People shape the culture of an organization. Even a department within a company develops its own unique culture. It can differ from the company’s overall culture. For e.g., a manager who is believer in long hours, skipping holidays, and always prioritizing work over personal life often instills the same mindset in his team.
This shows up in interviews.Such managers tend to favor candidates who reflect their values. They might unconsciously dismiss highly qualified individuals who prioritize work-life balance or have different priorities, simply because they don’t fit the manager’s personal mold.This bias comes from cognitive dissonance, a concept introduced by Leon Festinger in 1957. It describes the discomfort we as interviewers feel when our beliefs are challenged by different ideas. In interviews, this leads to biased evaluations when a candidate’s traits don’t align with our expectations. Looking back, I think that I too may have fallen prey to this.However, even if we have the knowledge of this, eliminating cognitive dissonance is hard because it happens subconsciously. Employers have tried to reduce its impact by having multiple people interview a candidate. While this adds more perspectives, the direct manager often has the final say, which can still perpetuate bias.AI-powered platforms like sainterview offer a better solution. They standardize questions, evaluate responses objectively, and focus only on job-related skills. This ensures candidates are judged on merit, not on how closely they align with an interviewer’s personal preferences.In today’s world, where diversity and inclusion fuel innovation, tools like sainterview help create fair and unbiased hiring processes. It is time we let technology guide us toward better recruitment practices!
