In history class I remember learning that the United States was known as a melting pot, however I have found this characterization doesn’t quite hold true in the workplace today.

According to a recent Forbes study that looked at workplace diversity in 50 nations, the United States ranked ninth based on a number of factors, such as ethnicity, disability, age, gender, skills, education, and geographical distribution

Do you believe your workforce matches the demographic you work in? If not, there are many benefits to developing a strategy to increase diversity.

One tip to diversify your workforce is to ask current employees for referrals.  They may have peers who are qualified for a position that needs to be filled. An additional source to use for connections is your community. Talk to local organizations, including cultural institutions and colleges.  But don’t limit yourself to city boundaries. Utilize the Internet to expand candidate searches to other cities and states.

Implementing diversity can also be rooted outside the hiring process. Provide training to employees on the equal opportunity employment policy your business has in place and how it affects them.  Offering benefits to employees is another method to diversify your workforce. Some benefits include on-site daycare, flexible schedules and accommodations to religious holidays.

As you make these changes to your business remember to be transparent to employees on why changes are happening, and the importance of a diverse workplace.

Adapted from, ” How to Increase Workplace Diversity” wsj.com