Strategy Must Be Built on a Foundation of Trust

Before the Strategy Development Begins

Developing a strategy that could transform an organization significantly requires a foundation of trust in the organization's leadership. Being placed in a leadership role does not automatically equate to earning the respect of a workforce. A position at the top of the organizational chart comes with a responsibility to develop a work environment that is collaborative, ethical, transparent, and trustworthy.

Mistrust begets mistrust; trust begets accomplishment. - Lao Tzu

Ways to Earn Employee Trust

Tzu is a significant figure in Chinese philosophy and, according to tradition, a contemporary of Confucious. Leaders must be mindful of the reality that accomplishment requires an environment of trust. They will also need to understand that trust is gained over time with an expectation by employees that they consistently perform in a manner worthy of respect and loyalty. Five ways to earn these include:

1. Setting the standard with a consistently strong work ethic: Employees expect to see actions supporting the leader's words. They will mirror the actual work ethic they see in their leader.
2. Not being afraid to take risks and willing to admit wrongdoing – Risk-taking is necessary to move a company from its current state to a more desirable future. However, the leader must openly take responsibility for the wrongdoing outcome when the risk does not play out as planned.
3. Sponsoring high-potential employees and serving others rightly – Stepping up to support them comes with some level of risk for a leader but allows them to reach their highest potential. The leader is also responsible for putting others in a position to achieve their highest success.
4. Exhibiting a powerful executive presence with a long-lasting impact – Leaders who make a lasting impact have authentic trust in themselves, allowing them to live their brand. People notice their passionate and positive effects when they enter a room.
5. Having their employees' backs while deflecting their recognition – Employee trust in their leadership is driven partly by being authentically recognized and rewarded for their work. Additionally, leaders deflect praise for themselves and place it on the workforce.

Influential executives understand the importance and fully embrace the responsibility of creating an organizational culture that establishes employee trust in their leaders.

Do You Have an Environment of Trust?

While there are ways to earn the workforce's trust, knowing if it is becoming a reality is essential. So, while we could ask them how they feel about us, a way to get a more authentic and reliable sense of success is to ask the following questions:

1. Do people say "no" to you? – Trust is not present if we only hear yes to our questions.
2. Do you use high-trust language? – Our words should include "we" over "I" and "teammates" instead of "employees."
3. Do you know if failures and lessons learned are publicized across the company? – An environment that tolerates honest mistakes supports employees in taking calculated risks and encourages creative thinking.
4. Do people live the company values? – The actions and words of all team members at all levels show that they are accomplishing the work in alignment with organizational expectations.
5. Is information open and accessible to find? – All company members can readily gain access to the knowledge necessary to complete their jobs successfully in an overall environment of trust.
6. Does everyone know what the business focuses on and how it performs? – All team members should clearly understand the organization's vision and be seen carrying it out in their work.
7. Do team members share company news on their social channels? An outcome of trust in the organization is that people post information that shows they are proud to be company members.
8. Is it easy to give and invite feedback at any time? – The leader should hear team members respectfully asking challenging questions that those receiving them embrace as an opportunity to improve their work.
9. Do you crowdsource strategy and major initiatives? – An invitation to those at all levels to receive feedback to improve the company should see meaningful contributions from many team members.
10. Is it easy to connect with you? – There must be an open-door policy where team members feel comfortable sharing something important.

When leaders can answer affirmatively to most of these questions, a culture of trust should exist. However, the work requires constant vigilance and ongoing proactive responses to issues that can damage the trust environment.

Key Takeaways

Developing a strategy that could transform an organization significantly requires a foundation of trust in its leadership. Influential executives understand the importance and fully embrace the responsibility of creating an organizational culture that establishes employee trust in their leaders. The work requires constant vigilance and ongoing proactive responses to issues that can damage the trust environment.

First Step

I encourage leaders to use the environment of trust questions to gauge the current state of organizational trust. The ten questions can be incorporated into a survey, and the company's stakeholders should be invited to participate in helping to set a base understanding of organizational trust. Some minor editing will be required. For example, "Do people say "no" to you?" could read as "Can employees feel comfortable in saying no to leaders in this organization?"

My Gratitude

I have recently had the opportunity to work with the leader of an organization that embraces the elements of earning the trust of the many stakeholders integral to its success. The individual is working hard to gain the level of trust necessary to develop a strategy that will significantly improve the organization's current state.

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Additional Information

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