Avoid the pitfalls of proximity bias

- Proximity bias is the inherent and often unconscious tendency for humans to favor those who are physically closest to them. In the workplace, this translates into in-person workers receiving more opportunities and chances for career advancement and being viewed as more productive, just because they're physically closer to their bosses and company leaders, which means that for remote workers, who could be as far as the other side of the world, they may be unintentionally missing out if their leaders aren't aware and actively trying to prevent proximity bias. Prior to the pandemic, proximity bias was a real but niche problem. As more companies mandate return-to-office policies and actual hybrid work becomes the norm, proximity bias is a mainstream problem that all companies will face. Prezi surveyed more than 1,000 enterprise workers and found that more than half say a proximity bias exists that favors colleagues who are together in the office. So how do we avoid this? The first thing to counteract proximity bias is to acknowledge it exists. Discuss your concerns with your manager and make sure they're aware of how it could impact remote workers. Then, as a leader, ask your team to let you know if they see signs of proximity bias creeping in. Next, ensure meetings are all virtual, or at the very least, ensure there's always a remote option. For meeting facilitators, you'll want to consider calling on remote attendees first to show that they're valued and seen, even when not in the same room. You should also consider setting up your remote attendee with an in-person counterpart too to help call out when they need to share something. As leaders, you'll also want to ensure that you are evaluating performance fairly, not basing it off of who you get along with or have stronger relationships with. Create objective, metric-space ways to evaluate your workers instead of relying on your perception of how much work has gotten done. Ensure that your workers are getting feedback from multiple stakeholders and peers both in person and remote so the reviews are more balanced. Lastly, approach everything with a digital-first mindset. Assume all important communication happens online first. Keep conversations in one place using messaging apps, like Slack or Teams. Although proximity bias is a concern for both employees and leaders, I hope these tips will help you mitigate some of the effects.