Good Leaders, Making Bad Decisions?

Why do good leaders make bad decisions? Brain researchers exploring the errors of judgment which lead to bad decisions point to two unconscious processes the brain relies on to help leaders make decisions efficiently: (1) pattern recognition and (2) emotional tagging. The first process allows the brain to quickly assess what is going on and compare a new situation with patterns we have seen before. For example, drawing on patterns he or she has seen before it takes a chess master as little as a few seconds to assess a game and choose a good move. The second process, emotional tagging, attaches emotional information to the memory of an experience or thought which tells us whether or not to pay attention to something and what to do about it.

Although both brain processes account for efficiency in decision making, they can lead us astray under certain “red flag conditions” that reinforce the perception of false patterns or distort memories:

  1. Inappropriate self-interest that biases us and makes us see what we want to see and ignore important disconfirming information
  2. Distorting attachments to people, things or places that cloud a leader’s judgment about a situation or appropriate action
  3. Misleading memories that seem comparable to the present situation but lead us down a wrong path

We all have our biases. When we allow biases to cloud our decision making we seriously endanger the organizations we lead. Once our brain leaps to conclusions, we are reluctant to consider alternatives or revisit our initial assessment of the situation.  The way the brain works makes it difficult for leaders to spot and safeguard against their own errors in judgment. Some of the findings reported in this article are an appropriate warning against relying too heavily on the wisdom of a single leader, no matter how experienced. Instead, the authors recommend that those involved in important decisions identify possible red flag conditions and bring in appropriate safeguards to introduce more unbiased analysis, open debate and challenge, or stronger governance.

From Campbell, A., Whitehead, J. & Finkelstein, S. (2009). Why good leaders make bad decisions. Harvard Business Review, 87(2), 60-66.