Everyone has unconscious or subconscious preferences. Generally, we all prefer to associate or socialize with people who share our background and interests. As a consequence, we often aren’t aware of our preferences, identifying our behavior only when it’s pointed out by someone else. Unfortunately, we carry our hidden biases into the workplace, and that’s when problems may arise. 
Employees’ hidden biases
Being human, managers and employees alike may exhibit preferences for certain traits without being fully aware of their behavior. For example, a manager can unknowingly favor extroverted employees over introverts, or vice versa, and assign to his group the types of individuals for whom he has an affinity. A manager’s preferences can also influence important employment actions, such as hiring and firing decisions. When subconscious preferences in a manager’s decision making adversely affect legally protected groups, it may hinder efforts to diversify your workplace and subject your company to discrimination claims.
How do you deal with these risks? Many companies have decided to institute employee training on how to prevent “unconscious bias.” The training helps employees recognize and address hidden preferences that could influence workplace decisions. By helping managers and other employees identify their hidden biases, your business can get the added benefits that are associated with increased diversity at both the entry and managerial levels.
Companies take the lead
One company that has been a leader in instituting diversity training to combat the hidden biases of their executives and managers is BAE Systems, Inc., a major defense contractor located in Arlington, Virginia. According to a January 9, 2014, article in the Wall Street Journal, just last year, BAE required 1,600 managers and executives to take a two-hour class about unconscious bias (see “Bringing Hidden Biases to Light” by Joann Lublin). The training focused on helping managers identify when their behavior demonstrated hidden bias rather than making excuses for the lack of diversity.
Classes also aim to aid managers in recognizing such behaviors without feeling guilty about exhibiting preferences. The training extended beyond identifying preferences toward protected groups and addressed the potential bias in favor of other groups, such as taller or thinner people.
Adopting or instituting employee training on unconscious bias is especially useful for large businesses or government contractors such as BAE. But diversity training shouldn’t be limited to large companies. All companies with 15 or more employees are subject to the antidiscrimination protections of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Furthermore, if you bid on government contracts, you may need to comply with the affirmative action requirements mandated by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). Unconscious bias in workplace decisions, such as hiring, firing, promotions, or evaluations, could disqualify you from obtaining a government contract.
Eliminating hidden biases
To increase diversity and eliminate any potential liability, employee training should emphasize practices that eliminate or curtail the effect of hidden preferences. Such best practices are numerous.
One useful practice to consider is implementing minimum diversity goals for job applications, in which you seek to achieve a certain percentage of applicants belonging to a particular minority group. Joint interviews also are useful because they encourage multiple managers to screen an applicant—reducing the impact of any one manager’s potential bias. Another practice is to use blind resumes, which omit an applicant’s name and address, to reduce any potential preference for or bias against a particular individual. In fact, BAE has announced that it may eventually use blind resumes companywide.
Finally, simply giving your employees advance notice of potentially controversial meeting topics can allow them to gather their thoughts before the meeting and identify any hidden biases (and consequently avoid exhibiting them). Of course, these are only a few suggestions. There are numerous other procedures that seek to root out unconscious bias.
Bottom line
In an ever diversifying world, adopting policies that eliminate or minimize hidden preferences and biases will go a long way toward making your company more competitive and reducing potential corporate liability. Your company can only benefit from implementing employee training to address unconscious bias.
Matthew A. Lafferman is an attorney with DiMuroGinsberg, P.C., in Alexandria, Virginia. He may be contacted at mlafferman@dimuro.com .