Anti-Bias Policies That Really Work in Customer Service

HBR IdeaCast

Harvard Business Review

Leadership, Entrepreneurship, Communication, Marketing, Business, Business/management, Management, Business/marketing, Business/entrepreneurship, Innovation, Hbr, Strategy, Economics, Finance, Teams, Harvard

4.4 • 1.9K Ratings

🗓️ 2 November 2021

⏱️ 25 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Alexandra Feldberg and Tami Kim, assistant professors at Harvard Business School and the University of Virginia Darden School of Business, respectively, say companies are overlooking an important place to root out bias: on the front lines with customers. While many firms are promoting a more equitable workforce through their HR functions, too few firms even realize how costly bias can be in everyday interactions between workers and customers. The researchers explain how organizations can identify and address this overlooked problem. Feldberg and Kim are the coauthors of the HBR article "Fighting Bias on the Front Lines."

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	So you got the job. Now what? Join me, Eleni Mata, on HBR's new original podcast, New
0:08.1	Here, the Young Professionals Guide to Work and how to make it work for you. Listen for
0:13.8	free wherever you get your podcasts. Just search New Here. See you there!
0:18.6	Before we start the show, I have an announcement. Some of you know that this podcast has been around
0:32.1	since 2006. Hello and welcome to the very first edition of the HBR IDEA cast. Assume to be
0:39.0	biweekly audio show from Harvard Business School Publishing. My name is Paul Michaelman,
0:43.3	I'm an executive editor here and I'll be your host. Between that first episode and this
0:48.5	one, number 826, there have been some changes to the podcast icon to the way you listen to the show
0:55.6	probably to the hosts. The theme music has gone from that acoustic guitar to driving electric guitars.
1:02.0	Welcome to the HBR IDEA cast from Harvard Business Review. I'm Sarah Green. And on to the strings of
1:08.8	this episode's musical theme. Despite all these changes over the years, some things have remained
1:14.8	the same. IDEA cast has always offered insightful conversations with leading thinkers and business
1:20.5	and management and another constant has been someone named Adam Buckholz. You hear Adam's name in
1:26.9	the credits? He's had his hand in this podcast for 13 years. He produced hundreds of episodes before
1:32.9	stepping up to manage HBR's podcast portfolio. Now he's moving on to a new challenge in a new
1:39.5	organization. Adam, you'll be remembered and missed. All the very best wishes to you in the
1:45.7	future. And with that, on to our show.
1:59.9	Welcome to the HBR IDEA cast from Harvard Business Review. I'm Kurt Nickish.
2:09.6	The list of companies paying the price for bias against customers is a long one, like the $50
2:18.0	million settlement that JP Morgan Chase paid after its mortgage brokers charged black and
2:23.3	Hispanic borrowers more than white ones, or the lawsuit that Sephora settled with Asian customers
2:29.8	whose accounts had been blocked, suspecting them of purchasing items and bulk to resell them,
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Harvard Business Review, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Harvard Business Review and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.