Prejudice in companies - summary of the episode

Unconscious bias refers to thought patterns that we are unaware of and that distort the way we perceive the world. Every person has these distinct ways of thinking, which vary according to culture, socialization, upbringing and experience. While these ways of thinking, also known as “pigeonholing”, make it easier for our brains to process information and enable us to make decisions more quickly, they also lead us to categorize people and, in the worst cases, put them at a disadvantage when making decisions.

There are two perspectives on this: on the one hand, we all have an unconscious bias and may not act according to objective criteria. On the other hand, we too can be unfairly favored or disadvantaged by the unconscious bias of others. This concerns companies because the selection of staff, for example, may be influenced by unconscious thought patterns, reducing equal opportunities. In addition, the affinity bias – which means that we prefer to work with people who are similar to us – leads to homogeneous teams. As a result, fewer different perspectives are available when developing solutions. For the success of a project, it is therefore advisable to create teams that are as heterogeneous as possible.

We can reduce our unconscious bias by becoming aware of our own thought patterns and questioning them. It is helpful to identify one’s own triggers, i.e. situations in which our thinking generally follows fixed patterns. Once these have been identified, it is important to pause for a moment in such situations in order to question the motivation that is driving our decisions. It is useful to ask people, who we know have different backgrounds than ourselves, for their opinions on our decisions and approaches. In this way, different perspectives – that may otherwise escape our attention due to our blind spots – can be frequently included in our project work.

To create awareness for this topic, zeb offers a two-part learning journey. First, there is an autodidactic section where you learn about the unconscious bias, how to deal with it, and how to self-reflect. After that, you will be given the chance to participate in a workshop with other colleagues and discuss when unconscious biases occur in everyday work and how such situations can be handled in the future.