It’s possible that the CEOs ranked issues like inclusivity and equal pay lower on their list because they think they’re already in good shape on those fronts. If so, they’d be repeating a pattern identified by the Boston Consulting Group in a separate recent survey of more than 16,000 employees in 14 countries around the world. Writing in the Harvard Business Review, senior BCG partner Matt Krentz explains:

Half of all diverse employees stated that they see bias as part of their day-to-day work experience. Half said that they don’t believe their companies have the right mechanisms in place to ensure that major decisions (such as who receives promotions and stretch assignments) are free from bias. By contrast, white heterosexual males, who tend to dominate the leadership ranks, were 13 percentage points more likely to say that the day-to-day experience and major decisions are free of bias.

People who are less likely to experience bias based on their identity aren’t necessarily the best judges of whether bias is a problem. And this blind spot can prompt companies to lose exceptional people, as highlighted in a Wall Street Journal piece about efforts to retain more women and people of color in the advertising and media sectors. Verizon chief marketing officer Diego Scotti told the Journal, “If you don’t create the conditions for people to stay, you can do an amazing job at hiring and then people aren’t going to stay.”

The new year is a time when a lot of people review their priorities for the months ahead. Perhaps it’s time for CEOs to do a little re-prioritizing of their own.

🖋 Sign up for The Memo from Quartz at Work

A dispatch from the world of modern work. Learn how you can help create a productive, creative, and compassionate work culture.