Engineering Leaders, Check Your Bias

Engineering Management Institute Engineering Leaders, Check Your Bias Daniel Hayes, PE, PMP It was an attractive fall day, warm but not hot, brilliantly sunny. I stroll into the lobby feeling lean and confident, able to slay the interview. The company President comes out to greet me, and we start the five hour dance. The day goes nicely. I current my engineering credentials and experience. The interview group discusses company needs and the necessities of the position. The opportunity would be an interesting problem if we select to maneuver ahead. Inconsequential yet important forwards and backwards banter on each side propels us toward the conclusion of the interview. As I drive away, I assume to myself that this was a constructive interview expertise. I really feel I actually have left a good impression on the group, and I am interested in working for the firm. I leave feeling as if they'd envisioned me personally once they wrote the job description. Within a few days, I even have an offer, which I readily accept. We agree on a begin date. I close ou t some business from my earlier place, and start planning for the longer term place. I take it upon myself to create a ninety day plan in order that I can hit the ground operating, hoping to attenuate the period of time during which, as a new worker, I am a web drain on the group. Such proactive behavior is becoming of the place I accepted. Fast forward three weeks…. I arrive promptly at 8 am. I present the corporate president, who can also be my direct supervisor, with my ninety day plan. I meet the employees who might be working for me, and I meet the remainder of the staff. Things are going nicely. At the tip of the first week, the corporate president takes me to lunch to discuss our mutual objectives. And then it occurs. I realize things aren’t what they appear to be. It seems this is not the opportunity I thought it was. The opportunities would never current themselves as I had been led to consider. Was I duped? At first I thought I was, however upon reflection I realize every thing I wanted to know was right in front of me from the beginning. I refused to acknowledge the indicators, signs right in front of my face. Had I been trustworthy with myself, I would haven't accepted the place. I made this significant mistake because I solely noticed what I needed to see. I let my bias for the position cloud my judgment. And the worst half â€" I w asn’t even conscious I was doing so. We all do this, and we do it every day. The first challenge is to acknowledge our bias. As engineering leaders, it's essential for us to acknowledge our biases, and to the best of our skills, acknowledge and overcome them. Our biases blinds us to fact, to actuality. Our biases are fashioned from our previous â€" our historical past, our experiences, our household. They clouds our judgement of reality, when fact could be most useful. Our biases forestall us from from seeing our opinions as what they are â€" just our opinions, not the truth. We’ve all been in conditions the place we instantly decide someone, solely to search out later that our snap judgement is mistaken. Our stakeholders come to us with their individual histories and experiences. Everyone is three dimensional, yet we judge in two dimensions. He’s lazy as a result of he leaves early; she isn’t engaged as a result of she takes a few too many private calls. It may be handy to place another right into a preconceived category, but as leaders, it renders us a lot much less efficient. The subsequent time you are in a situation the place you sense you're making an immediate judgement â€" stop and think about whether you are seeing the reality as greatest you possibly can, or are you filtering the reality via the lens of your bias. The first step is to recognize your bias. Your decisions may be higher for it. About the author, Daniel Hayes, PE, PMP Dan Hayes is a registered skilled engineer with over 14 years of experience in both the consulting and construction sector. He has experience within the project administration and the event of development plans, specifications and cost estimates for military, residential and business land growth projects in numerous jurisdictions. Hayes has skilled registration in Maryland, Texas (inactive), Virginia and West Virginia. To study more about Dan, connect with him in LinkedIn To your success, Anthony Fasano, PE, LEED AP Engineering Management Institute