6 Strategies to Recruit More Diverse Candidates
The automotive industry is evolving, and so should your dealership. With a diverse customer base, your sales and managerial team should reflect that diversity, as well. Recruiting and retaining diverse employees can give your dealership a strategic advantage, higher profits, and increase employee retention.
1. Leverage Your and Your Current Employees’ Referral Networks
One of the best resources for finding more diverse candidates is through current employee referrals. Encourage your employees to identify and refer candidates from diverse backgrounds. Incentivize referrals and create a culture that values diversity and inclusion.
2. Reach Out to Diverse Community Organizations
To attract diverse candidates, build relationships with organizations that represent and support underrepresented groups in the automotive industry. Collaborate with these organizations to create internships, job postings, and job fairs to connect with diverse talent.
3. Think Outside the Recruiting Box
Don’t limit your search to traditional recruiting sources. Look beyond the automotive industry and explore nontraditional areas to find diverse candidates. Reach out to local chambers of commerce, talk to recruiting companies that specialize in diverse candidate placements, and post on social media platforms. By widening your search, you increase the chances of finding talented individuals from different backgrounds who will bring fresh ideas to your dealership.
4. Develop an Inclusive Employer Brand
Create an employer brand that showcases your commitment to diversity and inclusion. Social media is a great way to highlight your company’s values, policies, and initiatives that promote diversity. Highlight your employees and offer testimonials from diverse employees to attract candidates who are looking for diversity in the workplace.
5. Create a Pipeline
Partner with schools, community organizations, and diversity-focused programs to connect with candidates from different backgrounds. Internships, co-op programs, and mentoring opportunities are great ways to nurture talent, provide a valuable work experience and create a pipeline for future employee needs.
6. Pay Attention to Diversity Metrics
Establish metrics to measure how your diversity recruiting efforts are going. Important metrics could include the diversity of your candidate pool, how many diverse hires you actually make, and the retention rate of those employees.
Diversity and inclusion are not just buzz words. Dealerships benefit from cultivating diverse employees who are more representative of the communities around them.
Ready for more strategies to grow your dealership? Join GIADA today.
