Ways to address Bias in the Workplace
As the eyes of the world gaze on Paris in the coming weeks – and momentarily on Tahiti – there will be scenes of excitement, of joy, of celebration, and also, for some, of disappointment. And, quite possibly, of controversy. Of who’s won.
Not in regard to the 100 metres, or the high jump. No, that will be clear.
But Breaking? Artistic Swimming? Rhythmic Gymnastics? How will a winner be selected? Whilst there are, of course, criteria for the judges, there’s always that element of subjectivity, of bias, both conscious and unconscious.
No matter how clear the criteria, human beings have, at times, an amazing creative capability of turning a blind eye to objective criteria.
Take, for example, the 1988 Seoul Olympics light-middle weight boxing final between Roy Jones Jr (USA) and Park Si Hun (South Korea). The 19-year-old American battered the South Korean. Over the 3 rounds, Jones landed 86 punches to Park’s 32. The South Korean endured 2 standing 8 counts. Although he hadn’t been knocked out, Park knew he had lost.
However, the judges felt otherwise and voted 3-2 in Park’s favour.
“I am sorry”, said Park afterwards, through an interpreter, “I lost the fight. I feel very bad”.
How can this possibly happen? Although there were allegations of bribery, these were never proven. An alternative explanation was given by Hiouad Larbi from Morocco, one of the judges at that fight. “The American won easily’ Larbi was to say later, “so easily that I was positive my four fellow judges would score the fight for the American by a wide margin. I voted for the Korean so as not to embarrass the host country”.
Before jumping to criticise Larbi for allowing such empathy to cloud his decision, it’s worth bearing in mind how most people make decisions. According to Michael Gazzanige, a neurobiological scientist, over 80% of decisions are based on emotion. Indeed, Daniel Kahneman, a Nobel Prize winning psychologist, goes further. His research shows that when it comes to finance, the figure is 90%.
Whatever the figure, the fact is that Bias – either conscious or unconscious – dominates the way we all reach decisions, and not necessarily leading to the right one.
When YouTube launched its iOS app video upload feature, the engineering team couldn’t understand why about 10% of initial videos were loaded upside down. As it happens, 10% of people are left-handed. It became apparent that, without thinking, they had designed the app just for right-handers.
Ways to address Bias in the Workplace
Whilst it’s probably not possible to avoid unconscious bias completely, here’s a simple guide that will go some way to addressing it in the workplace:
Gather facts - e.g. gender representation at senior level
Create a structure for making decisions – e.g. structured interviews for hiring
Watch out for subtle clues – e.g. who’s included, who’s not? Names of rooms after famous people
Foster awareness, hold everyone accountable – e.g. share a bias busting checklist at performance reviews
In the meantime, sit back and enjoy the Games!
Presentation Skills Myths and Realities #4
‘41% of people are more afraid of public speaking than of dying’
A myth made popular by the comedian, Jerry Seinfeld, when he suggested that, given this fear, the average person would rather be in the casket at a funeral than giving the eulogy.
Our Managing Director Mark Loasby debunks presentation myth number 4 on the blog this month:
Myth 4: ‘41% of people are more afraid of public speaking than of dying’
Digital Communication Mishap of the Month
BBC World News a few weeks ago. He might have been saying something important – but we’ll never know for sure. Too busy thinking – and, by definition, therefore not listening – as to why the guest speaker has turned green. Always check the filter before going Live!
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Until next month!
Warmest regards,
The Connect Family
