In this article authors Banajai, Bazerman and Chugh argue that most people harbor unconscious biases that are at odds with our consciously held beliefs and that these biases are problematic for managers in the workplace when it comes to ethical decision making. The article explores different sources of unintentional unethical decision making and presents strategies for bringing unintentional biases to the surface to help managers make wiser decisions. The article concludes that managers who recognize their potential for unethical behavior are more likely to become ethical decisions makers.
As the article discusses the sources of unconscious bias I could not keep from rehashing decisions and scenarios in my past where bias might have played a role in either my fortune or misfortune. Where I struggled in reading this article was in reflecting around times where my decisions played a role in the fortune or misfortune of others and how my decisions might have been influenced by bias. This of course was the goal of the article. And as it points out penalizing people for their decisions is not a constructive way to address this problem. For me the technique to broaden my decision making by applying the veil of ignorance where possible appears the most viable place for me to start recognizing what implicit biases influence me. I am not at a managerial level in my organization, but I do participate in evaluating candidates for hiring decisions and my default position is to determine how my position interacts with the proposed hire’s position. This technique would have me consider the needs of the department and the school without regard to who I am and the needs of my position.
LO2: Demonstrate the ability to assess complex organizational environments and achieve communication goals.