Leaders can Learn, and Re-Earn Employee Trust

Gallup Workplace had a theory about the level of trust in organizations and researched it. It gathered the data, analyzed it and discovered what many employees already knew:

Trust is not doing well as an influential and persuasive leadership asset.

In the source Gallup article “Trust Is in Decline: Here's How to Rebuild It,” authors Vibhas Ratanjee and Jennifer Robison communicate about the research and intelligence discovered and revealed.

Communication Intelligence magazine thought the findings were worthy of a conversation with two professionals.

Julie Titterington, the chief culture officer and editor-in-chief at MerchantMaverick.com, with decades-long experience working at the crossroads of HR and workplace culture, and Dr. Craig Beach founder, psychiatrist, CEO and chief medical officer at Open Mind Health, are part of the discussion in the following five-question Q&A feature.

Julie Titterington

Communication Intelligence: Only 33% of employees strongly agree that: “My company would never lie to our customers or conceal information that is relevant to them.” 33 percent.

How can this number be embarrassingly low and why doesn't it matter more to leaders of organizations? And maybe equally importantly or more important, what specifcally does this communicate to employees and the public?

Julie Titterington: Unfortunately, this is a good indicator of how often the bottom line is emphasized above all other concerns.

Whether or not that's how the company leadership actually feels — or (communicates) in public statements or in social media — the reality is that in day-to-day workflows, employees are generally encouraged to save money, protect the brand, and earn additional revenue at whatever cost, and usually in that order. If those are the primary objectives, it's no wonder that employees have trouble believing that the customer really “comes first.”

Craig Beach: This really comes back to organizational culture and developing trust in large part.

Mission, vision, and values statements grounded in language that speaks to honesty and integrity is a good start. The part to master is the weaving of this intent throughout the web of organizational networks.

Maintaining communication with both internal and external audiences and considering feedback from these sources will demonstrate engagement, and hopefully, authentic transparency with these stakeholder groups.

Therefore, demonstrating and modeling this culture on an ongoing basis takes effort and investment.

Let’s not forget that there are demographic differences in the way people trust institutions. A recent Pew survey shows that younger individuals are generally less trusting of other people and institutions.

As baby boomers age out of the workforce and Generations X, Y, and Z become the predominant working population, organizations ought to consider how and when to deliver critical information and insights that affect their stakeholders.

Human beings are intelligent, and in the realm of truthfulness, feel that in their gut sense. Companies that put out carefully crafted media statements such as “we cannot comment on an ongoing legal matter”, or “XYZ Corporation is absolutely committed to the safety of our customers and employees” are vague, lifeless, and people generally do not trust them. People want to trust and are anxious for evidence that supports their trust.

Dr. Craig Beach

Communication Intelligence: “A March 2021 Gallup Panel survey found that only 23% of U.S. employees strongly agree that they trust the leadership of their organization. This affects us all. When people lose trust in leaders, their decisions are informed by suspicion and their actions by self-interest. Businesses become more vulnerable as fewer employees are motivated to act for the greater good.”

What do leaders need to do and should they do to prevent this type of experience, perception, judgment and distrust?

Beach: We are at a point in the development of our societal and institutional structures where leaders need to understand what motivates workers. A variety of sources all seem to point to a few key motivating factors: purpose, meaning, autonomy, belonging, appreciation.

If leaders and institutions could leverage these factors, it would likely lead to more trust, engagement, and improved retention.

Titterington: When there's deep-set mistrust, the best and most effective corrective action is first to acknowledge the disconnect. Acting like it isn't happening may be tempting, but employees aren't dumb, and they can smell insincerity and B.S. a mile away.

It's absolutely critical to own past failures, in detail if necessary. Trust is established when the leadership of a business is as honest as possible with the staff. Then, and only then, can you move forward, making a point of communicating often, openly, and transparently.

Communication Intelligence: “Truthfulness is essential to trust, especially truthfulness from managers. An employee who feels lied to will probably never trust that manager again -- and may develop grave doubts about you and the organization as well.”

Why is truth telling difficult for some managers and how can they choose to become truthful more often? How can they reframe their thinking to raise their game, so to speak?

Titterington: The difficulty of owning mistakes and failure is just one of those shared human experiences. Everyone finds it painful to admit when they're wrong, and for a manager, it can go deeper than that. Some managers feel they have to maintain a place of superiority in order to lead effectively.

Acknowledging mistakes seems to them like yielding power, and many people would rather lie themselves until they're blue in the face rather than take one step down from the pedestal. The reality is that effective management and ego are mutually exclusive, and managers who want power actually lose respect.

One of the best things a manager can do to earn trust and increase productivity is to be humble about what he or she doesn't know. Managers should be open and honest about everything they do know, from why roadblocks are happening to where the company is headed.

Beach: The key words in this question are “feels lied to.” It is probably not that likely that the manager would risk telling an outright lie. However, it is more plausible that the manager, prompted by their corporate experience to date and the organizational “spin” culture that custom-curated messaging is prepared for delivery to employees.

A little compassion is called for all around in this situation. Within organizations, we are in a risk-averse world, governed by boards of directors, legal opinions, HR directives, shareholder value, and more. Managers are tasked with the job of delivering all kinds of news and are under pressure not to run afoul of any of the above.

So, is it any wonder that leaders and managers might craft their messaging to avoid these landmines? Now is the time for a renewed ethos of courage in expression so honest, trust-enabling conversations can happen. Senior leaders and boards need to support this.

Communication Intelligence: “Gallup research: 24% of employees saw or knew of unethical behavior in their workplace in the past 12 months. But less than half of them, 47%, reported it. That's what happens when trust is in a bear market. People atomize and look out for themselves.”

How can leaders — if they want to know, and maybe they don't — make speaking up psychologically safe?

Titterington: If you want employees to speak up when they see something wrong, you have to be willing to do it yourself. Safety comes from the top down; behavior that is modeled at the highest level will always feel acceptable.

So if you want people to speak up, the leadership has to communicate openly about any and all problems and issues the company is having, period. This can be achieved through townhalls, newsletters, and frequent check-ins and one-on-ones.

Beach: This is a disheartening statistic. There are a few elements to this. It may be a result of a sentiment that even if it was reported, nothing would be done. There may be no vocal support from senior leadership for any whistleblowing provisions. Or it may be that we are in a time in our civilization where there is general apathy towards wrongful behavior.

Leaders can make speaking up safe by ensuring that institutional ethics are part of the culture, and that everyone is responsible for keeping the organization in integrity with its core values.

More than that, whistleblower policies need to be in place, and senior leaders need to stand up and strongly communicate these policies and encourage staff to help to govern ethics.

Whistleblower policies need to have psychological safety provisions and anti-retaliation measures. This will overall help to build trust and engagement by employees in upholding ethical behaviors.

Communication Intelligence: What about reputation do leaders not realize when it comes to the importance of constantly building trust through trustworthy actions?

Beach: In leadership culture, we hear terms all too often such as reputation management, risk abatement, organizational optics, company narrative, etc. Isn’t it time for leaders to be brave enough to lead with sincerity, honesty, authenticity, and above all just basic good values and ethics?

Consistently demonstrating positive behaviors in all spheres of influence within and without the organization will eventually garner deeper trust and engagement than carefully curated messaging and image building.

Titterington: One of the gravest mistakes leaders make is underestimating the intelligence and intuition of the employees that work for them.

People don't like being patronized, and generally, they don't believe their managers are smarter or more talented than they are. If you believe you are somehow better than the people that work for you, you're not only wrong, you're foolish.

If you want to build trust, you have to give trust, and that includes trusting people to make good decisions, avoiding micromanagement, and taking your ego out of work interactions.

Competence alone is not enough to build trust. You have to make a habit of dealing openly and honestly with employees, and showing yourself to be trustworthy by telling the truth, even when it hurts.

Editor’s Note: Dr. Beach wanted to credit colleagues for their contributions to the research which he communicated: Kerry Kozuki, chief operation officer, Stephanie Robinson, chief clinical officer and Debra Sunderland, executive coach.