Job post creation: one of the most important yet least invested-in steps of the hiring process. We’ve all experienced situations where hiring managers churn out rushed job posts (or blatantly rip off ones they find on the web). They often do so not because they don’t care, but because they don’t know how to do any better. In this post, we’ll show you, and your hiring managers, how to better position yourself to hire your desired candidates more efficiently.
Successful job ads quickly and cheaply attract sizable, diverse pools of highly qualified candidates. They set accurate expectations up front to minimize candidate drop-off from application to offer, and they enable you to consistently fill open roles fast with talented new hires. Yet fewer than half of employers think their job posts are effective.
Here at Datapeople, we’ve analyzed over 65 million job listings and millions of hiring outcomes from around the globe to understand exactly what makes the best jobs work. And in this series, Good Job!, we dissect stellar (according to hard data and proven results) excerpts from real job posts so you can learn ways to instantly improve your own jobs – and improve your overall hiring process and performance.
Hold the cheese: a pizza chef post with a winning DEI statement
Headquartered in the UK, Datapeople customer Deliveroo is a leading takeout and grocery delivery marketplace that also operates its own restaurants. Their recent job listing for a pizza chef scored highly. Datapeople’s Smart Editor combines everything hiring teams need to know about job content into a single predictive score. In our review, our experts (and platform) were particularly impressed with their diversity statement, shown below.
Why this diversity statement works
At first glance, it’s obvious that Deliveroo’s diversity statement is more poetic than your everyday Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE) addendum. But writing a job post is both an art and a science, and the data tells us there are numerous reasons why this statement is likely to perform in the market.
Any diversity statement is better than no diversity statement
There’s a lot to like about Deliveroo’s clever and evocative diversity statement, but what matters most is that it’s present. In our study of how DEI, or EOE, statements perform, we found that simply adding a diversity statement to your job post significantly impacts how inclusive job seekers perceive your organization to be.
While any diversity statement is better than no diversity statement, performance and consistency can vary widely. (So if your company doesn’t have a standard one, write one now! If you have some boilerplate copy but think it can be improved, read on.)
Deliveroo’s statement falls into what we call the “No Judgment” archetype, which asserts that an employer, well, won’t judge candidates based on their identity (“we have no judgement when it comes to any one of the things that make you who you are”). Our study showed that “No Judgment” statements not only improve perceived inclusiveness but also perceived belonging (how comfortable job seekers would feel working at a company) and fairness (how equitable the recruiting process seems to job seekers).
It lists a range of protected identity types
Our research indicates that explicitly naming various dimensions of diversity helps the performance of your DEI statement, and job post. In other words, while stating that your organization “accepts all types of people” is good, saying you accept people “regardless of their age, race, or gender” is even better.
Deliveroo mentions four different dimensions of diversity in their DEI statement (five if you count spice preference). Generally, we advise hiring teams to be fiercely economical with your words in job posts. Lengthy listings full of generic soft skills, preferred qualifications, and corporate cliches negatively affect the size, quality, and diversity of your applicant pools. But job seekers appreciate exhaustive, and intentional, diversity statements that assure them they’re protected.
It speaks to the qualified, mission-aligned candidates Deliveroo aims to attract
Kudos (or should we say, “chef’s kiss?”) to Deliveroo for the target candidate persona-specific messaging peppered in (we’ll stop with the cooking puns now). Details like “secret aversion to coriander” and “passion for (most) food” highlight Deliveroo’s cheeky yet empathetic employer brand. These expressions also signal that this is a great opportunity for foodies obsessed with contemplating, discussing, and sharing culinary delights.
Again, any diversity statement is better than none at all (and in our study, dry legalese was actually viewed as both fair and inclusive). So don’t fret if creative copywriting isn’t your strong suit. But remember that a job ad is just that: an advertisement, meant to attract as many qualified applicants as possible. Every precious sentence presents a chance for you to communicate your offer to candidates and what you expect of them. Ensure you highlight what they can expect (and look forward to!) should they enter your interview process or even join your company.
Good jobs need diversity statements (and so much more)
An inclusive, effective, data-driven job post is often the difference between a successful hire and no hire at all. At Datapeople, we’re here to help your hiring teams write the next chapter in your talent acquisition journey, one successful post at a time.
Ready to achieve your desired hiring outcomes and unleash the power of scientifically optimized jobs? Click to learn more about Datapeople’s Smart Editor and see how you can unlock the world of context- and market-driven job posts that propel hiring goals forward!
