Celebrating the Increase Diversity? Newsletter—Best of 2024 Edition!

This is #IncreaseDiversity, a weekly newsletter series + Increase Diversity Toolbox sharing best practices for employers who want to learn how to… well, increase diversity. To see previous editions, visit JenniferTardy.com. | IG: @IncreaseDiversity | Increase Diversity - YouTube

Hold on tight because we’ve officially hit 85,000+ subscribers in the Increase Diversity? Newsletter family! Can you believe it? This year has been nothing short of incredible, and we’ve been on this journey together every step of the way. Every edition we’ve shared has had one core mission—to help companies create truly diverse, inclusive workplaces without harm.

And today, we’re bringing you some of the most impactful quotes from our 2024 newsletters—the ones that stirred conversation, sparked action, and propelled us all forward in diversity recruiting and retention.?

A Quick Update: What’s New at Team JTC

Our Qualified Diversity Recruiter (QDR) certification got a major upgrade with new, flexible microlearning modules, and our 2024 Increase Diversity Summit focused on the power of effective language in recruitment. And if you missed it, our CEO Jenn Tardy took the stage at the ERE Recruiting Conference in November and delivered a powerful keynote on future-proof leadership.

Want more? You can find the Increase Diversity Summit, QDR, and all our training programs inside the Increase Diversity Academy—your go-to resource for everything you need to increase diversity and retention.?

Now, without further ado, let’s get into the standout quotes that shaped our conversations this year:

Best of Quotes—2024 Edition

Best of Quote #1:

“We need to weave diversity into every fabric of our recruiting and retention efforts. It should be so embedded in what we do every day that we don’t even have to label it as ‘diversity recruiting’ anymore. It becomes just recruiting—but with an inclusive and equitable lens.”

— From the article Make Diversity Recruiting the Norm, Not an Option or Exception

Best of Quote #2

“We never talk about [the marginally attached and discouraged workers] when we talk about labor force data. Yet as recruiters, I think it is important for us to try and understand this ‘invisible labor force.’ Looking at the issue as diversity recruiters in particular, one question that might come up is, who is overrepresented among marginally attached and discouraged workers? Or put differently, are people from historically underrepresented groups concentrated among these job seekers?”

— From the article Why Engaging Marginally Attached and Discouraged Workers Matters in Diversity Recruitment

Best of Quote #3

“Inclusion starts with a conversation and, sometimes, you’ve got to push back to get that conversation started. So, gather your courage, speak up, and watch how things start to change. Save your energy for the moments that matter and practice speaking up and pushing back at critical times when a boundary is crossed—like when you’re not being heard, respected, or allowed to ask questions. This can drive real change quickly.”

— From the article Four Key Lessons from Amber Cabral’s “Say More About That”

Best of Quote #4

“As recruiters, it is important to consider what resumes can still do for us. We should not use them if there are better alternatives for the roles we are recruiting for. On the other hand, we should only do away with them if we are sure we can replace them with something that works better.”

— Extracted from The Future of Resumes: Are They Still Relevant? (Part II)

Best of Quote #5:

“If ‘I can’t’ is a familiar refrain in your vocabulary, toss that out, jump-start your imagination, and start asking, ‘How could I?’ instead. It’s about transforming the impossible into ‘I’m possible.’ Rae encourages tiny experiments to discover what ignites your passion, injecting more Possibility into your life beyond just gender exploration.”

— From Dive Into the Magic: 3 Lessons from Gender Magic by Rae McDaniel

Best of Quote #6

“Many Black employees say they ‘can’t be themselves’ at work. For Black professionals, code-switching to conform to workplace expectations is ‘as routine or familiar as breathing,’ and they are around three times as likely to code-switch as White employees.”

— From Calling Time on Two Long-Standing Employment Hurdles Facing the Black Community in America

Best of Quote #7:

“[Asian Americans] tend to be treated as a monolithic group even though they arrive in the US from many different countries. Not only do these issues ‘erase the differences across the community,’ they create the ‘bamboo ceiling’ where Asian Americans are underrepresented in senior roles due to being seen as doers rather than leaders.”

— From The Two Biggest Employment Hurdles Faced by Asian Americans

Best of Quote #8:

“We’re convinced that the external tactics you share with your hiring managers and recruiters to increase diversity—none of that matters until you help them resolve what’s happening on the inside. You’ve got to work with what’s on the inside first before you start telling people to do things externally […] many of your recruiters, hiring managers, and even the interviewers on the expanded interview team do not feel qualified, capable, or comfortable talking about diversity, such as what terms to use.”

— From The Most Important Factor to Increasing Diversity (It’s Not What You Think!)

Best of Quote #9:

“The hiring system is one of the most influential systems in our society, comparable to the legal, media, educational, and healthcare systems in its impact. From determining whether you’ll be able to put food on the table to making a global impact, the hiring system not only determines who gets the economic wealth but also who passes it on to the next generation.”

— From Ask These Questions to Transform Your Diversity Hiring Strategy (+ Disrupt Bias!)

Best of Quote #10:

“To Native Americans, the mainstream education system is like ‘walking in two worlds’ because Indigenous customs and ways of knowing are so different to the contemporary culture. While the Indigenous understanding seeks ‘a living of right relations with lands, waters, and each other,’ the formal education system has ‘spent the last 300 years stripping Native peoples of this worldview.’”

— From A Persistent Employment Hurdle Reinforcing the Marginalization of Native Americans

So, that was it! We hope these quotes resonate with you as much as they did with us. Whether it’s the shift toward making diversity a core part of recruiting or the ongoing fight to dismantle the barriers faced by marginalized groups, these insights represent the heart of what we do at Team JTC.

Here’s to many more newsletters packed with insights, strategies, and a shared commitment to increasing diversity and retention—without harm. Stay tuned for even more as we move forward together!