Age Inclusion
A Manager's Guide to Hiring
Boost the Number of your Qualified Applicants by Eliminating Age Bias
Activate Age-Diverse Talent Pools for Recruiting
Check on the Mix of Your Applicant Pool Regularly
Communicate with all Applicants in a Clear, Timely Manner
Activate Age-Diverse Talent Pools for Recruiting
Applicant pools that are built to include high quality candidates of every age are more likely to result in high-performing multi-generational teams.
Work with recruiters and Human Resources team members to use tactics that will source highly qualified candidates of all ages. If you don’t start with an age-diverse pool you won’t have the possibility of ending with one. Best practices to use include:
Adjust settings on ad placements so that they don’t filter out older candidates. Sometimes a proxy is used instead of a specific age cap, such as “graduation date within prior 10 years” or “under 20 years’ total experience.” Check both the default settings and those you select specifically for each ad buy.
Make a point to activate networks beyond your own personal and professional network. For example, share the role with all Employee Resource Groups, and ask them to share in their own networks. Resist the idea of referral hiring by hiring managers and their own direct reports, which often leads to more homogeneous teams.
Engage with the alumni career center on each campus where you engage in on-campus recruiting for new graduates.
Extend internship programs to include structured “returnship” roles as well, or extend your internship program to serve candidates of all ages.
Share externally with multiple organizations that focus on different diverse candidate pools. For example, consider organizations who cater to returning caregivers, veterans and trailing spouses, or “fractional” workers. Attend the career fairs of organizations who work with or advocate for older workers.
Check on the Mix of Your Applicant Pool Regularly
Sourcing candidates in batches enables recruiters to assess the attributes of incoming applicants, and adjust ads and sourcing strategies to yield a broad range of highly qualified candidates. 33
These best practices will enhance your ability to source a wide range of high quality candidates:
Do some quick checks on the age demographics of your applicant pool as it first builds before you move on to screening applicants.
Repost job ads strategically to increase applications from qualified applicants of a broader age range if needed.
Readjust settings on ad placements to create a more balanced portfolio of applicants as needed.
Broaden your sourcing strategies. If your applicants are mainly from one age range, swap in some targeted sourcing strategies (listed above) and adjust your ad spend to drive success in these new channels.
Communicate with all Applicants in a Clear, Timely Manner
Candidates of all ages are more likely to stay engaged throughout the hiring process if they receive authentic communications from you along the way.
The respect you show to each candidate in your automated and personal communications goes a long way to retaining high potential candidates through all stages of your hiring process.
Communicate promptly to candidates about their application status. Every candidate, but especially older generations, values prompt, clear communication about their application, and after each interaction they have with your organization or team. Older candidates in particular often appreciate specific feedback, which they can use to improve their continued candidacy, to understand why they were not selected, or to allay concerns that they are being passed over because of their age.
Communicate via phone or an email that accepts replies. Older candidates are often especially comfortable with phone calls and are likely to be quickly responsive via email–so be sure to include an email that accepts replies.
Pay attention to how quickly and professionally candidates respond to you. If the Core Five Skills for the role include elements of effective communication, this live feedback from the candidate is a window into how they will perform if hired.