Science and scientific discoveries have resulted in many paradigms shifts throughout the centuries. From realizing the earth is not flat to the fact that not everything revolves around the earth and that the earth is but a spec in the larger galaxy that we are a part of. Scientific discoveries have led to much advancement, but at the same time each new discovery is met with objection and resistance. Take for example; in medicine it was discovered that doctors who wash their hands, had fewer patients that died. It wasn’t until later that we could see the microscopic diseases that they were carrying into surgery with them and many doctors resisted the necessity of washing their hands until it was strictly enforced and accepted. Today, it is amazing to see the many applications of new technology in medicine from the use of internal cameras that give a much clearer picture of what is happening inside the human to MRI’s that can help target specific medical procedures.
Science is on the verge of making a new paradigm shift when it comes to understanding the human brain and performance as well. There are more neuroscience studies coming out daily now that is truly possible to keep up on. However, the results of many of these studies should be turning people’s heads and practices when it comes to how organizations are run and when it comes to the selection and retention of employees. In a recent webinar by Dr. David Rock and Dr. Matt Lieberman, they presented information on over 30+ Biases that every human has that we cannot overcome by just simple training. Their implications for all of this, was that if we really want to break down the bias that exists in present organizations, we need to find better ways to factor out human bias. Very similar findings were presented in the book, Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good People by Mahzarin R. Banaji and Anthony G. Greenwarld, where they point out mind bugs that keep us from seeing the truth, to the hidden cost of stereotypes that many of don’t know we even have. These findings should have a real impact on changing the present practices in organizations when it comes to the selection process, the promotion process, and the review process. In short, we need to come up with more objective measures than just human on human evaluation as it is impossible for even the best train individual to completely remove their bias. This really means that a whole new paradigm shift in how we attempt to manage and deal with employees needs to take place.
I had the privilege of attending a very intimate HR conference last summer and was able to sit down with 12 HR managers from larger companies, not just in the US but international as well and just ask them what their greatest headache was. The amazing part was that most of them said the very thing that Dr. Rock was attempting to point out. They felt that there was not a unified approach across the larger company on how people were selected and trained. Different sectors in different companies may have used one assessment or another, but there was not a unified front across the organization. In fact, one HR director would have given anything to finally find a system that could cross over from selection to help them with ongoing training and retention and succession planning.
We at Viatech Global would like to help you and your company become an early adopter in the future paradigm shift in the HR industry. We work with a series of assessments that will provide more objectivity to your selection, training, and retention of top talent. It will take the guess and bias out of what you do. It will provide your team with a language of understanding that will help you develop not only your individual employees, but also your existing work teams, so that they can become more productive and attempt to overcome some of the biases, blind spots, and blocks to performance that exist.
