DiversityInc - January/February 2008

ask the white guy blog

BY LUKE VISCONTI

Do good companies
discriminate in hiring?

QMy company is on your Top 50 Companies for Diversity® list ... I have been with the company for 15 years. During that time, I have taken advantage of the generous education program and received a bachelor’s and soon to be two master’s degrees. Last year, my department decided to outsource many jobs, mine included ... Since March of this year, I have, on record, 54 job postings [that] I have applied for. I have only been interviewed for six of the jobs. During each interview, the hiring manager ... points out that I am not qualified. I know of a few individuals (non-minority) from my department with less qualification who have already found new positions ... All I seek is an opportunity.

aI’m very familiar with your company and it is a long-term leader in diversity management. This doesn’t mean that every manager is “on it,” but you stand a much better chance of finding a progressive manager at your company than most people do. Since I don’t know you, I am forced to give general suggestions. I am not trying to diminish the reality of your experience when I suggest that you can take action to change your outcome.

PLEASE CONSIDER THIS CHECKLIST:

1Give your next job application your “full game.” Study for the interview, understand the person with whom you’re interviewing, know the department, try reaching out to that person’s friends for insight. Make yourself a walking encyclopedia of solutions. 2Follow up. Make sure your follow-up correspondence is not a form letter. Make it relevant to the potential new supervisor. 3Politics. See if you can leverage people you know to apply influence on areas that interest you for a transfer. Find managers who HAVE been active in

your company’s diversity-management efforts. Utilize your employee-resource-group network.

4Appearance counts. Make the best of your personal visit. Dress one level up. Use the spellchecker on your correspondence.

5Be positive. Forget about the 54 jobs you applied for. Focus on the future. You love your company— tell them about it. Tell them how much you care, how proud you are to work there and how satisfying it has been to avail yourself of their education benefits. Tell them you want to use that knowledge to their benefit and work there until you retire.

6Learn. We have a number of really good career-advice articles at: www.DiversityInc.com/careeradvice. There is opportunity in tough times; a good manager will be much more open to hiring someone they don’t know who is well prepared over an “old boy” who is taking it for granted that they’ll get the job.