Talento de Sobra: A Guide for Employers

By Fundación Banco Popular

Learn more about the guide to maximizing the talent of employees with functional diversity.

Recruiting and retaining personnel is one of the biggest challenges companies have experienced in recent years. Businesses have had to implement multiple strategies to fill vacancies and identify benefits or organizational changes to attract and retain talent. However, the challenge remains; businesses must constantly design new strategies to ensure that the lack of resources does not affect operations. One of the strategies adopted by different companies has been to reinforce diversity, equity and inclusion, recognizing that it is “good business for your business” (Expert Panel, Forbes Councils Member, 2022; Bernard Tynes, Forbes Councils Member).

In this important and beneficial endeavor of diversity, equity and inclusion, Julie Sowash, Executive Director of Disability Solutions (Maurer, 2022), points out that in “recent years, we have seen many companies commit to creating more inclusive workplaces for minority groups, including people from a variety of racial, ethnic, gender, and religious backgrounds. Disability is a dimension of diversity often left out of these initiatives, which is ironic given that it intersects with every one of them. Multiple reports reveal that recruiting people with functional diversity improves organizational culture, reduces turnover, and increases customer satisfaction.”

Hiring people with functional diversity is an excellent strategy and provides companies nationwide with a competitive advantage.  An employer who gives an opportunity to an individual with functional diversity will have on their staff an employee who represents:

• Commitment – A study published by Unger DD (2022) reveals that, after one year of employment, the retention rate for people with functional diversity is 85%. This results in greater stability for them and for the companies.
• Loyalty – Inclúyeme, an organization dealing with workplace inclusion in Latin America, reaffirms that workers with functional diversity are more loyal to their jobs than people without disabilities. This translates into less turnover and less training costs and time.
• Productivity – Employees with a disability who clearly understand their role, the expectations and instructions to perform their job successfully can produce excellent work. This influences other colleagues without disabilities, who end up improving their performance.
• Increase in clientele – People with disabilities represent the third largest consumer market segment in the United States. A study by Lengnick, Gaunt, and Kulkarni found that 88% of customers prefer to do business with an inclusive company.
• Enhanced innovation – The barriers that people with disabilities face daily strengthen their agility, perseverance, foresight, and willingness to experiment and solve problems. All are essential characteristics of innovation.
• Stronger image and reputation – Talking about the inclusion of the disabled population speaks about human rights and corporate social responsibility. Not only is it okay to employ diverse people, but this action sends a strong message about what the company and its culture represent.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, in 2022 21.3% of the population with disabilities were employed, which represents an increase when compared to the previous year in which only 19.1% of those with disabilities were employed.  In 2022, 30% of the population with disabilities were employed on a part-time basis. Meanwhile, in Puerto Rico, according to the Employment Status by Disability Status and Type Report of the United States Census Bureau published in 2019, 24% of the population had some degree disabilities compared to 60% of non-disabled population. The report also indicates that 16 % of the population between ages 21-64 had some disability.

Bearing this in mind, Fundación Banco Popular, in collaboration with expert organizations, developed Talento de Sobra, the first guide to help employers maximize the talent of people with functional diversities and promote inclusion in the workplace.

How can this free guide help businesses? What tools does it provide?

• Steps that promote recruiting qualified potential candidates with functional diversity.
• Key questions to conduct a self-assessment in terms of inclusion and accessibility among the population with functional diversity within your company. This will allow you to identify aspects that have already been worked on as well as those that require improvement.
• Knowledge and understanding, in a simple and practical way, about concepts related to workplace inclusion of people with functional diversity.
• Useful contact information of allied institutions that can support both employers and candidates throughout the process.
• Summary of current and main legislation, at federal and state levels, regarding disability (functional diversity) in the workplace.

You may now access this tool by clicking on the link: www.talentodesobra.com. Additionally, you may download the guide in PDF format.

Fundación Banco Popular is a non-profit entity, separate from Popular, Inc. and its subsidiaries, dedicated to philanthropic work and that receives support and donations from Banco Popular de Puerto Rico. Banco Popular de Puerto Rico, its parent company, affiliates, subsidiaries, or related companies (“Popular”) and Fundación Banco Popular have no affiliation or relationship with the people or entities mentioned in this article. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an endorsement or guarantee of accuracy or applicability for any particular purpose. Fundación Banco Popular and Popular are not, and will not be liable for any special, direct, or indirect, or incidental damages resulting from the use of the information contained in this article. Fundación Banco Popular  and Popular are not engaged (directly or indirectly) in providing services related to the content of this article. If you require any service related to this article, you must request advice from a competent professional of your choice. Fundación Banco Popular and Popular expressly reject any and all liability for said advice.