CM 043: Iris Bohnet on Finding and Keeping Great Talent

Want to hire, evaluate, and collaborate more effectively? The same design principles that are changing how we think about products and services can improve our talent management. Iris Bohnet, author of What Works and Professor of Behavioral Economics at Harvard University, tells us how. In this interview, Bohnet shares fast and inexpensive ways we can de-bias our organizations. She pinpoints how simple improvements can provide big gains for managers and employees. In our conversation, we talk about: How behavioral design can help us hire and retain the best talent Why interviews are a poor predictor of future performance How work sample tests ensure better hiring How blind employee screening widens opportunities for job candidates What we can learn from how orchestras hire musicians Why we need to stop holding group interviews The challenges of employee self-evaluation Why we need gender-neutral language in job descriptions Why diverse groups are more effective and less enjoyable What critical mass does for groups and organizations How tokenism can overshadow expertise The important role political correctness plays in resetting norms How acting differently - or watching others act differently - can change behavior Episode Links Iris Bohnet Heidi Roizen Competence but disliked dilemma Implicit association bias Hannah Riley Bowles Work Rules by Laszlo Bock @ThereseHuston How Women Decide by Therese Huston If you enjoy the podcast, please rate and review it on iTunes. For automatic delivery of new episodes, be sure to subscribe. As always, thanks for listening!