Challenge 8: Is your team aware of the cognitive biases that could blind them to new opportunities?

Diagnosis

Every time the need to change or innovate becomes a stress for a business, the focus switches to people rather than processes. There are a lot of cases when businesses fail to access innovation because of the cognitive biases of people and the right or wrong environment at the moment of implementation.

Cognitive biases are thinking errors that occur when people are processing and interpreting information from the world around them. These biases usually affect people’s decisions and judgments and even if wrong, they work as rules of thumb helping people get a sense of the world and take quick decisions.

The less we are aware of the cognitive biases we have, the more we will ignore aspects of innovation process, for example, that are not in line with past experiences we already know, our view will narrow, and we will most probably overlook essential elements that do not fit into it, and finally, we will become more polarized once we have made a certain decisions, being inflexible to rational proofs of better approaches on a given matter.

To try to understand the importance of being aware of the cognitive biases we have, please analyse the aspects presented in the table below.

Positive aspects	Negative aspects
Do your employees think by themselves, have their own opinions, no matter what other people in their department, company, social group do or think?	Do your employees do or believe things just because other people simple do or believe the same?
Are your employees coming up with completely new ideas and perspectives on a subject rather than accepting the first good idea presented in a meeting?	Do your employees have the tendency to rely on the first piece of information they acquire on a certain subject when making decisions?
Are your employees open to embrace uncertainty? Do they fancy the unknown hidden behind any innovative strategic decision of the company?	Do your employees have the tendency to avoid the unknown generated by the incomplete information related to any innovation plan?
Your employees are feeling safe enough to give honest, unfiltered feedback that supports innovation within your company.	The employees have the tendency to give a socially correct opinion than an honest, true one, to avoid offending others.
Your employees are coming up with new uses for existing company’s products and services.	Your employees are limited to using an object or a service only in the way it is traditionally used.
Are your employees exploring the pros and cons of different options to choose the most relevant one which brings the greatest added value?	Do your employees have the tendency to express unjustified preference for things, ideas, opinions, outcomes, just because they are familiar with?
Your employees are prepared for different kind of scenarios regarding business evolution so that they will not be shocked by what could happen.	The employees do not want to take into consideration scenarios that have never happen before in the company. They do not consider these possible catastrophic scenarios plausible enough to take place.
Are your employees taking responsibility for their actions? Are they aware that everything they do depends mostly on them and the decisions they are taking?	Are your employees blaming others or external independent forces when something goes wrong in their professional activity?
Your employees are aware of their own abilities, professional experience, strengths and weaknesses and act accordingly. They act in an honest, authentic manner towards their colleagues and managers.	Your employees consider themselves that they are smarter and more capable than they really are. They act according to this strong belief arguing with everybody about their overestimated abilities and professional competency.
Your employees like changes, new, creative ideas, and the challenges new products, processes bring.	Your employees are comfortable with things remaining the way they have always been.

1. Fill in the table with your initial assessment regarding each aspect and the way it is reflected in your company.

2. Take between 2 and 4 weeks to intentionally observe your team and their way of thinking about the aspects in the table and their attitudes towards any other situation not specified above.

3. Go among your employees, no matter what department, and challenge them to speak with you on different subjects so that you observe as many cognitive biases stated above as possible.

4. At the end of the selected period, organize a meeting with all employees and discuss about what you have identify as weak and strong points in your organisation from the cognitive biases point of view.

Actions for implementation

If you observe that negative aspects are common in your company, while positive aspects are barely present, you must take seriously openly communicating about the cognitive biases that block innovation acceptance and development within your company.

Your objective should be to correctly identify cognitive biases in yourself and others that could negatively interfere with embracing innovation, understand their source and adaptive role in your professional life and find ways to overcome them.

Actions to be implemented to reach your goal can include:

1. Be aware of your biases. It is very important to know what your biases are before you address them. In order to do so, you can use various methods, such as self-reflection, feedback, surveys, tests, and checklists. When you recognize your biases, you become aware of how they affect the way you think and behave.

2. Challenge your biases. Focus on challenging your biases when you start noticing that your choices are affected by some of your thinking patterns. Ask yourself questions that could help you become a better critical thinker: what aspects of the problem you have overlooked, which are the factors you have given too much credit in the detriment of others, what important information you have neglected just because it was not in line with your beliefs.

3. Work on your mindset. Be curious, humble, and open when developing your mindset. The advantages of changing your mindset are related to supporting your personal and professional growth, developing your critical thinking skills, and improving your problem-solving challenges. You can work on your mindset using practices such as meditation, journaling, cultivating your awareness, empathy, and appreciation.