A survey conducted among members of the African Professional Network of Ireland found that half believe that anonymising job applicants' names during the recruitment process would help to make Irish workplaces more diverse.
70% of the members surveyed believe that including professionals from diverse backgrounds as part of the interview panel is the best way to address inherent bias while hiring.
Other recommendations included ensuring that candidates are evaluated based on their skillsets, not on what degree they hold or what third level institution they attended.
Just under half called for the creation of focused internship programmes specifically aimed at candidates from diverse backgrounds.
The survey was conducted to coincide with APNI Career Day 2023 in partnership with LinkedIn.
However, many African professionals in Ireland regard their background as an advantage, with almost four in 10 respondents saying that their ethnicity had positively shaped their career progression to date.
Among the recommendations arising from the study was the implementation of unconscious bias training, which aims to eliminate biases often based on race or gender that can ultimately impact on recruitment or promotion practices.
Sewagodimo Matlapeng, APNI Career Lead, said the survey had highlighted the increased diversity in workplaces in Ireland, but that there was still progress to be made in ensuring that companies are reflective of the society they exist in.
"A big part of that is evolving hiring practices to ensure that everyone is being considered in the same light and that people are not missing out on job opportunities because of their name or due to the university they went to being unfamiliar," she added.
Sue Duke, Country Manager of LinkedIn in Ireland, pointed out that every employer has a responsibility to ensure that organisations are equally welcoming to staff regardless of their race or gender.
"The net benefit is a more diverse workforce which is naturally more innovative due to diversity of thought. Companies large and small can work towards this by taking simple steps," she said.
"This could include considering how they can be more inclusive through initiatives like Black History Month or ensuring their recruitment process does not inadvertently overlook candidates simply because of where they went to university," she explained.
