A Leader's Guide to Navigating the Halo Effect
(2 Min Read): Clear Communication Techniques for Tech Leaders
As leaders, striking the right balance between issuing directives and allowing team members to learn from their mistakes is challenging. It resembles parenting: we aim to protect our children while also fostering their learning. However, in the workplace, we deal with adults, and treating them like children is not good.
In my experience in the tech industry, I encounter this dilemma weekly.
When reviewing technical specifications, product requirement documents, or code, my comments are sometimes perceived as orders rather than suggestions or queries.
For instance, I once suggested evaluating an alternative database for our architecture. This led an Individual Contributor (IC) to overhaul the entire design, unfortunately for the worse. When I inquired about the rationale behind this change, I was surprised to learn they interpreted my comment as a directive to adopt the new database. My intention was merely to ensure thorough consideration.
As I progress in my leadership role, this issue seems to amplify, largely due to a cognitive bias known as the Halo Effect. This bias occurs when one's general impression of a person influences their perceptions of that person's other traits.
The Halo Effect pervades all levels of an organization, affecting both those above and below us in the hierarchy.
So, how do we mitigate this bias, knowing it can't be entirely eliminated?
I've found three strategies particularly effective:
Awareness: Recognizing the existence of biases is the first step in counteracting them.
Clarity: Frame comments or suggestions as clearly as possible. Altering the phrasing of questions can be helpful. For example, instead of stating, “I think we should do A and not B”, consider asking, “What if we did A instead of B?” This approach encourages discussion rather than defensiveness or hasty changes.
Explicitness: Be unmistakably clear in your communications, especially when providing feedback asynchronously, such as in Google Docs. I often use a thinking emoji (💭) to indicate comments where I am thinking out-loud.
Like any skill, this requires practice. I constantly remind myself of the Halo Effect before leaving comments and of the Horn Effect to maintain neutrality when giving feedback.
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