PageGroup: ‘Skills-first hiring broadens candidate pools and fosters true inclusivity’

It’s safe to say that DEI was a topic of much discussion in 2024, with many businesses scaling back on initiatives, or sharing mixed views its importance.

But one business that has not wavered on its stance, is recruitment company PageGroup.

As the company’s Global DEI & Social Impact Director, Sheri Hughes is responsible for the entire DEI and Social Impact agenda across the PageGroup’s six regions and 8,000+ employees.

Each day, Hughes and her team work towards achieving the company’s DEI and Social Impact targets – including a goal to reach 50:50 gender balance in senior leadership by 2030, and change one million lives by the same date.  

In an exclusive conversation, Hughes highlight the importance of going beyond the gender split, gaining buy-in from senior leaders, and much more, all while sharing token pieces of advice.

Developing DEI strategies to suit everyone

For PageGroup, DEI is still just as important as ever, with Hughes insisting that businesses need to create space for everyone.

This doesn’t necessarily mean trying to achieve everything at once, but rather to strike the right balance, especially with so many factors coming under the DEI umbrella. 

She begins: “Pace yourself and think: if you make a major push to address one area, how will you balance that out with others? Consider which messages you want to shout about and champion, and the best mechanisms and tools to do so. 

“For example, if you’re pushing a big global campaign on gender equality, be mindful of any intersectionality that lies within and make space for multiple activities.”

This, she continues, could include interactive workshops, hosting safe spaces for opening up discussions, or mentoring and leadership training. In turn, this creates opportunities to take the learning to a deeper level.  

Very rarely do people sit in one box, and DEI efforts don’t just affect the specific demographic that you’re targeting,” she adds. “Always invite allies into the conversation too, so that an action plan is rich and engages everyone, not just those from within a certain demographic.  

“People will only feel that they belong if they feel that they are being seen as their whole selves rather than just one area of their makeup.”

In essence, they want to be seen as a talented employee who we value, and we want them to achieve their goals. It then becomes less about diverse characteristics and more about them as a person.”

However, developing and deploying a global DEI strategy – especially one that resonates across different regions and cultures – is not without its challenges.

For example, some issues may be important to a business, but they may not translate or be appropriate for certain regions – creating hurdles that need to be overcome. 

“My advice for this is to be mindful at every step of the way, remembering that no two places are the same. 

“This could relate to laws, levels of maturity and awareness when it comes to DEI practices, or senior leadership advocacy. Be aware of the differences; recognize how that plays into the execution of your strategy, and above all, be intentional in a way that’s relevant in that area.”

What’s more, Hughes believes that leaders should develop a central strategy that can then be adapted with regional sensitivities in mind. This might mean dialing up or dialing down certain issues and themes, to ensure consistency while driving everyone forward. 

But she warns that this isn’t always possible: “It’s great when everything aligns with the wider global strategy, but there are times when you need to be adaptable and more regionally focused.”

Supporting DEI efforts through flexible working

Although different cultures and countries need varying DEI strategies, there’s one topic that every employee can debate: flexibility. 

As flexibility looks different for everyone, it mainly boils down to choice and options. 

For some employees, this could be as simple as having the option to take themselves off to a quiet area in the office to work and escape the hustle and bustle of a busy open-plan office. For others, it could be more about how personal commitments are integrated into their working week.  

No two people are the same, so the essence of flexibility will change from person to person,” Hughes comments. “This is important to keep in mind, especially as we continue to adapt to different working styles. 

“PageGroup champions this in a way that I can personally attest to as a part-time working mother whose career has continued to accelerate post-maternity leave. 

“When you champion the flexibility of choice, you open the door to a more diverse team as it allows all kinds of people with all kinds of life situations to work, and more importantly thrive, within the company.”

Eliminating unconscious bias

One key aspect that makes the successful implementation of DEI programs challenging, is overcoming aspects of unconscious bias – for example, helping leaders understand and recognize it both in their teams, and within themselves. 

For Hughes, once leaders become familiar with this idea, they should look into their current processes to see how they could be exacerbating any unconscious biases. 

“Look to diverse panels and skills-based hiring, as well as anonymous and independent scoring mechanisms – and always be prepared to assess people in different ways,” Hughes advises.

“You might also consider how you’re advertising your roles and whether these strategies are not only accessible, but encouraging of applications from a diverse range of people.   

“Where it makes sense, leveraging technology can also be a helpful strategy.” 

Using PageGroup as an example, she demonstrates how the company has integrated AI models designed to reduce unconscious bias to assist candidates based on their skills and suitability for a particular role.  

But it’s also important for leaders to be mindful of hiring diverse talent for the right reasons, rather than to boost numbers. This is often referred to as tokenism – the idea that companies can hire underrepresented staff members in a bid to make a superficial effort to include a few people from minority groups just to appear diverse.

“Always ask yourself: ‘Whose voices are being represented here?’ and ‘Have we thought about how this will really play out for that community or asked for their viewpoint?’” Hughes says. “If not, your approach needs to change.

Tokenism can rear its head when this level of consideration hasn’t occurred. At every step of the way, we should be conscious of whether there is true representation.

“Bring opposing views together including the ones of the community you’re focusing on and be comfortable with an open dialogue.”

A skills-first approach to boost diversity

As a recruitment company, Hughes expresses that there’s a comfortable familiarity in hiring experienced recruiters over someone with less experience. However, she believes this offers “untapped potential”. 

“In order to achieve true diversity, you need to be open-minded and prepared to welcome people from all walks of life, races, and abilities,” she beams. “Staying within the established recruitment pool means you’re not tapping into broader diversity; you’re not pulling people in who come from diverse backgrounds. 

“Crucially, you’re overlooking multiple demographics who could be helping resolve your talent shortfalls.

“From my experience, adopting a skills-first hiring approach is a smart first step to combat the urge to stick with what’s comfortable and become more inclusive with your recruitment.

Skills-first hiring encourages hiring managers to shift their focus from a candidate’s experience to the skills they have to do the job – in turn broadening the candidate pool.”

But for HR leaders to achieve this, they need buy-in from other senior leadership, which Hughes believes can be tackled with a two-fold approach.

Firstly, she advises that HR leaders find their biggest resistor and help them understand. “Think about how best to appeal to them,” she prompts, “for example, are they guided by data? If so, utilize research to make your case. 

“Perhaps they don’t understand the context, so you can provide a more holistic case for them. Just like in DEI efforts, tailor your approach to each person and help them feel understood.”

Secondly, she highlights the importance of finding someone with a personal connection, for example, someone on the senior leadership team who’s personally connected to an under-represented group. This could be as they have a neurodiverse family member or a friend in the LGBTQ+ community. 

“When someone has a personal stake in DEI, it’s much easier to get them on-side,” Hughes explains. 

“Use this to your advantage to find your way in and win over the rest of the team.”

With this in mind, how is your business approaching DEI initiatives in 2025? Does it need a revamp or further buy-in from senior leaders? Or is it leading by example?