Not intentionally so and hopefully not in a way that allows me to make discriminatory decisions but I know I am biased through decades of being me. Whether I like it or not the people I interact with at home and work help shape how I see the world and make judgements. They are not surprisingly a bit like me; they do the things I do, they enjoy the things I enjoy and are good company for me. By default this increases my bias without me knowing.
In itself this is quite normal but accentuates how important it is that I constantly challenge myself in decision making processes and the activities I undertake. This could be as simple as who I talk to as I wander around the office now we have people returning to the work space or decisions on hiring or promotions. This article looks at weeding out bias and correcting for bias and brings the things we can do to resist bias front of mind. My bias will not go away but I can resist it's influence if I work at it.
Bias is universal and ubiquitous; it can’t be avoided. And it’s not a character flaw, but simply how our brains operate. Despite the feeling that we are good, moral people who treat others with equal dignity and respect, bias inevitably seeps into the hiring process and results in systematic disadvantages for some groups of people. Because of the elusive “bias blind spot” where we are unable to see our own biases, we must take steps to counteract them if we hope to establish a rich and diverse workforce. Designing more equitable processes requires systems change, which can be achieved through two approaches: weeding out and correcting for bias. Where possible, we can try to reduce bias in organizational procedures, both in how we appeal to applicants and how we evaluate them.
unknownx500
