Unconscious bias training for better decisions
Help your people catch the biases that distort judgment in hiring, risk, strategy and teamwork. Training comes from former CIA, FBI and DoD officers, including a CIA senior analyst who teaches structured ways to avoid cognitive bias.
Gina BennettEx CIA senior analyst & advisorA former member of CIA's Senior Analytic Service who wrote the first report, in 1993, warning of the growing danger of Osama bin Laden.
Darrell BlockerEx CIA officer & station chiefWas the most senior black Directorate of Operations officer at CIA when he retired in 2018 after 28 years in the clandestine service.
Christina HillsbergEx CIA intelligence officerWrote analytic assessments for the President, then set up processes at Amazon that use intelligence tradecraft to analyze security threats.
What your team learns
Each subject is taught by an expert who made high-stakes calls for an intelligence agency or government. These are sessions they already deliver; we shape the mix around your team.
How bias distorts judgment
The mental shortcuts that skew how people read information and see what is in front of them, and the structured approaches intelligence analysts use to catch them.
Avoiding Cognitive Biases: Structured Approaches to Mitigating Common Biases in Business, Government, and Life
Taught by Gina Bennett, Ex CIA senior analyst & advisor
Awareness: Self, Situational, and Inattentional Blindness
Taught by Lena Sisco, Ex DoD interrogator & Naval intel officer
Analytic tradecraft for risk decisions
How CIA analysts weigh evidence and assess threats, applied to the risk calls a business has to make.
Threat analysis: How to apply CIA analytic techniques to cyber security programs in the private sector
Taught by Christina Hillsberg, Ex CIA intelligence officer
Hiring and vetting people
Judging candidates, partners and vendors on evidence instead of first impressions, with vetting tradecraft from a former CIA undercover officer.
How to Spot a Liar and Deconstruct Their Claims
Taught by Michele Rigby Assad, Ex CIA undercover officer
Making room for dissent
Why decisions improve when someone can challenge the plan, from a diplomat honored by the State Department for constructive dissent.
Constructive dissent
Taught by Joshua Polacheck, Ex DoS diplomat and public affairs specialist
Stereotypes and assumptions about people
How myths and stereotypes shape who gets trusted, heard and promoted, told by women who built careers in intelligence and law enforcement.
Women in Intelligence: Dispelling the Myths and Stereotypes
Taught by Gina Bennett, Ex CIA senior analyst & advisor
Gender in national security and law enforcement
Taught by Tracy Walder, Ex CIA officer & FBI special agent
Building a bias-free culture
Lessons from the CIA's efforts, including some failures, to build a diverse workforce, and the communication practices that carry over to business teams.
Diversity @ CIA
Taught by Darrell Blocker, Ex CIA officer & station chief
Cross-Cultural Communications
Taught by Joseph Assad, Ex counterterrorism official
Built for everyone who makes judgment calls
Leaders and executives
Structured ways to test strategy and big calls for bias before they are made, from people who wrote for presidents and ran CIA stations.
Hiring managers and HR
Interviewing, vetting and promotion decisions based on evidence, with fewer snap judgments about people.
Risk, security and analyst teams
The analytic techniques intelligence officers use to weigh evidence and assess threats, applied to your own risk work.
Teams across the company
Awareness of everyday assumptions and stereotypes, and practical habits that help people listen, challenge and work together.
Your unconscious bias trainers
A CIA senior analyst, a station chief, undercover and intelligence officers, an interrogator, an FBI special agent and a diplomat.
- CIAThis CIA senior analyst, author, professor, and corporate trainer is an expert on avoiding cognitive biases.Gina BennettEx CIA senior analyst & advisorExpert on cognitive bias, gender equality, intelligence
- CIAThis 28-year veteran of CIA’s clandestine service & security expert retired in 2018 with a rank equivalent to a three-star general.Darrell BlockerEx CIA officer & station chiefExpert on security, risk, crisis management, diversity & inclusion, entertainment
- CIAThis ex CIA intelligence officer and cyber threat expert wrote one of Working Mother’s Best Books of 2021.Christina HillsbergEx CIA intelligence officerExpert on women in espionage, intelligence tradecraft, parenting
- CIA
This former undercover officer brings a unique perspective to performance improvement strategies and business development optimization.Michele Rigby AssadEx CIA undercover officerExpert on terrorism, sales, vetting, and inspiring audiences - DoD
This master of deception detection, body language & rapport development was an interrogator after 9/11 at GTMO.Lena SiscoEx DoD interrogator & Naval intel officerExpert on interviewing, deception, leadership, change management, entertainment - CIA & FBI
This ex FBI special agent was also an officer of CIA's Counterterrorism Center Weapons of Mass Destruction Group.Tracy WalderEx CIA officer & FBI special agentExpert on WMDs, security, foreign policy, counterintelligence - DoS
This master of public narrative management was honored by the State Department for constructive dissent.Joshua PolacheckEx DoS diplomat and public affairs specialistExpert on media management, public narratives, crisis and change management - US Gov
This SPYEX consultant facilitated a multi-million dollar settlement between a US-based client and a foreign government.Joseph AssadEx counterterrorism officialExpert on security, negotiating, counterterrorism, counterintelligence, human rights
What audiences say
"I'm happy to endorse Gina Bennett as a speaker in the highest possible terms. She is one of the country's leading national security experts, and is a very clear and thought-provoking speaker."
Peter Bergen
National Security Analyst, CNN, on Gina Bennett
"Darrell is a compelling communicator who captivates audiences within moments. His talks on leadership, diversity and inclusion against the backdrop of the world of espionage are inspiring, motivating and timely."
Jayne Amelia Larson
New York Times best-selling author and entertainment professional, on Darrell Blocker
"Christina is one of the smartest analysts around. Whether it's cybersecurity or even parenting... she tells stories that entertain, most importantly educate!"
Maarten Van Horenbeeck
Chief Information Security Officer, Zendesk, on Christina Hillsberg
Unconscious bias training questions
More on avoiding unconscious bias, SPYEX training and consulting.
Unconscious bias training helps people notice the assumptions and mental shortcuts that shape their judgment without them realizing it, from who gets hired to which risks get taken seriously. SPYEX sessions focus on how those biases affect decisions, and on practical ways to catch them.
It is taught by former intelligence officers whose work depended on judging evidence and people accurately. Gina Bennett, a former member of CIA's Senior Analytic Service, teaches structured approaches to mitigating common biases in business, government and life.
Former intelligence and government officers, including Gina Bennett (ex CIA senior analyst), Darrell Blocker (ex CIA officer and station chief), Christina Hillsberg (ex CIA intelligence officer), Michele Rigby Assad (ex CIA undercover officer), Lena Sisco (ex DoD interrogator), Tracy Walder (ex CIA officer and FBI special agent), Joshua Polacheck (ex DoS diplomat) and Joseph Assad (ex counterterrorism official).
Yes, when that fits your goals. Darrell Blocker shares lessons from the CIA's efforts to achieve diversity, including some failures, and how to develop a bias-free culture. Gina Bennett and Tracy Walder speak on gender in national security, and Joseph Assad on cross-cultural communications.
Yes. SPYEX also arranges consulting. Gina Bennett offers simple back-of-the-envelope techniques that identify and neutralize the cognitive biases working against objective decision making.
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Book unconscious bias training
Tell us about your project and we will connect you with the best expert.