---
id: "quote-willful-blindness"
type: "quote"
source_timestamps: ["§ How to Use Explainable AI Responsibly"]
tags: ["organizational-design", "ai-governance"]
related: ["concept-checkbox-transparency", "action-align-incentives-critical-engagement"]
speaker: "Alex Chan"
speakers: ["Alex Chan"]
sources: ["adoption"]
sourceVaultSlug: "hbr-seg-adoption"
originDay: 9
articleStem: "hbr-edu-37-employees-not-questioning-ai"
sourceUrl: "https://hbr.org/2026/06/employees-arent-questioning-ai-advice-enough"
sourceTitle: "Employees Aren’t Questioning AI Advice Enough"
---
# Explainability cannot be left to individual choice

> "The key insight is that explainability cannot be left entirely to individual choice when individual incentives point toward willful blindness."
> — [[entity-alex-chan|Alex Chan]]

[[entity-alex-chan|Chan]] highlights the failure mode of current XAI deployments: relying on users to opt in to transparency. When financial or psychological incentives push users toward ignorance, systemic organizational mandates are required. This is the rationale for [[concept-checkbox-transparency|escaping checkbox transparency]] via [[action-align-incentives-critical-engagement]] and the [[framework-responsible-xai-deployment]].

**Enrichment note:** Marco Meyer's governance commentary restates this as explanations being **"unavoidable, not just available,"** with decision-makers accountable for what they chose not to know — linking Chan's individual-level finding to *organizationally produced* willful ignorance (see the open design problem [[question-ui-ux-for-forced-engagement]]).