Chad Van Iddekinge, professor of management and entrepreneurship at the University of Iowa's Tippie College of Business, studies the impact of a business taking positions on hot button political issues on hiring. His studies suggest taking political stands makes it harder to hire top talent because job seekers take those positions into consideration when deciding where to apply and are less likely to apply at a company that doesn't share their view.
He recently surveyed more than 300 working professionals seeking new employment and found:
—58% said a potential employer’s political views were at least somewhat important, and another 36% said they were strongly important.
—40% strongly agreed with the statement that they would be discouraged from applying at a company that takes public political positions that differ from their own.
—34% said they would withdraw an application if they found out they disagreed with an employer’s political positions after submitting a resume.
—54% would be less likely to accept an offer from an employer they discovered had opposing political views after they applied.
He said firms also risk turning their businesses into self-sorted bubbles of like-minded people that lack diversity in thought.
He said it might also be one reason why so many employers are having a difficult time filling vacancies.
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