This module is part of CPA Australia’s flexible micro-credential suite. This module covers how unconscious cognitive biases can influence judgement in finance and provides practical strategies, tools, and examples to help professionals recognise, mitigate, and reduce their impact to support ethical, transparent, and effective decision making.
Description
This module is designed for finance professionals seeking to strengthen ethical, transparent and well reasoned decision making under uncertainty and pressure. You will explore how unconscious cognitive biases – such as confirmation bias, anchoring, overconfidence, loss aversion and gender bias – can subtly influence judgement and affect outcomes, and how collaboration, diversity and stakeholder engagement can help counter these effects. Building a practical toolkit, you will learn strategies including premortem analysis, challenging assumptions, taking a devil’s advocate perspective and clearly documenting reasoning, developing an understanding of how each approach supports different organisational contexts and decision needs.
Through this module, you will deepen your appreciation of how integrity, objectivity and professional competence – as outlined in the APES 110 Code of Ethics – support trustworthy decisions in complex financial environments. You will engage with interactive content, videos and activities that build self awareness and resilience against bias, helping you recognise common thinking shortcuts, understand their impact on judgement under pressure and apply mitigation techniques with confidence. This module will equip you to identify and reduce bias more consistently, strengthen accountability and contribute to inclusive, ethical and effective financial decision making across teams and organisations.
Featuring videos, examples and real-world application provided by industry experts to embed the learning and bring the content to life, you will gain the requisite tools and techniques that are key for new managers and finance leaders who want to make an impact.
Key topics
- Cognitive bias in finance
- The importance of collaboration to overcome cognitive bias
- Common cognitive biases and how they may affect decision-making
- Cognitive bias recognition and mitigation strategies
This module consists of one online course with a PDF learning manual.
This module can be studied as part of the Effective Decision-making in Finance micro-credential course, designed to provide in-depth, flexible learning.
The Effective Decision-making in Finance course is made up of the following modules:
- Foundations of Decision-Making in Finance (1 CPD hour)
- Decision-Making Models in Finance (1 CPD hour)
- Analytical Tools to Support Decision-Making (1 CPD hour)
- Mitigating Cognitive Bias in Decision-Making (1 CPD hour)
If you have enrolled in the full micro-credential course, you will have access to the assessment.
The assessment will be subject to security measures such as identification verification and webcam monitoring. Please ensure you read the Assessment and security policy and system requirements prior to making your purchase.
About CPA Australia Micro-Credentials
CPA Australia’s Micro-Credentials are based on technical and non-technical competencies and align to our Accounting and Finance Capability Framework. Our partner, Credly, will provide you with a digital badge on successful completion of the assessment. Your digital badge allows you to demonstrate your capability and achievement, and can be placed on your LinkedIn profile, digital CV or email signature.
Flexible learning options:
- Micro-credential (5 CPD hours): Purchase the full micro-credential (which includes all four modules), complete the assessment and earn a digital badge.
- Individual modules: Choose to purchase modules individually, allowing you to focus on the specific areas and capabilities that interest you.
Learning objectives
- Identify common cognitive biases that can affect decision-making.
- Analyse how biases influence judgement under uncertainty and pressure.
- Apply practical strategies to recognise and mitigate bias in decision-making.
Audience
This module is suited to finance professionals who want to strengthen the quality, ethics, and objectivity of their decision making by understanding how common cognitive biases shape judgement under pressure and applying practical strategies to recognise and mitigate these biases in their daily work.