As we prepare to launch the Bias Interrupters Working Group in November, we are excited to apply the principles from Joan C. William’s new book, Bias Interrupted, and show the tangible impact on several key HR functions using this unique approach to DEI impact. This exclusive Human Capital Center Member opportunity is offered at no additional cost; however, space is limited to just 30 organizations. If you are interested and can make the commitment, Joan and Rebecca would like to spend just a few minutes to explore which of the following four options might be the right fit. When we launch, there will be four cohorts of approximately eight organizations in each:
- Performance Evaluations: Companies evaluate existing performance evaluation data for evidence of bias, learn effective recommendations to change the evaluation form/process, receive training from Center for WorkLife Law (WLL), and repeat evaluations in the next year of performance evaluation data to see how things have improved.
- Hiring: Companies use WLL’s detailed roadmaps to pinpoint the parts of the recruitment and hiring process with the biggest impact (e.g., editing job ads, recommending different outreach strategies, changing interview questions, creating a new system for resume review). Companies will implement effective changes and keep track of demographic patterns in recruitment data to see where improvements are occurring.
- Access to Opportunities/Assignments: Companies create a typology of opportunities, then use a tool to collect baseline data to investigate whether some groups have more access to career-enhancing opportunities (and whether some groups are disproportionately saddled with the office housework). Companies will then receive effective tools for leveling the playing field and will repeat the data collection and analysis process to see whether opportunities are being allocated.
- Informal Workplace Interactions: WLL’s best-practice bias training is quite different from most existing training; it presents research documenting how bias commonly plays out in everyday workplace interactions and has colleagues in groups of six (online or in person) discuss different ways to interrupt bias in a given scenario, with particular attention to low-risk strategies. Companies will do a survey to gather baseline data, receive a train-the-trainers workshop, do the training, and then measure for impact.