How Mathison helped Sonos build org-wide DEI interviewing best practices

About Sonos

Sonos (Nasdaq: SONO) is the world’s leading sound experience company. As the inventor of multi-room wireless home audio, Sonos innovation helps the world listen better by giving people access to the content they love and allowing them to control it however and wherever they choose.

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Challenge

In 2020 Sonos looked across their organization and saw a company fairly homogenous in race and gender. While the team was committed to building a more diverse workplace, they recognized that reshaping the systems and processes used to recruit, interview, and hire candidates was no easy task.“We had a goal of being more inclusive and driving change from the start with candidates,” explained Jenna Quirk, People Programs Associate Program Manager at Sonos.

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Solution

Sonos partnered with Mathison and set out to build a consistent foundation for interviews, and to train the entire company on interviewing best practices, including the ability to identify bias.

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“We started a partnership with Mathison to learn about our weaknesses and where we could get better,” Jenna shared.

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Using Mathison’s Equity Index (formally Equal Hiring Index®), Sonos was able to identify critical areas for improvement in their hiring practices. They started by adding intention, purpose and structure to their interview process.

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Sonos also used the Mathison platform to create an interview template that everyone could use, with questions designed around the company’s core values. In retooling the process, the team wanted the questions to feel unique and to reflect the passion and vision that defined the pioneering brand. The new structure also allows for creativity, giving interviewers freedom to make up their own questions depending on the circumstances.

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In addition to their new interview process, Sonos rolled out Mathison’s training and education platform company-wide. Today, the entire Sonos team is developing a shared language and understanding, leading to more open dialogue, transparency and continuous conversation as they continue to grow towards their goal of an inclusive and equitable company.

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We had a goal of being more inclusive and driving change from the start with candidates, and so we started a partnership with Mathison to learn about our weaknesses and where we could get better.

Jenna Quirk, People Programs Associate Program Manager