Improving Language for Inclusive Hiring

About the Program

Category: Human Services (Best in Category)

Year: 2022

While the great resignation is at our doorstep, Montgomery County Government (MCG) faces the challenge of 50% of employees being responsible for retirement in the next five years. Encountering this challenge, we have the opportunity to redesign who gets their foot in the door and reimagine how hiring managers and recruitment specialists work together to decrease biases and administrative burdens in hiring.52% of respondents of a Harvard study of underrepresented workers believe that using inclusive and gender-neutral language will be very helpful in their job search. Montgomery County Government's Effective and Inclusive Job Ad guide encourages all hiring departments to attract qualified candidates inequitable. The guide enables 37 departments to streamline writing ads, creating a cohesive sourcing language. The job ad guide is constructed with behavioral science methods to encourage users to evaluate the outreach materials they have been developing to fill a given position in their department.