How cognitive biases are crippling the mining industry

Guy Desharnais, Ph.D., P.Geo

Vice President of Project Evaluation, Osisko Gold Royalties

Talk Abstract:

The mining industry is strewn with failed projects, and many more that are chronically underperforming. Cognitive science shows us how our brains stumble into irrational choices. Cognitive biases that are detrimental to mining include:  Anchoring Effect, Courtesy Bias, Survivorship Bias and the Ikea Effect. The mining industry will continue to disappoint until it deals with the human factors that deform our assumptions and decision calculus.

Speaker Bio:

Guy worked seven years as an exploration geologist with Xstrata Nickel (Glencore) before transitioning to consulting work. He managed the SGS Geostat team for several years, working on a wide range of projects internationally, from resource estimations, economic evaluations and geometallurgical studies. He was part of the team that won the Integra Gold Rush Challenge by using a blend of conventional and machine learning techniques to rank exploration targets. He is currently working as Vice President of Project Evaluation with Osisko Gold Royalties, and is on the Mining Technical Advisory and Monitoring Committee for the Canadian Securities Administrators.

Guy Desharnais | LinkedIn

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