TRUST… and More Trust.

This is a piece from the Academy Leadership that SynergyBlog feels they could have written themselves. It’s that good.

We’ll not pontificate. Please read, and in doing so, may your organizations and relationships thrive.

Enjoy. Trust… and be Trusted!

From the Academy Leadership: In its simplest form, trust can be described as the belief that those on whom we depend will meet our positive expectations of them. While this may sound the same as confidence, they are different. Trust is not always rooted in past experience with others, whereas confidence generally results from specific experiences with people and is built on reason and fact. In contrast, trust is based in part on faith. We sometimes give our trust in spite of evidence that suggests we should feel some caution, if not outright suspicion, about relying on another.

Business realities now require that more power be given to those with close contacts with very discriminating consumers. No longer can the few powerful people at the top make all decisions and take all actions. Most companies now realize that they must provide people at lower levels increasing latitude in order to react promptly to demanding market forces and to progress and prosper. Thus, they must trust people to do the right thing. To do otherwise could well spell disaster for the future. Leaders can lead only to the extent that they are allowed to lead by their followers. When people believe that they are not trusted, or lack trust in their leaders, they will actively or passively resist what the team is trying to accomplish. Thus, a leader’s options are limited by excessive and ongoing mistrust among employees.

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TED: Daniel Goleman Asks Why We All Aren’t Good Samaritans

As a long-time admirer of TED, SynergyBlog is pleased to have happened upon this inspirational piece from Daniel Goleman. Dr. Goleman studies, writes, and lectures on Emotional Intelligence along with Case Western Reserve University’s Dr. Richard Boyatzis.

As you listen to Dr. Goleman, perhaps it will do your heart good to reflect on all of the times you were a Good Samaritan (we know you have been).

Did, in those moments, you become the leader you have always wanted to be? Did “Brand You” become so much more than just a slogan? It’s not to late to bring those moments of pure goodness back in our words and deeds, both inside and outside of our corporate lives. We can bring them back, and we should. Again and again.

Please click here to watch Dr. Goleman. Enjoy!

P.s. There’s also a wonderful talk by Elizabeth Gilbert on creative genius… brilliant!

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What’s in your Leadership Model?

This is a very insightful post by Dr. Rick Johnson of CEO Strategist LLC. Dr. Johnson states, and we concur, “Servant-leadership encourages collaboration, trust, foresight, listening, and the ethical use of power and empowerment.” We suggest you think about which model fits your leadership style, and how you leverage servant leadership within your own organizations, and amongst internal and external stakeholders. In these economic times, it is critical to re-evaluate our decision-making processes, and ensure they are aligned with a set of principles that encourages trust in individuals, organizations, and brands.
Lead. Thrive. Trust and be Trusted.

There isn’t much doubt that most effective high impact leaders are driven by a model. This is true even when that effective leader doesn’t take the time to define his personal unique model. A model is an intangible tool that leaders use to predict future outcomes of current decisions; a tool that not only enhances personal creativity but encourages creativity in the minds of their employees.

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Organizational Trust, Trust in the Chief Executive, and Work Satisfaction.

A great piece on organizational trust from our friends at Entrepreneur.com

by Perry, Ronald W., Mankin, Lawrence D.
Public Personnel Management • Summer 2007 •

Especially in the past decade, employees have begun to change their view of the organizations in which they work, with traditional employee-organization bonds becoming weaker. (1) The private sector has seen the collapse of several large corporations, sometimes with managers realizing huge personal profit while employees lost their pensions. Public organizations lack comparable scandals, although the Orange County, California financial collapse is memorable. Downsizing, privatizing and contracting out practices generated by economic pressures have eroded what is usually seen as a strong identification of employees with the governments for whom they work. (2) Interestingly, governments have continued to outsource, and a recent report by Segal, Moore and Blair (3) argues that outsourcing is an important trend and advocates the outsourcing of human resources functions. At the same time, Nyhan (4) argues that the future of public organizations rests in the creation of trust in management and the organization as a means of positively influencing not only quality of work life but efficiency and effectiveness of performance. Aon Consulting (5) studied the U.S. workforce and, like Nyhan, found that “building commitment must be a strategic goal emanating from senior leadership.” Their premise was that employees who trust their managers and organizations are freer to innovate, energize and produce.

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The Restoration of Stakeholder Trust: Transparency is Key

Restore Stakeholder Trust

There has never been a more critical time in our history to be concerned about the trust stakeholders place in institutions. As has been stated here by Tim Hartford, “Trust enables people to do business with one another. Doing business is what creates wealth.” Yet, each day, we hear more stories of trusted executives who betray stakeholder trust. Despite the best intentions of some organizational leaders, public exposure and scrutiny of corporate greed and fraud are so prevalent that stakeholder skepticism is commonplace. In fact, the potential for perceived breaches of trust also presents a risk to corporate leaders. So, what is to be done? What can executives do to right the ship – to exude values that establish, maintain, and maximize stakeholder trust?

In a recent qualitative study of three U.S. institutions, including a Fortune 500 corporation, a government entity, and a nonprofit organization, the author found that there are seven critical elements of a comprehensive trust repair agenda. The first, and most important finding is that when trust has been violated, stakeholders are motivated to understand why the violation occurred. Findings show that stakeholders first want to understand the circumstances surrounding the violation. Managers and executives should provide an open account of key features of the transgression. Explanations which are authentic, reasoned, open and relevant to the transgression in question enhance fairness judgments, and can increase trustworthiness perceptions. Our findings have been supported by scholars (see Barclay 2008; Greenberg, 1993), and practitioners.

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Why Trust is the Most Important Asset in Business

The U.S. is facing a crisis of trust in organizations, institutions, and our leaders. Today, we witnessed what we hope is the very beginning of a long, slow restoration of trust with the new administration. But we must do more.

I am currently writing an article based on a qualitative study conducted on organizational trust and trust repair, which will provide insight into how organizational leaders can establish, maintain, and maximize stakeholder trust… and why it matters more than every other asset in an organization. I will post excerpts from the article throughout the week and would love to hear your thoughts.

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