Our Insights

Bias Busters Collection

It happens to the best of us. We don’t realize that some of our decisions are affected by cognitive and organizational biases. Our new Bias Busters series presents articles on the most common biases and ways you can address them.
A red sphere is in the lead, followed by several gray squares, each positioned in its own groove.
Article

Bias Busters: Next in line? A structured approach to succession planning

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A good old-fashioned task force can help boards depersonalize the process of picking new leaders.
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Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: Motivations under the microscope
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A mapping exercise can help senior managers determine how best to bring employees with different priorities together to achieve common corporate goals.
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Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: The perils of executive typecasting
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Decision making can be clouded when people attribute others’ actions and motivations to the societal roles that they play (such as parent, teacher, and manager).
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Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: When good intentions get derailed
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Motivated reasoning can lead people to believe everything’s fine despite evidence to the contrary. Here’s how to counter emotions with facts.
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Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: When the crowd isn’t necessarily wise
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Leaders need to recognize herd mentality when it happens—and explore the contrarian view to help break the spell.
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Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: A better way to brainstorm
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Structured conversation during brainstorming sessions removes some of the risks that can thwart honest discussion.
Bias busters: Don’t steer your strategy by the wrong star
Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: Don’t steer your strategy by the wrong star
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Leaders’ plans may falter if they’re relying on superficial analogies to find answers to their biggest problems.
Bias Busters: Lifting your head from the sand
Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: Lifting your head from the sand
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Business conversations work better when business leaders actively acknowledge potentially unpleasant information rather than run from it.
War games
Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: War games? Here’s what they’re good for
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Strategy decisions are interdependent decisions. Don’t forget to anticipate competitors’ moves when making your own.
Seeing strategy alternatives
Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: Seeing strategy alternatives in the momentum case
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A momentum case can reveal what could happen if a company takes no, or only limited, strategic action.
Avoiding snap judgement
Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: Avoiding snap judgments
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When making important business decisions, it’s critical to put first impressions aside and explore the facts.
Getting both sides
Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: Getting both sides of the story
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How can the CEO break employees’ silence and get the critical input needed to make the right strategic moves?
Knowing when
Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: Knowing when to kill a project
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You’re keen on encouraging innovation and letting a thousand flowers bloom, but how do you sort the weeds from the seeds?
Premortems
Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: Premortems: Being smart at the start
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Conducting a premortem can help teams anticipate project failure—and head it off at the pass.
Upfront contingency planning
Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: Up-front contingency planning
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Avoid throwing good money after bad by developing “contingent road maps”—plans for updating your investment strategy based on unbiased feedback from the market.
Pruning projects proactively
Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: Pruning projects proactively
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Companies hang on too long to underperforming assets. Continual pruning can help them avoid significant losses.
Resisting the allure
Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: Resisting the allure of ‘glamour’ projects
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Don’t starve maintenance projects of funds.
Being objective about budgets
Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: Being objective about budgets
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Anchoring bias can hold back the budgeting process, influencing your targets despite your best efforts. Address it and refocus difficult conversations.
Taking the outsideview
Article - McKinsey Quarterly
Bias Busters: Taking the ‘outside view’
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Using a reference class can help executives gain much-needed perspective to inform their decision making.