100 Italian leaders step up to control their unconscious biases
“I’m not racist, but… I like women to succeed professionally with their career… but…” said CEC European Managers‘ Deputy Secretary General, Silvia Pugi, at the opening of the third Beyond Unconscious Bias Public event, organised by the Italian organisation representing leaders and managers, CIDA Manager (Confederazione italiania dei dirigenti e delle alte professionalità).
On November 4th, the European project Beyunbi—coordinated by CEC European Managers—hosted its concluding online public event, bringing a focused discussion on the Italian training held in Rome in June 2024.
The webinar attracted around 100 managers and featured prominent panelists, including Silvia Pugi (Deputy Secretary General at CEC European Managers), Alberto Castelli (CIDA Manager), Barbara de Micheli (training coordinator from Fondazione Giacomo Brodolini), and Antonio Soriero, an active participant in the training.
The event’s key objective was to address unconscious bias in the workplace and highlight some of the results from the survey Beyunbi conducted by Post Doc Lea Skewes with the University of Southern Denmark to analyze the current biases among European leaders.
Biases are present in our everyday interactions
Silvia Pugi opened the event with a stark reminder of how subtle biases permeate daily interactions. “We, the managers, set the workplace atmosphere,” she said, pointing out the importance of recognizing how biases affect marginalized groups, such as women and the LGBT+ community.
She underlined CEC European Managers’ commitment to tackling these issues, noting the survey of over 1,000 EU leaders to identify and manage inherent biases.
Alberto Castelli highlighted leaders’ critical role in shaping more inclusive and forward-thinking organisations, noting that, in Italy, CIDA represents leaders across various sectors.
We are talking about the future, and the future will be full of complex and diverse organisations
Alberto Castelli
CIDA Manager
He underscored that fostering diversity and sustainability is a moral imperative and essential for economic growth and competitiveness. “We are talking about the future, and the future will be full of complex and diverse organisations,” Castelli remarked.
He advocated for leadership tools that support diversity, which can, in turn, inspire innovation and foster competitiveness.
Barbara de Micheli (Fondazione Giacomo Brodolini) provided insights from the Rome training, explaining the importance of understanding automatic decision-making mechanisms that leaders often rely on.
“We all have dark parts, but it has been great to see managers and leaders’ proactivity,” she said.
This proactive engagement from participants like Antonio Soriero underscored the training’s value in fostering relationships and empowering leaders to harness talent effectively.
The power of data and resistance to change
The event showcased the results of a survey led by Lea Skewes (University of Southern Denmark), reinforcing the importance of data-driven insights in overcoming resistance to change.
“Bias is what stops you from growing and getting better,” Pugi emphasized after the presentation.
De Micheli reiterated the point: “Resistance to change is something we see every day, which is why data is so important. Bringing data to decision-makers and making them see reality as it is is a powerful tool.”
Bias is what stops you from growing and getting better
Silvia Pugi
CEC European Managers, Deputy Secretary General
Challenges in Italian workplaces and ageism
During the webinar, participants acknowledged Italy’s challenges, including its limited workplace diversity and the dominance of men in leadership roles.
Pugi noted that Beyunbi‘s research predominantly involved male respondents, as most European leaders are still men. This sheds light on an area ripe for growth.
The discussion also covered ageism and telework, with De Micheli describing assumptions about older or younger employees’ capabilities as “age racism.”
She pointed to books like Perennials (by Mauro F. Guillén) as evidence of the evolving nature of careers, where individuals may hold multiple roles and require lifelong learning strategies.
Barbara de Micheli said that in the future, people will have to perform, on average, seven different roles in their jobs.
Antonio Soriero highlighted the pressing demographic issues faced by Italy, where annual births have dropped to under 400,000.
“We are going to rely a lot on an economy with multiple generations working together in the same team,” he stated, emphasizing the importance of collaboration across age groups.
Education and broader societal biases
During the Q&A session, school manager Alfio Russo provided a perspective on the educational sector, noting that while there is a need for more male representation – “the blue quote”– biases related to the LGBT+ community and migration remain prevalent.
The event concluded with Castelli‘s strong call to action: “If managers and leaders control their biases, we will see massive changes in our societies. It is not only good for achieving better rights but essential for competitiveness.”
If managers and leaders control their biases, we will see massive changes in our societies
Alberto Castelli
CIDA Manager
De Micheli echoed this sentiment, affirming the importance of CEC‘s dedication to continuous progress.
Towards a Bias-free workplace?
This final Beyunbi public event illustrated the importance of initiatives like this in fostering a new generation of leaders who are aware of their biases, committed to lifelong learning, and equipped to promote inclusivity.
As the project winds down, its legacy serves as a foundation for further efforts to create an innovative, competitive, and truly inclusive workplace and society.
The final conference of the Beyond Unconscious Bias project will be taking place in Brussels on 27 November 2024. More information will soon be shared.
You can re-watch the online public event (in Italian) here [+]
CIDA Managers represents approximately 140 thousand managers and high-level professionals, both public and private. It has 10 Associations, which represent managers of industry, commerce, public administration, public health, the Bank of Italy, agriculture, insurance, the third sector, university researchers, and radio and television authors.
Find more information on other Beyunbi – Beyond Unconscious Bias public events here:
