Practical Ways to Reduce Unconscious Bias in Hiring (Without Sacrificing Speed)

Bias will always exist—what matters is designing a process that keeps it from making the decisions.

At Stone Hendricks, we’ve seen how even well-intentioned teams can unintentionally let bias shape who gets hired, who gets passed over, and who never even gets in the room. But here’s the truth: reducing bias doesn’t slow down hiring. Done right, it speeds things up.

Bias-aware processes help decision-makers cut through the noise and stay focused on what matters most: candidate quality, potential, and impact.

What Unconscious Bias Actually Looks Like

It’s not always loud or obvious. In fact, the most damaging forms of bias are subtle:

• Favoring candidates who “just feel right” without clear criteria

• Making assumptions based on someone’s name, voice, or education

• Asking different questions to different candidates

• Overvaluing confidence instead of competence

• Letting first impressions carry more weight than evidence

These small, unconscious habits can quietly derail hiring outcomes, limit diversity, and cause teams to miss out on great talent.

You Don’t Have to Choose Between Speed and Fairness

There’s a misconception that building structure into hiring slows things down. But in our experience, the opposite is true. When your process is clear, consistent, and bias-aware, decisions get made faster and with more confidence.

Here are five ways to start:

1. Standardize the Interview Process

Ask every candidate the same set of structured, role-relevant questions. This makes the interview more equitable and makes it easier to compare candidates based on what actually matters.

2. Use a Scoring Rubric

Ditch the “gut feel” approach. Instead, use a consistent scoring system tied to specific behavioral indicators. A simple 1–5 scale, aligned with clear expectations, leads to more objective and efficient hiring decisions.

3. Try Blind Resume Screening (Where It Makes Sense)

When you remove names, graduation years, and other identifying info during the first screening stage, it’s easier to focus on relevant skills and experience, not assumptions.

4. Define Success Before You Interview

Agree ahead of time on what a strong candidate actually looks like. When teams walk into interviews without shared criteria, they’re more likely to be swayed by surface-level impressions or personality similarities.

5. Train Your Interviewers on Common Biases

Even a short session on bias, like the halo effect, affinity bias, or confirmation bias, can help hiring teams recognize their blind spots and make more consistent, fair decisions across the board.

Better Habits Build Better Teams

At Stone Hendricks, we believe the strongest hiring processes are the ones that help you see clearly, past distractions, past assumptions, and straight to a candidate’s real potential.

Reducing bias doesn’t mean removing human judgment. It means guiding it. And when that happens, hiring becomes not just more equitable, but more effective.

Let’s move faster, fairer, and smarter, because bias-aware hiring isn’t just the right thing to do. It’s the best way to build high-performing teams.