A large of part of life is making decisions. In fact, according to a recent study, the average person makes about 35,000 decisions a day. And for hiring managers and business owners, that number is probably much higher.

With so much decision-making, it’s impossible for bias not to be involved. In a perfect world, when a person applies for a job, they would only be judged on their ability to do the work. But we all know this isn’t the case.

While discrimination and outright bias can be easy to spot, there are some unconscious hiring biases your business should be aware of. There’s no need to worry, because we’re here to give your business a list of biased hiring practices to watch out for.

Why Is Hiring Bias A Big Deal?

Before we dive into the different types of biased hiring practices, it’s important to know why you need to know them. The short answer is that hiring bias can lead to the wrong candidate getting the job. And turnover is expensive. The Huffington Post estimates that an employee leaving costs a business between 1.5 and 2 times their annual salary.

Types of Recruiting Bias to Watch Out For

1. Affect Heuristics

Put simply, this is when someone makes a decision based on superficial factors. For example, deciding someone with visible tattoos isn’t right for the job based on that trait alone. But it’s not always negative. A business can assume just because someone dressed professionally to an interview that they’re the best fit.

It’s natural for thoughts like this to creep in. But making a decision based on a specific trait or personality leaves you open to liability.

2. The Horn Effect

The horn effect is a recruiting bias where one bad characteristic is all you can focus on. It clouds your judgment and can lead to not hiring someone because that quality takes over. It’s important to remember that nobody is perfect, and one single bad trait shouldn’t define a candidate.

3. The Halo Effect

As you may have guessed, this hiring bias is the exact opposite of the Horn Effect. It’s when someone allows one good trait influence the decision. Checking into the candidate’s background or evaluating other skills related to the job don’t happen. This can even make other candidates seem inferior to the standard set by the “haloed” candidate.

4. Contrasting Effect

When you’re going through a stack of resumes, it’s easy to compare the current resume to the last one. You’re actually creating a shifting scale of requirements that isn’t fair to any of the candidates. Try to silo out each candidate and judge their skills as they apply to the job, instead of comparing them to the last applicant.

5. Similarity Attraction

It’s completely natural to want to surround yourself with people you share similarities with. After all, if you’re going to spend 40 hours a week with someone, it’s better if you get along. Similarity attraction is a recruiting bias that takes this to the extreme. It’s when you only hire people like yourself, regardless of their qualifications.

Find the Right Employees for Your Business with Allied Forces

Don’t let any of the recruiting biases you learned about here have a negative impact on your business. Partnering with a staffing agency can help your business find quality candidates for open positions.

At Allied Forces, our expert recruiters can match your business with the right resources from our pool of qualified candidates. Contact our team and see how we can support your business today.