How to help Ron overcome this bias: One of the problems with confirmation bias is that it reduces the world to black and white: my preferred way of doing something is great, so your new way(s) must stink. To move employees like Ron past this kind of binary thinking:

Talk about how retirement savings decisions fit into a more nuanced financial picture that involves other important aspects like choosing other benefits, paying off debt, and trying to sock away a little emergency fund. Remind them they should be weighing all these factors simultaneously as best as they can.
Emphasize that there's no one right way to save for retirement, then share a handful of diverse employee scenarios that drive this point home. If you're lucky, Ron will recognize himself and his wife in one of them and perk up.
After your initial presentation, whip up and share a list of FAQs, including plenty of questions targeting the misconceptions skeptics like Ron might have followed by clear, conversational answers.
Best of all, prevent Ron from only seeking out information that confirms his own thinking by investing in a benefits decision support tool that can gather specific information about his broad financial and health care situation, crunch all the numbers, and provide a tailored recommendation for him. By the end of the experience, Ron may still feel a little weird about the information you're sharing, but with your trustworthy, personalized advice in hand, it'll be that much easier for him to set those emotions aside and make a level-headed choice.

When it comes to making important healthcare and retirement decisions, your employees are at a disadvantage because biases they're not even aware of are working against them. The better job you do of helping them overcome the psychological barriers holding them back, the more likely they'll be to make smarter decisions, reach their full financial potential and appreciate you, their employer.

Instant Insights /

3 Biases Keeping Employees from Making Better Benefits Decisions

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