Top 5 cognitive biases that you need to tackle to manage your remote team

Since the emergence of Covid-19, business organisations around the world have adopted to the ‘new normal’- work from home setting. Many organisations are also implementing a new combination of remote plus on-site working, giving rise to a hybrid work model.

In order to manage a team working in a remote environment you have to understand your own cognitive biases, which are mental blind spots that lead to poor strategic and financial decision-making.

In this small business guide, we will walk you through the top five cognitive biases that you should tackle as remote and hybrid work models become the new normal.

1. Proximity bias

Proximity bias is the idea that employees with close physical proximity to their team and business leaders will be perceived as better workers and ultimately find more success in the workplace than their remote counterparts.

As a manager, you need to tackle this kind of bias and ensure all your team members develop and grow especially if you work in a hybrid environment where some workers are in the office and others are remote.

To overcome this bias, you can replicate the physical proximity by conducting video meetings and facilitating team bonding.

2. Affinity bias

Affinity bias (also known as similarity bias) is the preference or tendency to appreciate people like us. This bias may affect hiring decisions. Avoiding affinity bias is key to creating diverse teams.

For instance, when recruiting, managers tend to hire individuals who share the same alma matter. This results in reduced growth and function of a business, as well as denying opportunities for deserving applicants.

You need to connect with everyone, not just people like us. To avoid similarity bias, you can create shared experience in a remote environment.

3. Anchoring bias

Anchoring bias occurs when we rely too much on the first piece of information we are given about a topic.

This kind of anchoring bias has led lots of people to dislike remote work because of their first experience with it.

When we started to work remotely after the pandemic, we all faced considerable amount of issues. Many systems have been implemented to avoid these issues but many still stick to that anchor.

To overcome this bias, you can ask one of your colleagues who is new or otherwise unbiased to talk to your team.

4. Status quo bias

Status quo bias is evident when people prefer things to stay the same by doing nothing or by sticking with a decision made previously.

When the pandemic started, most of us were worried of how we will be managing our work remotely. We’ve been working in person for years, and it’s hard for us to think of work in a remote setting. To adapt to a new working environment is difficult and it might take time but if the results are similar to the past, you need to think!

To fight against this bias, think ways to succeed in remote work similar to in-person work.

5. Confirmation bias

Confirmation bias is the tendency to search for, interpret, favor, and recall information in a way that confirms or supports one’s prior beliefs or values.

If you do not want to work in a remote setting, your productivity becomes very less and you are away from success. You need to get away from this attitude to succeed in the remote work environment.

To combat this confirmation bias, make it a practice to approach things differently.

Final thoughts

The best way to prevent, cognitive bias from influencing the way you think or make decisions, is by being aware that they exist and then challenge and overcome the bias. If any of these biases are preventing you from doing remote work, do manage them in a proper way to make sure you and your team are in the right path.