Blind hiring

Suominen follows the principle of blind hiring in its recruitment to ensure that all applicants are treated equally. In practice, blind hiring means that certain details – such as name, gender, ethnicity and age – are removed from the applications and CV's. This keeps the focus on factors relevant to the job, minimizing any unconscious prejudices in recruitment decisions.

The blind hiring process consists of three stages:

  1. Objective, measurable selection criteria is defined based on the job description. Criteria can be e.g. a particular type of training, specific competences or practical experience.

  2. If an external consultant has been enlisted for the recruitment process, they are briefed on the key characteristics relevant to successful work performance. The consultant assesses the applications based on these criteria and creates a shortlist. If Suominen handles the recruitment without external cousultant, the shortlist is made by the HR department.

  3. Certain personal data, such as name, gender, ethnicity and age, are removed from the applications and CV's. From the applicants that fulfil the criteria, the supervisor selects the most promising ones on the basis of their applications and CV's. This is done to ensure that applicants are assessed only on the basis of the selection criteria and the applicants’ merits. The applicants’ identities will not be revealed to the supervisor until the interview stage.

Blind hiring was introduced in 2015, and is applied whenever possible in new employee recruitment.