The debate surrounding diversity, equity, and inclusion is a trending topic in corporate America today. Every company is talking about recruiting more diverse candidates (and maybe how to retain them), but more than half the companies aren’t doing the actual work to create inclusion. There is still a need to engage more recent Black women graduates and help them advance the corporate ladder. So, how to do that?
Too often the lack of diversity in STEM is defined as a talent pipeline problem. There are more talented Black women with STEM degrees than many are willing to admit. But why are there still fewer Black women in the workforce? In actuality it’s a culture issue. We can learn about this in the data companies have about employees. We can also see how they are using it.
Using data effectively is the solution to bringing more Black women in STEM into the workplace. It can also lead to advancing their careers, one of the main reasons they exit their technical careers. Here is how your company data can help you get more recent Black graduates to your company talent pipeline:
Where Are You Recruiting Your Interns?
Failure at building an early career pipeline which is diverse is one misstep many organizations make. If you want to hire more recent Black women graduates from STEM programs, your internship data is the way to go. First, look into your internship demographics and see who you are hiring? This means dissecting your interns data with intersectionality in mind.
Identifying where you recruit your interns most often, lets you investigate the diversity of those colleges, universities or particular programs. Are they from Ivy League schools and predominantly white universities and colleges? Are you only sourcing from a handful of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), Native Colleges or Hispanic serving institutions (HSI) or none at all?
Why focusing on only Ivy League schools won’t lead to diversifying your employees? Only 8% of Black people make up the diversity in Ivy league schools. The percentage of Black women at Ivy league colleges being far less than that.
It’s important to pay attention to this data. Making sure that you are breaking your stats down to see where you are recruiting interns from and the representation of Black women. If you want to make the selection criteria diverse, you also have to diversify the pool for internship applicants. You have to cast a wider net which attracts Black women. It should also educate them about internships at your organization. You can only achieve this goal if you proactively and consistently look at your internship data to make changes or adjustments to your recruiting strategy.
Engage with & Cultivate The relationships?
Diversifying your inten talent pool is good but you should also engage with them. During their internship, they should be assigned mentors. The mentos will be able to help them adjust to systems, processes and culture of the organization.
Understanding your interns experiences at your organization is critical. Be sure to provide opportunities for them to share their experiences. Having weekly o bi-weekly check-ins is good. Don’t wait until the end of their internship to ask about their experiences. Worst yet is not asking at all.
Also, what percentage of your interns return? According to your data, determine the demographics of interns who return.
After this analysis, review informal and formal mentoring sessions’ notes. Did the intern share issues she had? The sessions you have with interns about their experiences are important and the mentor notes are essential.
In addition, contact the intern to find out why she decided not to return. If and when interns have a bad experience they might not return but they may not share issues either, especially while interning.
During their internship with your company, be in consistent contact with them. It should be a deliberate action that you took in multiple phases, so you can be sure that they are treated well throughout the process. Simultaneously, you can also do an exit interview or get in touch with them after they have left.
Are Your Interns Your Future Full-time Employees?
The second step in building a diverse talent pipeline is to assess the percentage of interns you offer a full-time position. Also assess those who accept the offer and those who decide to turn it down. Next, evaluate the data and numbers that you get. The answers you obtained may require more research and analysis. But note overall how well are you doing with your interns in terms of recruitment.
Check demographics in the percentage of interns you offered full-time employment in various manners. Review the data using an intersectional lens i.e. the division between genders and races, age and gender, etc. Does there exist a gender discrepancy, especially from Black, Indigenous, and other people of color?
Moreover, find out which interns decide not to opt for full-time employment. Depending on that, gauge their experience as interns.
Were they given household duties like getting coffee, taking meeting notes and performing other less technical work? Where did you recruit them from? What were their everyday tasks? Who were they reporting to?
Finally, you can also look into initiatives and ways through which you can get these interns back. It can be as simple as asking them what would make them intern or work for you again.
When you answer these questions authentically using data, you will eventually find out why you are unable to retain your Black female interns as future full-time employees.
More and more Black women are opting for STEM degrees every day. But, that does not mean there is no disparity in the workforce. One of the most promising solutions to the diversity crisis in your organization by retaining fresh and young talent. Engaging more Black women graduates and retaining them will ensure that you open doors for more diversity and inclusion.
