Businesses unintentionally discourage diverse ideas

A German team of researchers analyzed 1.44 million suggested changes to understand how organizations unknowingly shape the ideas they receive. Data came from organizations that asked visitors how they could improve their websites before choosing which improvements to use. Chosen ideas were communicated for all to see.

The analysis reveals that organizations with higher consistency in selection tended to favor similar ideas. Over time, contributors adjusted their proposals to align more closely with perceived organizational preferences, enhancing their likelihood of acceptance but also resulting in reduced diversity in the ideas submitted. Individuals who felt their ideas were less likely to be selected gradually ceased making suggestions. Consequently, while the relevance of the ideas submitted may have increased, their diversity diminished.

The researchers also found that idea diversity increased when new contributors, less aware of past organizational choices, made suggestions. Increased diversity of ideas was also observed after established contributors, who would have been influenced by earlier selections, stopped suggesting. However, when contributors interacted more, attention to a company’s preferences heightened, causing an increase in similar ideas.

What the researchers say: “The result of external searches often yields a more limited set of ideas than commonly perceived, representing a trade-off between fit and diversity. Organizations tend to favor ideas that align closely with their current interests, which can be beneficial,” the lead author said. “However, this preference for fit can incur costs: It may prevent organizations from encountering ideas that diverge from their usual practices, inadvertently narrowing the creative scope of external contributors. By not constructively engaging with diverse perspectives, organizations risk losing access to innovative ideas and may miss out on pivotal breakthroughs.”

As interactions among external contributors direct their attention toward existing ideas and away from novel ones, managers seeking diverse ideas may benefit from limiting interactions among external contributors. Reducing the visibility of ideas selected could also prevent contributors being influenced by what they think companies want.

So, what? Organizations, like individuals can have unconscious biases—usually those of the entity’s leaders.

The biases at work here are “confirmation bias” where decisions are made to affirm the ideas that the decision-makers already have an “affinity bias” where decision makers assume that those who make suggestions similar to their own preconceptions are somehow “like” them and therefore those submitting suggestions and their ideas more trustworthy.

These biases, which are innate to us, are among the most dangerous in terms of business decision-making and performance.