Attracting Diverse Talent in the Recruitment Process

Katie Koho, Pathways Program Coordinator at Oracle, spoke to myGwork about keeping the recruitment process as inclusive as possible. They share advice for LGBTQ+ individuals who want to enter the workplace openly LGBTQ+ and discuss the importance of diverse hiring.

Hi Katie, thanks for chatting with us. Can you tell us about yourself?

Hello everyone. My name is Katie Koho, my pronouns are they/them/theirs and I work at Oracle as a Pathways Program Coordinator on the Global Diversity Recruiting Programs team. I have been with Oracle since October 2021 and have a background in education and student affairs.

When recruiting graduates what do you look for?

Recruiters and hiring managers typically look out for four factors when evaluating student and graduates: education, experience, technical skills, and soft skills. The type of technical skills and experience are fully dependent on the specific team and line of business. Internships play a key role in demonstrating you’ve exercised skills learned in the classroom, but don’t be discouraged if you haven’t had the opportunity to do one. Highlighting any special projects that you’ve been involved in can speak volumes about your skills and experience. Personal projects, in particular, show your dedication to learning even in your free time.

How important are diversity and inclusion when you're recruiting a new professional?

They are extremely important! On a personal note, my alma matter is San Francisco State University, home to the Third World Liberation Front, where under-represented students made demands of the university for more representation in their staff, curriculum, and colleges. San Francisco State University encourages its students, past and present, to be change makers, so this is something I’ve carried forward to my own career.

What’s more, our mission on Oracle’s Global Diversity Recruiting Program team is to widen the funnel by removing barriers and allowing access to all our opportunities. I make myself available to attend diversity events so I can learn how to best support our under-represented candidates.

How do you ensure you receive diverse graduate candidates?

Oracle is dedicated to hiring a diverse workforce that better reflects the world around us and we have a number of programs that help us hire more diverse graduates. For example, we partner with diversity-focused organizations such as myGwork, Disability:IN and Women Who Code, focus recruitment efforts on historically Black colleges and universities and Hispanic serving institutions, and attend—and host—a range of global hiring events. For example, I’ve represented Oracle at events including AfroTech, Grace Hopper Celebration, Out & Equal Workplace Summit, and our Oracle TechFest in Asia Pacific. By allowing us to go to diversity-centered events, we can attract a wide array of candidates that come from diverse backgrounds.

How do you make sure the recruitment process is inclusive?

Oracle takes a number of steps to ensure our recruitment process is inclusive. One of them that I am particularly passionate about is our use of Textio, an AI tool that makes job descriptions and recruitment mail more inclusive. It was developed by linguists and helps identify corporate cliches, fixed mindset language and harmful phrases. We use this tool to help ensure our job descriptions attract a broader, inclusive talent pool and avoid any unintended bias. Personally, I’m proud of the work I did with Textio to make the phrase “he/she” identified as a harmful phrase and move to more gender-neutral terminology instead (e.g., candidate, person, they, and you). I work with teams across Oracle to optimize their use of Textio; it is one of my favorite parts of the job!

Would you encourage successful applicants to come out during the interview? If yes, what would be an easy way for them to come out?

I encourage people to give their pronouns when introducing themselves during interviews. This helps the interviewer know what to refer to the candidate as, and in my case, it allows me to give my pronouns as well. I can’t say I’ve ever come out in an interview, other than giving my pronouns. Interviews can be intimidating enough as it is. I’d say the only way I’d come out in an interview about my sexuality is if the interviewer asked me about my weekend and I responded with what my wife and I did.

Does your organisation have an LGBTQ+ network? How important do you think that is?

We have many Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) at Oracle. One of which that I’m a part of is called Oracle Pride Employee Network (OPEN). I attend events regularly for OPEN and even had the opportunity to attend Out & Equal this year as an Oracle/OPEN representative. I talk about our ERGs at Oracle during the interview process because they are a huge selling point for a lot of people, and they really show diversity and inclusion in action here. OPEN was one of mine when deciding to join Oracle.

How often do you meet with your LGBTQ+ network? Do they take part in shaping your LGBTQ+ inclusive policies and recruitment process?

OPEN is very much involved in shaping our policies and processes at Oracle. In fact, I recently had the opportunity to join our OPEN Education Task Force, which works on bringing resources to the community we serve. There are different levels of approval, including Diversity & Inclusion, so it very much feels like a team effort when we’re bringing training, sessions, and resources to our community and allies.

For new LGBTQ+ professionals, is their involvement in the LGBTQ+ network of their university important to you?

While it’s nice to see candidates involved in their LGBTQ+ networks, it is certainly not a requirement, and we know some people in the community aren’t ready to be visible or out at work or school. However, recruiters and hiring managers always value candidates who demonstrate involvement in organizations, community and extra curriculars—they are a great way to showcase your soft skills and experience demonstrated through special projects.

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