Ben Gilad, Ph.D., President of the Academy of Competitive Intelligence, gave a presentation about why executives do not use competitive intelligence. Psychological bias causes many executives to overlook facts and logic. Faulty thinking arises when a personal quality dominates a person’s other forms of cognition. Blind spots in decision making process. Greed, opinion, routine, ego, emotion, success and hope are the most common dominant ways of thinking.
Do blind spots affect your client or boss’s judgment? When you asked his opinion about something, did he dismiss the idea offhand? Is “if it is not broken, don’t fix it” the operating motto? Does your boss make decisions based on fear of failure? Is your client ever satisfied?
No matter how good the information, executives often ignore the risks and opportunities presented in a report. So, provide actionable recommendations, but don’t forget to present your findings so that your audience actually listens.