
1. JOB ANALYSIS
Prior to the job selection process,
stakeholders should get together and
decide what skills are essential for the
position to be filled.
For example, are you looking for someone who
has both the technical skills, but also soft
skills, such as communication, team work, or
positive attitude.
When the initial response of the
applicant to the interview question is
incomplete or inadequate, avoid asking
follow-up or clarifying questions that
help them complete their answer.
4. ASK BETTER QUESTIONS
Evaluate soft skills by asking about past
behavior and situational questions. Remember
that the questions should be asked in a way
which will allow you to assess the skills you are
really looking for.
e.g. ‘you are working on a project with a deadline that
you know you will not be able to meet. How do you
handle this situation?’
5. EMPLOY LONGER
INTERVIEW TIMES
Because there is not added time
pressure, longer interviews are
more relaxing for candidates.
Longer interviews also provide
employers with more pertinent
information on which to base
hiring decisions.
6. CONTROL ACCESS TO
ANCILLARY INFORMATION
While conducting an interview, the
interviewers should not have any additional
information about the candidate that could
introduct bias (e.g., their CV, test results).
In the case that it cannot be avoided,
information should be standardized across
the applicant pool.
7. LIMIT QUESTIONS FROM THE CANDIDATE
Candidates' questions reduce standardization
and fairness between interviewees.
Unless it is a clarifying question necessary
for the candidate to understand what you are
saying, questions from the candidate can wait
until the interview is over.
8. USE THE SAME
INTERVIEWERS
It is unlikely that two people will rate
candidates in exactly the same way. To
avoid bias in performance ratings, all
candidates should be interviewed by the
same interviewers.
9. USE MULTIPLE
INTERVIEWERS
Multiple interviewers reduces
subjectivity that can occur during
single-interviewer interviews.
It also allows interviewers to
share their perceptions of the
candidate during post-interview
process conversations that others
may have missed.
10. TAKE DETAILED NOTES
If you do not record the interview for later
reflection, take detailed notes so that you
can better focus on maintaining the
structure of the interview.
11. RATE RESPONSES
TO EACH QUESTION
To obtain a more fine grained
assessment of the candidate, you
should rate their response to each
question.
Notes can help you better engage with, and
focus on, the candidate. Thus, you won’t be
spending the interview trying to memorise
what the candidate just said.
12. RATING SCALES SHOULD BE ANCHORED
Rating scales should include criteria that tie suggested
answers to the scale based on the key behaviors that
each questions supports.
13. NO DISCUSSION
BETWEEN INTERVIEWS
Discussing opinions about individual
candidates with other interviewers
can lead to confirmation bias, where
people change their opinion to more
closely resemble the consensus of
the other group members.
To avoid this bias, interviewers should
not talk about candidates until all
feedback has been gathered.
14. TRAINING
Not everyone has innate interviewing
skills, so be sure to put every person
involved in the process through some
basic interview training.
Make sure that everyone knows what
the position entails, what you’re
looking for in a candidate, and what
their role in the process is.
15. STATISTICAL PREDICTION
Because interviewers weigh information differently, statistics should be em-
ployed in order to enhance the structure of your interview process.
This may involve combining ratings across interviewers, across questions or
dimensions, or combining information from the interview with other information (e.g.,
test scores) to assist in the decision-making process.
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