The Best Teams Don’t Just Happen
The Best Teams Don’t Just Happen. You Have to Hire for Them.
Think about the organizations you admire most. Chances are, what sets them apart isn’t their budget or their brand, it’s their people. The right team can accomplish extraordinary things. And building that team starts long before anyone walks through the door for an interview.
“It’s really worth the time and effort on the front end. I think it creates better outcomes for everyone.”
Inclusive hiring isn’t a one-step fix, it’s a practice and a process that starts before you ever post a job. In this episode Katie Berg, Human Resources Manager – Business Partners for MACC, walks us through the full arc of the hiring process to shine a light on all the places where unintentional bias and barriers can creep in: job titles and descriptions, where and how you advertise, how you screen candidates, and how you evaluate them once you’re in the room together. She also shows us how at every stage, there are things you can do about it!
“Any time we’re hiring for undefined ‘vibes’ or fit, it’s really risky territory.”
This is where the conversation gets real. When a hiring team can’t articulate why someone isn’t the right fit — when it’s just a feeling — that language becomes a catchall. Katie is direct about what’s at risk: it can become coded language for discrimination, embedding bias into your process in ways that carry real legal and ethical consequences. Her challenge is simple: before interviews begin, take the time and define what fit actually means for your team. In terms of skills, in work styles, and in concrete, shared terms everyone agrees on.
“We don’t want to hire the person who’s best at interviewing. We want to hire the person who’s best at the job.”
Inclusive hiring is about creating conditions where people can actually show you what they’re capable of. Katie has seen many times in her work with members that what seems like small stuff often makes a big difference. Describing the accessibility of your building when you invite candidates in, offering closed captions for virtual interviews, sharing some questions in advance. All of these small shifts let candidates show you what they’re actually capable of, rather than how quickly they think on their feet. None of this happens by accident. Inclusive hiring takes intentional conversation and self-examination alongside thoughtful, concrete action.
This is a warm, practical conversation with someone who works alongside MACC’s network of nonprofits every day and has seen what a difference this work makes. Whether you’re posting a job next week or just starting to think about your hiring practices, there’s something here you can use.