OWP liVe REPORT

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How to fight bias and improve your performance with a “whole brain” top team

L E A D E R S H I P

Understanding how different parts of the brain shape our personalities is the first step towards diverse thinking and building more effective teams, says Professor of Leadership and Organization Ric Roi. A lack of diverse personalities stifles growth and transformation, but leaders can break the cycle by recognising and compensating for dominant traits, according to Professor Roi. Exploring research related to “brain dominance”, Roi explained that understanding how neuropsychology shapes our personal thinking patterns allows executives to address gaps in their own leadership styles and become more effective. “It takes the whole brain to make the world go around – and the whole brain to run a company,” Roi said. According to research based on the Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument, there is an even spread across four broad types of personality around the world, with

most of us relying more heavily on two parts of our brain.

Crucially, however, Roi observed that many top teams do not reflect this global balance. Why does this matter? Let’s say a leadership team is dominated by analytical thinkers and efficient organizers but only has one or two individuals who are gifted innovators. This might mean that a company performs well in certain environments or for a limited amount of time but, in the long run, it is likely to struggle to remain competitive because it lacks the diversity of perspectives that drives growth and transformation. "It takes the whole brain to make the world go around – and the whole brain to run a company."

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RICHARD ROI IMD Professor of Leadership and Organization

Logical/analytical thinkers (upper left brain dominance)

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Procedural/organizational thinkers (lower left brain dominance)

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Emotional/creative thinkers (lower right brain dominance)

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At the same time, a top team full of “blue sky” thinkers will struggle without the help of people who can develop the right kind of organizational processes.

Conceptual/holistic thinkers (upper right brain dominance)

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