Defence mechanisms. Why NAB chairman Ken Henry lost his job

• Main Author: Burns, Clare
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2019
• Subjects: First Nations
• Online Access: https://research.bond.edu.au/en/publications/ab1591ce-b2cb-4575-9906-0d1d5a9f96c0; https://theconversation.com/defence-mechanisms-why-nab-chairman-ken-henry-lost-his-job-111182

Directors may not have sought to directly hurt vulnerable people, but the indirect consequences of their behaviour can’t be ignored: farmers have lost their land, dead people have been charged fees for no service, and First Nations people have been targeted for financial products they could not use. Despite multiple previous inquiries the industry’s behaviour didn’t change because for the most part its directors’ assumptions didn’t change. Cognitive and emotional barriers to unlearning protected the assumption that it was OK to pursue profit at the expense of customers.