Pledge Resources: The Walker Rule
By: Stephen Straus
Tags: Startup, Inclusion, Resources, Diversity

The Walker Rule in interviewing co-founders and the startup’s CEO, senior team, management, staff, board of directors, advisors and investors

The centerpiece of The Startup Diversity and Inclusion Pledge is The Walker Rule. Companies who are taking the pledge to have a diverse and inclusive hiring program do not have to achieve it all at once. You can approach the pledge with a crawl/walk/run plan such as the one detailed below.

Creating effective and lasting programs generally take time. Keep an open mind, adjust policies and programs to fit your culture’s speed and change control abilities and promote progress over perfection. Every step taken is an important achievement in the right direction on the journey for fair and equitable hiring.

The important thing is to make sure every step you take is well defined, including:

Buy - in : A pledge is only as good as the organization commitment to that pledge. Identify the stakeholders and decision makers that can effect change and make sure they are onboard and supportive of making the necessary changes.

- : A pledge is only as good as the organization commitment to that pledge. Identify the stakeholders and decision makers that can effect change and make sure they are onboard and supportive of making the necessary changes. Goals : What are the goals for the company with the action(s). Goals can be both ‘soft’ and ‘hard’ (i.e. measurable), however be sure to have at least one measurable goal so you can measure success (see below).

: What are the goals for the company with the action(s). Goals can be both ‘soft’ and ‘hard’ (i.e. measurable), however be sure to have at least one measurable goal so you can measure success (see below). How : Define how you will achieve implementing the action(s) — including the people, technology, and processes that must be changed and how they will be changed. This should be treated like a project management or change management initiative.

: Define how you will achieve implementing the action(s) — including the people, technology, and processes that must be changed and how they will be changed. This should be treated like a project management or change management initiative. Accountability : who is accountable for each change; for example, mapping roles by the RACI model (responsible, accountable, consultative, and informed).

: who is accountable for each change; for example, mapping roles by the RACI model (responsible, accountable, consultative, and informed). Communication : Communication plan — how will you inform those involved (as well as the rest of your employees and stakeholders) of the pledge, the plan, and each step.

: Communication plan — how will you inform those involved (as well as the rest of your employees and stakeholders) of the pledge, the plan, and each step. Training : Identify who will have to change their behavior (technology and/or processes) and generate and distribute appropriate training materials to support their success.

: Identify who will have to change their behavior (technology and/or processes) and generate and distribute appropriate training materials to support their success. Success Metrics: Ensure that each step is successful by measuring against the goals — was the change successful? If not, adjust as necessary.

Crawl

Refining job requirements: Select a single or small handful of jobs and fully define the requirements of the job to remove any unnecessary biasing criteria and replace them with assessments and/or questions and processes that measure potential (don’t forget to define ‘success’). For example:

Can you remove education requirements (degree in x, y, z) and test for knowledge or problem-solving abilities?

Can you remove years of experience (especially maximums) and test for knowledge or experience?

Can you reduce the number of skill requirements and find people who are trainable in those skills?

Blind the resumes or anonymize the applicants: Hide information that can cause unconscious (or conscious) bias during as much of the hiring process as possible. Biasing information includes:

Name

Address

University / education

Years of experience

Group affiliations

Drop the key-words: Remove automated key-word filters unless the key-words are well communicated to the applicant pool so that your hiring filters do not remove candidates with the right skills but without knowledge of the terminology (for examples, veterans).

Bias awareness training: Train your hiring managers and interviewers in how biases can impact hiring selections and how to minimize biases from coming into play.

Walker rule: Commit to have at least one finalist under consideration who is not like everyone else on the team. For example, if the team is all women, make sure there is one man under consideration.

Walk

Refining job requirements: Expand job requirement initiatives to encompass a wide range of roles across the organization.

Expand job requirement initiatives to encompass a wide range of roles across the organization. Expand applicant sources : Identify a single or small group of jobs and expand where you are drawing applicants as appropriate. For example:

: Identify a single or small group of jobs and expand where you are drawing applicants as appropriate. For example: University/collage/vocational organization career centers

Community outreach

Veteran organizations

People with disability advocate / staffing organizations

Non-profit organizations with training and placement initiatives

Bias awareness training : Move bias awareness training to on-demand content so employees have access when they need it.

: Move bias awareness training to on-demand content so employees have access when they need it. Walker rule: Commit to at least 20% of finalists under consideration to be not like everyone else on the team.

Run