How to Spot Unconscious Leadership Bias in Your Organization

Everyone has biases since they influence how our brain works to process information. But what happens when those biases influence decisions, especially in the workplace? What can you do when your leaders don’t know they must work on the issue?

Unconscious bias may seem harmless since it can quickly go unnoticed. However, it shapes decisions and interactions in your organization. When leaders have it, they may overlook some employees, causing inequality and low job satisfaction.

So, how do you recognize unconscious leadership bias and keep it from affecting your company? Continue reading to identify the key signs and develop effective strategies for addressing them.

 

Signs of Unconscious Bias in Leadership

Company leaders may unintentionally favor people who remind them of themselves. They may also pay attention to louder, more confident, or familiar teammates.

As a result, they’ll ignore or dismiss ideas from less vocal employees, making them feel like their opinions don’t matter.

Here are other key indicators of unconscious leadership bias:

• There are diversity gaps in your teams
• Leaders overfocus on cultural fitness when hiring
• They may ignore microaggressions

Your leaders’ criteria for building teams can reflect how they view specific roles and employee suitability.

If you notice that some teams are mostly one gender, race, or ethnicity, your leaders probably think some people are better suited for the roles. They may keep giving projects to them, thinking they’re trying to improve the outcome without knowing they’re being unfair.

Hiring for cultural fit often sounds like a good idea, but leaders can sometimes misinterpret it. They will only choose employees who think, act, or look like the current team. While ensuring employees fit in is often necessary, it also limits diversity and affects creativity.

Microaggressions often result from subtle behaviors that may make an employee feel excluded. They could also be due to inappropriate and sometimes insensitive comments.

If employees complain about microaggressions but leaders ignore them, that’s a sign of unconscious bias. It’s likely the people in charge don’t understand the weight of the matter and can dismiss it as being too sensitive.

 

Tips to Help You Identify Bias in Your Organization

If you want to spot unconscious bias, you must be cautious and willing to listen to your team. It’s also critical to do your research and uncover unwanted patterns. Use these tips to pinpoint unconscious leadership bias.

👉 Collect and Review Data

Data allows you to detect patterns of unconscious bias you would likely ignore without adequate and direct information. When collecting it, focus on areas such as:

• Hiring
• Promotions
• Pay
• Employee turnover

Look for patterns on the kind of employees advancing in their careers. Is a specific category getting ahead faster while others don’t? Do they also receive better salary offers and more favorable terms?

Another aspect to look into is the nature of employees leaving your firm. Determine if workers from specific backgrounds resign more often than others. Further, find out if they complained of microaggression from other employees before quitting.

 

👉 Conduct Employee Surveys

Employees may hesitate to report company leaders because their careers are on the line. They may also not want other workers to label them or perceive them as not being team players.

Conducting anonymous surveys allows you to gather honest feedback about your workplace. When employees don’t fear retaliation from their managers, they’ll provide detailed opinions.

During the surveys, ask questions such as:

• Do you feel valued and included in your team?
• Do you get growth opportunities regardless of your background?
• Have you experienced unconscious bias in the company?
• Do you feel fairly evaluated compared to your peers?
• Do your colleagues value and listen to your ideas during meetings?

The answers will provide valuable insights into areas your leaders need to work on. They also help you identify patterns contributing to a culture of unconscious bias.

 

👉 Audit Meetings and Discussions

Attending meetings can help you assess if there is unconscious bias in your company. Pay attention to which leaders dominate discussions and which ones stay silent. Check if the person leading the meeting encourages quieter people to give their input.

After the meeting, follow up with employees who commented less and ask if there’s a reason behind it. Find out if they felt their ideas wouldn’t matter and if they have been in similar situations before.

 

👉 Check for Uneven Workload Distribution

Leaders might assign the most exciting projects to certain employees and leave others out. Some workers may also end up with too much work because their bosses consider them reliable.

Detect unconscious bias by looking out for uneven work distribution. Check if specific employees are always part of visible projects that help with career growth.

Then, determine if those who don’t can also deliver excellent results based on their track records. You should also observe if certain employees are always the go-to for extra work.

 

Ways to Reduce Unconscious Leadership Bias

Most executives often don’t know they’re making biased decisions until someone else points it out. Leadership training can help you explain bias, how it shows up in the workplace, and its effects.

Conduct regular workshops so all your leaders stay aware and continue to improve. Each session should cover different situations to address unconscious bias in daily interactions.

Here are other tips to help you deal with unconscious bias:

• Encourage accountability
• Use structured processes in decision-making
• Encourage careful and thoughtful decision-making

Leaders can address bias if employees feel comfortable speaking up when they notice something unfair. Encourage employee feedback by taking their concerns seriously and following up. You should also let them know speaking up won’t lead to punishment or negative consequences.

Once you implement these strategies, measure how well your firm is doing to reduce bias. Check if hiring and promotion practices are becoming more diverse. It’s also crucial to assess whether leaders now share work based on employees’ capabilities.

 

Eliminate Unconscious Leadership Bias to Build a Fair Workplace

Unconscious leadership bias can lead to inequality and employee dissatisfaction. Watch out for diversity gaps and microaggressions in your teams. Review data on hiring and promotions and ask employees for feedback.

Using these measures, you can spot and proactively address the signs of bias. You’ll also be able to create a workplace where everyone gets equal opportunities to succeed in their career.

Check out our career page for other informative articles.