Why trust is failing?

Trust as an organisational phenomenon is a very?complex?and?multifaceted. Science tells us?how it can have a critical impact on performance, reputation and sustainability of an organisation. What we also know is that?trust is critical when considering health outcomes in the work context.?

Work should be about learning, creating and overcoming challenges. If we don't feel safe?we don't engage. If we don't trust the people we work with we don't share and?we don't actually collaborate. If we don't trust the vision and mission at the top?we don't align our efforts, at least not consistently.?

It seems common sense, but it is also proven work and organisational research clearly linked with?improved financial outcomes,?enhanced employee engagement?and?strengthened brand reputation?and?increased resilience.?

Addressing this challenge comes with?barriers that can be critical to overcome?as we have observed with some of our client organisations. Some of the critical obstacles to rebuild trust?are: inconsistent messages or standards; misplaced?benevolence by avoiding giving honest feedback; not trusting others by micromanage or withholding information when delegating; having "elephants in the parlor" by ignoring or denying obvious problems; consistent underperfomance and lack of expertise and experience in leaders.?

Going beyond stating the trust issue,?there is also a?proven track of critical factors that can influence trust?such as: positive relationships; good judgment/expertise; consistency; transparency; purpose; empowerment. These critical dimensions can and are assessed by some organisations that comprehend that?trust is not a static or fixed state?but rather a dynamic and ongoing process that requires constant attention, evaluation and action from leaders and employees.?

So in this edition of our review we invite you to question how your organisation is handling the trust challenge by?the hand of our guest writer José Sintra ?blog post?themed "Can we rebuild Trust?".?We also suggest an interesting?book by Rick Kitagawa & Lisa Lambert "The Future is Trust".?And finally, we invite you to watch a great Ted Talk by Frances Frei?"How to build (and rebuild) trust".?

Do take part in this conversation by leaving a comment on our?blog?or replying to [email protected]?

Let's revamp our efforts to build a safe and trusting organisation?in the coming months.?

Liliana Dias (she/her)

Managing Partner Bound.Health