We live in a culture where the hierarchy must always be proved right.
If you are not careful, all information that flows to the top fuels confirmation bias – information provided supports already held beliefs of the leader.
With a truly smart leader, there is free flow of information bottom up for decision making.
With most leaders, information only flows at the small circle around the tip of the spear.
Something strange happened yesterday. An associate had superior information but was scared to share, for fear that it would be taken as an affront to the hierarchy. I had to tell him to share and if he’s challenged, he should say I told him to.
It made me reflect on how organisations can be designed to not have the right information coming through. I also reflected on how much is kept away from me too, with an assumption that I will be uncomfortable to be wrong.
There is always work to do as a leader to remove the barriers to information flow.
– Osasu Oviawe
