Confidently held misinformation (CHM), refers to misinformation that is relied on as if it were true. Our clients have found an average of 25 – 35% false confidence within their organizations. This indicates that within their workforce, almost a third of employees’ knowledge is unknowingly incorrect — which opens the door to risk, harm, and loss for both themselves and their clients.

Risk that most organizations encounter stems from decisions to act based on misinformation disguised as truth. The graph below shows the amount of CHM we have uncovered throughout various industries and among thousands of working professionals — from doctors to pilots to satellite TV technicians. Notice that the level of false confidence is similar across industries. Everyone is susceptible to CHM.

The graph raises important questions: Is there something about human nature that’s causing this universal pattern across industries? Is the nature of information itself partly to blame?