Unconscious Bias

Our background, experiences, and environmental conditions can all play a part in shaping our choices, whether we realize it or not. For the most part, this is not a major issue. But it becomes unconscious bias when we favor or discriminate against people because of these influences without even realizing it.

Unconscious bias can have a big impact on people-related decisions at work, especially around recruitment, promotion, performance management, and idea generation. When bias is prevalent, an organization will struggle to build diverse teams, and its efforts to improve workplace inclusion will have limited success.

Beyond the ethical case for recognizing and addressing unconscious bias, there is a commercial one too. Research has shown that a diverse workforce, at every level of an organization, tends to be more effective. One study found that businesses with a more ethnically and culturally diverse board of directors were 43 percent more likely to achieve above-average profits.