Tips to make your inductions more inclusive

Read this blog by Saira Sayed, Director of Business Development at ImInclusive.

Saira shares tips on how to deliver an inclusive induction.

Blog

Preparing for induction

First, let’s address the journey of a candidate before and after onboarding and expectations the candidate has regarding this journey.

In most cases, the candidates have reviewed the job description, met the employer through an interviewing process, understood that the expectation of the job description meets their needs and requirements, and then decided to commit their career.

At this stage, the most important part to address is the expectation of the candidate after they have signed the hiring contract. They also have expectations from the hiring process that the people that they are working with understand their needs, thus their needs and expectations are met with equality and dignity. Now the employer here is willing to learn and execute. Therefore, induction and orientation must match expectation, or if done poorly, it will fail from the beginning.

Preparing the team

There are few basic items we can begin with when hiring people of determination. Begin with a minimum of 2–3 organisation wide commitments that prepare all the co-workers ahead of the team member joining for the whole team to perform well together.

Two commitments we have at ImInclusive include holding all team meetings with captions enabled and sharing documents in the most accessible format possible. By achieving these in advance of induction, an organisation is in the mindset that they have to be ready for the new member and welcome accessibility, it is also key to hold training for do’s and don’t’s on inclusive hiring with the HR team and immediate co-workers so they focus on persons abilities and do not treat person like they have been invited to a pity party this must be avoided from day one.

One must ensure all talent is treated equally with empathetic leadership and not sympathy.

Building trust and commitment

They are now ready to thrive in the workplace because induction that begins with accessibility in mind bring two key qualities to life at workplace, trust and commitment, both by the new joiner and the new team.

One important thing is to please leave the doors to communication wide open. If anyone ever wants to ask a question about disability, have a conversation or inquire about accessible options available.

Who are ImInclusive?

ImInclusive connects people of determination to accessible job opportunities. They are the world’s first social media and hiring app built to empower people of determination.

People of determination is the term given to people with disabilities in 2016 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Prime Minister of United Arab Emirates. It replaces the word people with special needs. I identify myself as a proud person of determination.

What does your induction look like right now? What changes could you make or influence so that your inductions are more inclusive? Share your thoughts in the comments.