Why bias training doesn’t work

It’s Friday

74% — That’s the share of developers who say they’re struggling to find a job in tech right now, according to HackerRank.

Wild, considering the industry’s “talent shortage” narrative.

Gender bias at work isn’t about good or bad people

It’s about broken systems

Unconscious bias doesn’t show up wearing a name tag. But it’s everywhere—job interviews, performance reviews, promotion decisions, leadership assessments.

And here’s the kicker: bias isn’t about bad intentions. It’s about how our brains are wired to take shortcuts—ones shaped by stereotypes, habits, and outdated ideas of who looks like a “leader.”

For women, that means being interrupted more, judged more harshly, receiving vaguer feedback, or being told they’re “not quite there yet” for roles they’ve already been doing.

The result? Missed talent. Burnout. Unequal pay. Quiet exits.

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The tick-box trap

Most companies respond to bias with a one-off training. It ticks the compliance box. Feels like action. But the reality?

📉 A UK Equality Commission review found that most unconscious bias training has little to no long-term effect. Sometimes, it even backfires—by creating a false sense of progress.

Awareness is fine. But you don’t fix broken systems with vibes.

What actually works?

✅ Standardise hiring
Structured interviews, scoring rubrics, and blind applications (tools like Applied) reduce bias and boost quality.

✅ Audit job ads
Words like competitive and dominant repel qualified candidates. Use tools like Textio to remove gender-coded language.

✅ Fix performance reviews
Women tend to get vague feedback (“be more confident”). Men get actionable goals. Train managers to deliver specific, behavior-based feedback—and track it.

Tech can help—but it’s not always the hero

Amazon once scrapped an AI hiring tool because it downgraded resumes with the word “women’s.” Why? The model was trained on biased data.

AI can support better decisions. But only when built—and constantly monitored—with fairness in mind.

TL;DR

You don’t fix bias with a workshop. You fix it by rethinking how your systems work.
Start with processes. Stay with measurement. Hold leaders accountable.

🧠 Next up: Racial and ethnic bias in the workplace. Where it hides, how to spot it, and how to dismantle it—without tiptoeing around.

Until then: Bias may be unconscious. But ignoring it? That’s a conscious choice.

What we’re reading

WorkLife – Corporate gardening programs have employee goodwill in bloom.

Fortune – Job applicants are using deepfake AI to trick recruiters—Here’s how hiring managers can spot the next imposter.

Campaign – Beyond creativity: why HR belongs in the pitch process.