Introduction

Good Leader- intelligent- resourceful-reliable expected to make good

decisions

Whether a leader or a follower- as humans- our own limitations

Classical theory- Actual scenario-
Lay options Pattern recognition
Define objectives Emotional tagging
Assess each option Initial assessment
This is how the brain works
We cannot rely on leaders to spot and safeguard against their own errors in
judgment
• For important decisions, we need a deliberate, structured way to identify
likely sources of bias
• those red flag conditions
• we need to strengthen the group decision-making process
 HOW THE BRAIN TRIPS UP
Decision
Making

Pattern Emotional
Recognition Tagging
• Complex process of integrating • Emotional information is tagged to
information thoughts and experiences
• Assumptions based on prior • Tells us of action or inaction
experiences • One can get swayed by emotions or
• Generally reliable – leading to false vested interests – leading to errors in
confidence judgement.
Much of the mental work is done unconsciously, thus making it hard to check the facts and
logic behind coming up with the decision.
How good leaders make bad judgements…
 Typically biases the emotional importance
we place on information
1 The presence of inappropriate self-interest
 Example: Even Well-intentioned
professionals, such as doctors and auditors,
are unable to prevent self-interest from
biasing their judgments of which medicine
 We canare
These become attached
memories that to people,places,
to prescribe or opinion toseem relevant
give during an
and
and things, and these
comparable to thebonds can
current aff ect the
situation but
audit.
2 The presence of distorting attachments judgments we form
lead our thinking about
down theboth thepath.
wrong situation
we face and the appropriate actions to take.
 They can cause us to overlook or
 Example:
undervalueThesome
reluctance executives
important often
differentiating
feel to sell a unit they’ve worked in nicely
factors.
captures the power of inappropriate
 attachments.
The chance of being misled by memories is
3 The presence of misleading memories intensified by any emotional tags we have
attached to the past experience.
1 2
 IDENTIFYING RED FLAGS
1. Lay out the range of options
2. List the main decision makers

3. Choose one decision maker to focus on

4. Check for inappropriate self-interest or distorting
attachments
5. Check for misleading memories
6. Repeat the analysis with the next most influential
person
7. Review the list of red flags you have identified
SAFEGUARDING AGAINST YOUR BIASES
Injecting fresh experience or
analysis

Introducing further debate and

challenge

Imposing stronger governance

CONCLUSION

Identifying red Safeguarding

How brain trips
flags against Biases