UNCONSCIOUS BIAS your cultural competency , which helps you be more understanding .
Take a breath Biases most commonly come into play when you ’ re forced to make quick decisions . Research shows that your brain can only consciously process around 40 items of information per second . But unconsciously it processes up to 11 million items per second . When making quick decisions , you ’ re only consciously processing a fraction of the information you need , and your brain will take any shortcuts it can to help you make this decision quicker — cue biases . Taking extra time to make decisions will help you see the bigger picture and allow you to assess all the relevant information from an objective perspective .
Training Like many things in the workplace , it usually takes ongoing training to maximise the result . This is no different . If you feel your company is lacking in this area , bring it up with your executive and pitch the idea of regular unconscious bias training . It will help to raise awareness through the company and will promote fairness . Getting the whole office aware of the impact of unconscious bias will only enhance the productivity and performance of the company .
Blind assessment When hiring or promoting someone , try removing information such as name , age , location , and school name . This leaves only the relevant information and qualifications and will help you or your executive make a more objective decision based only on the applicant ’ s suitability for the role .
While unconscious bias might be impossible to eradicate , take confidence and hope in the fact that there are options to combat its role in the workplace . Start by being aware of your own unconscious bias and take the steps to mitigate the effect on your own decisions and then use that knowledge to inform your executives and organisation as a whole . Helping your company adjust its operations to be aware of this could have unthinkable results on performance and productivity . But first and foremost , being aware of unconscious bias helps you and your executive feel confident in the fairness of your decisions and the opportunities you can give to others . S
The role of diversity in business recovery
Businesses have been hit hard by the global pandemic and many companies are already focusing on their business recovery and perhaps that ’ s where their priorities lie .
Some other focus areas , like diversity and inclusion , might be put on the backburner and considered a non-urgent area . That may seem like a reasonable response as your executives should be focused on getting the company back on its feet , but it ’ s important they don ’ t forget the role that diversity can play in business recovery .
Organisations will need to use enhanced problem-solving skills to enact suitable business recovery methods and pulling from a full spectrum of diverse talents will only benefit this . Dealing with the impact of global crises requires out of the box , innovative thinking — something that won ’ t happen if all contributors have the same background , preferences , and experiences . An article by management consulting company McKinsey & Company titled Diversity Still Matters ( 2020 ) outlines five key opportunities for business recovery that focusing on diversity and inclusion can present :
Increased customer insight The entire world is made up of individuals , no two are exactly the same . In other words , we live in a diverse world — which means your company ’ s customer / client base is diverse , too . It makes sense that a diverse workplace will only benefit in the innovation of your company ’ s services and customer satisfaction .
Top of the talent pool Focusing on building diverse representation in the company means your executive will have access to a wider range of talent and skills that will benefit business recovery . With proof remote working is still effective , this will also widen the talent pool to target a range of candidates who might not have been able to commit to previous business models . Now , remote working allows companies to consider hiring workers like single parents who didn ’ t have the flexibility to be considered pre-pandemic .
Improve decision making COVID-19 taught businesses the importance of being flexible and how-to problem solve creatively , and both of these skills will impact on the decision making that is crucial in business recovery . Diversity in the workplace will only broaden and expand decision making to consider more creative solutions . And who knows ? The lesser considered perspective / decision could be exactly what your business needs .
Employee satisfaction After suffering through a global pandemic and the isolation that came with it , employees will be feeling more vulnerable than ever . This is something your executive needs to consider when moving forward with business recovery . Inclusivity of a diverse range of employees will only boost morale and inspire positive attitudes in the workplace , which in turn will only benefit the performance of the business .
Global image The McKinsey & Company article states that , “ Companies that maintain , or even increase , their focus on I & D [ inclusion and diversity ] during the downturn are likely to avoid the risk of being penalized in its aftermath — for example , by losing customers , struggling to attract talent , and losing government support and partnerships .” Organisations that look beyond their company walls and seek to impact the broader economy and society will only benefit from that — and having a diverse workforce can boost the creative and collaborative work ethic to do that .
Issue 1 2021 | Chief of Staff 21