9 Steps to Reduce Hiring Bias in Your Screening Process

What Is Hiring Bias?

Hiring bias is when personal preferences, assumptions, and stereotypes influence your hiring decisions instead of focusing solely on a candidate’s qualifications and job fit.

It’s like having an invisible filter that colors how you see candidates — sometimes making you favor certain people for reasons unrelated to their ability to do the job, and other times causing you to dismiss qualified candidates based on irrelevant factors.

Most hiring bias isn’t intentional or unconscious. It happens automatically in our brains as we try to make quick decisions in a world of information overload. That’s what makes it so tricky to spot in yourself and so important to address with deliberate strategies.

The Top Hiring Biases Holding You Back 

Think about your last few hires. 

Did you select someone who reminded you of yourself? Did you dismiss a qualified candidate because their resume had a gap or their name was difficult to pronounce?

These snap judgments happen in milliseconds, but their impact on your company can last years. Let’s look at the most common culprits:

Research link (noted in the ‘Cultural Bias’ section of the above image)

Unfortunately, there are many many others we need to watch out for as well. For example, gender bias leads to different standards for different genders, while age bias causes us to favor candidates within our age range. 

We can also make snap judgments based on appearance (“beauty bias”), names that sound unfamiliar, and even socioeconomic background.

These biases aren’t just unfair — they’re expensive. When you overlook qualified candidates because they don’t fit your unconscious “ideal,” you miss out on diverse perspectives that drive innovation and problem-solving.

The (Negative) Impact Of Bias in Hiring

When bias creeps into your hiring process, the consequences extend far beyond just missing out on a few good candidates.

Research from McKinsey & Company shows companies in the top quartile for ethnic and racial diversity in their management teams are 33% more likely to have above-average profitability than companies in the bottom quartile.

The bottom line? Bias is unfair and expensive.

So, how can you reduce bias from creeping into your screening and selection process?

Keep reading to learn nine steps you can take to reduce hiring bias.

9 Steps To Reduce Hiring Bias in Screening and Selection 

Ready to build a more diverse, talented team? Let’s dive into practical strategies that will help you reduce bias and make better hiring decisions.

1. Standardize Your Screening Process

We’re starting strong (if not flashy or fun). But, if there’s one change that will immediately reduce bias in your hiring process, it’s standardization.

When every candidate gets the same questions and is evaluated against the same criteria, personal preferences have less room to influence decisions.

You can implement standardization in a few ways. 

One is to create structured interviews. This approach involves asking all candidates the same predetermined questions in the same order. Doing so ensures you’re comparing apples to apples when evaluating responses.

For example, instead of having free-flowing conversations that might drift toward personal interests with some candidates, prepare interview questions ahead of time such as:

• “What steps do you take when approaching a new project?”
• “Can you describe a time you identified a problem in your department and how you resolved it?”
• “How would you handle things if you had almost finished a project but the scope changed?”

The interview can still feel conversational but a structured approach helps ensure that everyone gets fair treatment. This is especially important for neurodivergent applicants who can sometimes struggle with social cues. 

We’ll say this until we’re blue in the face: before reviewing a single resume, define exactly what success looks like for the role. What skills, experiences, and competencies are truly necessary?

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) guidelines require that hiring criteria measure traits or skills that are job-related and consistent with business necessity.

For instance, if you’re hiring a customer service representative, you could evaluate candidates on:

• Previous experience handling customer complaints (with a specific rating scale)
• Communication clarity (rated 1-5 based on interview responses)
• Problem-solving abilities (rated based on responses to situational questions)

If you saw “rating scales” and had terrible middle school PE class flashbacks, hang with us—the “scales” we’re talking about have nothing to do with stacking a dodgeball team. 

Implementing a standard rating system to grade candidates helps mitigate delays and confusion between hiring collaborators while reducing the influence of unconscious bias. A simple 1-5 scale for each key competency creates a more objective comparison than vague impressions.

2. Build Role-Specific ICPs (Before You Post The Job)

Ever find yourself reading resumes and thinking, “I’ll know the right candidate when I see them”? That’s basically an engraved invitation for bias to crash your hiring party.

Instead, create an Ideal Candidate Profile (ICP) before you even post the job. This isn’t about imagining some ‘unicorn’ employee—it’s about getting specific about what success in the role actually requires.

A good ICP focuses on skills and competencies rather than backgrounds or pedigrees. For example, instead of requiring “5+ years at a Fortune 500 company,” specify the actual skills needed: “Experience managing complex projects with multiple stakeholders and tight deadlines.”

To build an effective, bias-reducing ICP, start with a job analysis. Talk to high performers currently in similar roles. What skills do they actually use daily? What challenges do they face? This grounds your requirements in reality rather than assumptions.

It’s also important to focus on skills, not proxies. A computer science degree might be a proxy for coding skills, but many excellent developers are self-taught. Consider whether you need the credential or the actual skill it represents.

Prioritization is critical, so your next step should be to prioritize must-haves vs. nice-to-haves. Be ruthless about distinguishing between what’s truly essential and what’s just preferable. The longer your “must-have” list, the more likely you’re to exclude qualified candidates.

For example, if you’re hiring a marketing manager, your ICP might include:

• Must-have: Experience creating and executing multi-channel marketing campaigns
• Must-have: Ability to analyze campaign performance data and make strategic adjustments
• Nice-to-have: Experience with your specific industry
• Nice-to-have: Familiarity with your current marketing tools

By defining success in terms of skills and outcomes rather than backgrounds, you’ll create a more inclusive screening process that catches qualified candidates who might otherwise be overlooked.

3. Audit Your “Traditional” Screening Requirements

Let’s be honest—many of our “standard” screening practices aren’t actually helping us find the best candidates. In fact, they might be actively filtering out qualified people for reasons that have nothing to do with job performance.

Starting strong with college degree requirements. 

Believe it or not, that “Bachelor’s degree required” line in your job description could cost you great candidates. Research from Harvard Business School found that over 60% of employers reject otherwise qualified candidates simply because they lack a college diploma.

This requirement disproportionately affects candidates from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, older workers who entered the workforce before degrees became standard, and those from communities with limited access to higher education. 

This isn’t to say that all jobs shouldn’t have an education requirement—specialized roles in medicine, education, or law would certainly need that prerequisite. Every role in every company should be considered individually. 

Resumes also introduce several of the unconscious biases we talked about earlier, like name, gender, and age bias. For example, research from Yale found that women’s applications tend to be judged more harshly than men’s (especially when being evaluated by other women). Yikes.

Plus, the World Economic Forum projects that up to 50% of skills needed for a job could change by 2027, making past experiences listed on resumes less relevant indicators of future performance. 

Instead of these biased methods, consider implementing work sample tests that directly measure a candidate’s ability to perform job-related tasks.

For example, rather than requiring a marketing degree, ask candidates to create a sample campaign. Instead of demanding five years of customer service experience, simulate a difficult customer interaction to see how they respond.

By focusing on demonstrable skills rather than credentials, you’ll reduce bias and identify candidates who can actually do the job—not just those who look good on paper.

4. Use Talent Assessment Software

Unlike traditional screening methods that rely heavily on subjective impressions, talent assessments provide objective, data-driven evaluations of candidates based on job-relevant competencies. They measure what actually matters for job success — not who went to the right school or who makes the best first impression.

Talent assessment software creates a more equitable hiring process because it standardizes evaluation — something we’ve talked about a lot in this piece. Since every candidate answers the same questions and is measured against the same benchmarks, these assessments create a consistency that’s impossible to achieve with unstructured interviews or resume reviews.

They also focus on job-relevant skills. Instead of using proxies like degrees or years of experience, assessments directly measure the competencies that predict success in a specific role.

Talent assessments also talent acquisition teams make, dare we say it, data-driven hiring decisions. When you make decisions based on assessment data rather than gut feelings, you’re less likely to be influenced by irrelevant factors like a candidate’s name, appearance, or background.

For example, a customer service role assessment might evaluate a candidate’s problem-solving abilities, empathy, and communication skills through scenario-based questions — giving you insight into how they’d actually perform on the job, not just how well they interview.

The best part? These assessments create a better candidate experience, too. They give applicants a fair chance to demonstrate their abilities, regardless of their resume or interview skills. And since candidates can complete them from any device at their convenience, they’re more accessible to people with different schedules and circumstances.

5. Watch What You Say (In Job Descriptions and Job Interviews)

Words matter — especially when they can land you in legal hot water. Both job descriptions and interview questions can contain subtle biases that not only limit your candidate pool but could also violate employment laws.

Those seemingly innocent phrases in your job descriptions might be sending coded messages that discourage certain candidates from applying. For example, a “young and energetic team”  or “digital native” implies a preference for younger workers (age bias). 

Instead, focus on the actual skills needed. Rather than “energetic,” try “motivated” or “proactive.” 

Also, instead of just stating that you’re looking for a good “cultural fit,” specify the values you’re looking for, like “collaborative” or “customer-focused.”

Some interview questions, even well-intentioned ones, can cross legal lines. Avoid questions like:

• “When did you graduate from college?” (This reveals age)
• “Do you have children?” or “Are you planning to start a family soon?” (Family status discrimination)
• “What’s your native language?” (National origin discrimination)
• “Do you have any disabilities I should know about?” (Violates ADA)

Instead, focus on job-relevant alternatives. Rather than asking about age, ask: “Are you able to work the required schedule for this position?” Instead of family questions, ask: “Are you able to travel or work overtime as needed?”

Remember, the goal is to evaluate candidates based on their ability to do the job—not on personal characteristics that have no bearing on performance. This approach keeps your practices above board and helps you recruit a more diverse team. 

6. Broaden Your Recruiting Pool

If you’re always fishing in the same pond, don’t be surprised when you catch the same fish.

Many companies limit their diversity by recruiting from the same sources over and over. 

Top tech companies historically recruited from the same handful of universities, leading to homogeneous workforces despite claims of “only hiring the best.”

Expand your talent pipeline by:

• Partnering with professional organizations focused on underrepresented groups
• Attending job fairs in different communities
• Working with community colleges and trade schools, not just four-year universities
• Using job boards that specifically target diverse candidates
• Encouraging employee referrals from team members with diverse networks

Remember: qualified candidates exist everywhere — not just in the places you’ve always looked.

7. Put The Right People In The (Hiring) Room

When it comes to hiring decisions, two heads are better than one—and three or four might be even better.

Individual biases can be minimized when multiple people evaluate candidates, especially when those people bring different perspectives to the table. Before you start interviewing, align internally about who should be involved in the hiring process and what their specific roles will be.

Consider implementing panel interviews where candidates meet with several team members simultaneously. This approach provides multiple perspectives on each candidate and ensures everyone hears the same responses, creating a more consistent evaluation process.

Just make sure your interview panel is diverse itself. A homogeneous panel will likely share the same blind spots and biases, defeating the purpose of getting multiple opinions in the first place.

8. Invest in Unconcious Bias Training Programs

Let’s face it—most of us don’t realize when we’re being biased. That’s why it’s called “unconscious” bias, after all.

Training programs focused specifically on hiring bias can be game-changers for your organization. Research from Harvard Business Review shows that effective unconscious bias training does more than just raise awareness — it actually reduces bias in attitudes and behaviors at work, from hiring decisions to everyday workplace interactions.

The key is investing in training that goes beyond a one-time “check-the-box” session. The most effective bias training programs:

• Teach practical strategies to manage biases and change behavior
• Provide information that contradicts common stereotypes
• Create opportunities to connect with people from different backgrounds
• Include follow-up sessions and ways to track progress

But training isn’t just about avoiding discrimination — it’s about building skills. When your hiring team understands how to recognize and mitigate bias, they make better decisions, create more positive candidate experiences, and ultimately build stronger teams.

If you’re not sure where to start, consider bringing in an expert to audit your current processes and develop customized training for your team. The investment pays off through improved hiring outcomes, reduced turnover, and a workplace where everyone can thrive.

9. Use Technology

Yes, technology can actually help you create a more equitable screening process.

For example, modern applicant tracking systems now offer AI features designed specifically to promote fairness. These tools can flag potentially biased language in your job descriptions before you even post them, helping you attract a more diverse candidate pool from the start.

For example, AI tools can identify coded language like “energetic” (which might signal age bias) or “strong English skills” (which could discourage non-native speakers) and suggest more inclusive alternatives.

Some advanced systems can even analyze your past hiring patterns to identify where bias might be creeping in, allowing you to make data-driven adjustments to your process.

One-way video interviews have also become a powerful tool for reducing bias while scaling your hiring process. The biggest reason is that they standardize (our favorite word today) the evaluation process by ensuring every candidate answers the same questions in the same format. 

A one-way video approach eliminates variables like interview timing (no more comparing the candidate who interviewed at 9 AM to the one who interviewed at 4 PM when you were exhausted).

They also widen your talent pool by removing geographical barriers and accommodating candidates with different schedules and accessibility needs. This naturally leads to a more diverse candidate pipeline.

When implemented thoughtfully, they help ensure that every candidate gets a fair shot based on their actual qualifications, not unconscious preferences.

Unbiased Hiring Is In

Reducing bias isn’t just the right thing to do — it’s the smart thing to do.

When you implement the strategies we’ve discussed, you’ll build more diverse teams and make better hiring decisions, which reduce employee turnover and create an environment where innovation thrives.

Remember, each small change compounds. You don’t have to overhaul your entire screening process overnight. Start small with one or two strategies that make sense for your organization, measure the results, and build from there.

Ready to reduce bias in your screening process? Schedule a demo with Spark Hire today to learn how we can help.