Four Ways To Build Trust With Your Team Now.

Whether it’s Frodo’s trusted friend Samwise from The Lord of the Rings, or hoping that the item you pick up at the grocery store really contains the ingredients that are reflected on the label, trust is important. When it comes to organizations, trust is increasingly crucial to fostering and leading solid relationships that drive success. When trust is strong, it fosters loyalty and lays the foundation for high performance and engagement. However, when trust is broken, relationships unravel quickly, and discord becomes a significant obstacle to performance and stakeholder confidence. John Maxwell aptly states, "Trust is the foundation of any relationship. Developing trust is like constructing a house. It takes time, and it must be done piece by piece. As with a building, it’s much easier to tear down trust than it is to build it up" - https://www.johnmaxwell.com/blog/entering-the-construction-zone/.

Why Trust Matters

Trust as an effortful, necessary yet precarious process was vividly illustrated by Apple’s infamous "Batterygate" scandal, where the company admitted to slowing down older iPhones through software updates, forcing users to purchase new phones. With Apple known to build its reputation on trust, this revelation not only shook consumer confidence but also wiped out nearly $74 billion in market capitalization in one day (https://shorturl.at/u8g1s). The scandal underscored the paramount importance of transparency and honesty in maintaining trust. Just as consumer trust is vital for business success, building and maintaining trust with employees and stakeholders is essential for creating a resilient and sustainable workplace.

Broadening the Spectrum of Team

Consequently, it is crucial for leaders to not just understand the depth of trust in terms of its inherent quality but to understand its implications in relation to the broad context of how a team should be precisely defined. A team is more than just a group of direct reports; it’s a complex and multifaceted entity. At any given moment and irrespective of the organizational configuration, a leader’s team also consists of service users, consumers, investors, and various groups of other internal and external stakeholders who play a direct and indirect role in the leader’s role. Therefore, building trust within a team requires a comprehensive approach that encompasses all these relationships. It is within this vein that the following four key strategies to build and sustain trust within your team are to be understood.

 1. Empathy

With the shift to metrics-focused evaluations years ago, emotional intelligence (EQ) training became a major priority for many industries. However, despite the emphasis on EQ, organizations failed to adequately create spaces that prioritize empathy.  Instead, they continued to rely solely on traditional areas as indices for leadership performance and practice, hindering their ability to truly move the needle on this often-undervalued skill. According to a report from the Harvard Business Review: “While 78% of senior leaders acknowledge the importance of empathy, only 47% believe their companies are effectively practicing it. A gap exists between leaders’ perceptions of their empathy and employees’ experiences” (https://www.harvardbusiness.org/empathetic-leadership-how-to-go-beyond-lip-service/).

When embodied by leaders, empathy creates the ideal foundation for building trust, as empathetic leaders are usually characterized by the following traits:

• They seek to genuinely understand and value their team’s perspectives, emotions, and experiences. This involves connecting with employees and other members of their team in an engaging manner, deeply listening to gain insights into their needs and aspirations, and prioritizing their welfare over immediate company outcomes.

• They strive to cultivate a culture of empathy by modeling compassion.

• They foster vulnerability and openness, creating an environment where individuals feel safe to express their true thoughts and feelings without fear of judgment or reprisal.

2. Reframe Obstacles to Opportunities

Wayne Dyer famously said, “If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” Genuinely creating a space that promotes open communication and collaboration isn’t always easy, especially in high-stress situations or when faced with team members who are disengaged or seem disinterested. For example, it is natural to address an underperforming team member with criticism or react to an unsupported board with disapproval. However, through the right lens, a difficult situation may be reframed as a developmental opportunity, and challenging behaviors may signal areas where guidance and support can build solidarity and make a significant difference in organizational outcomes.

When leaders consistently demonstrate the ability to reframe obstacles and turn setbacks into opportunities, they signal to their team that challenges are manageable and that their efforts are valued. This approach builds confidence and fosters a collaborative environment where team members feel supported and empowered. Teams that perceive their leaders as capable of turning challenges into opportunities are more likely to be engaged and committed, contributing to higher overall performance. Ultimately, leaders who excel at reframing obstacles not only drive their team’s success but also cultivate an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect, laying the groundwork for long-term organizational stability and growth.

3. Inclusion

Very few things secure the trust of a team like a leader who shares ownership of the process. Leaders who prioritize inclusion actively implement participatory processes during team meetings, brainstorming sessions, board retreats, feedback forums, and decision-making discussions. They reinforce a culture of collaboration and ensure that everyone has a chance to contribute ideas and feedback, thereby allowing individuals on the team to feel heard and valued.

Teams involved in decision-making processes demonstrate higher levels of trust in their leaders and feel a greater sense of mutual interdependence that promotes increased productivity. Gallup reports that companies that empower employees to participate in decision-making experience an increase in innovation (https://shorturl.at/AIkQq|), and Forbes found that employees who feel their voice is heard are 4.6 times more likely to feel empowered to perform their best work (https://shorturl.at/aBfn4).

What further punctuates the importance of inclusion in building trust is that leaders who promote inclusive practices typically see their teams develop sufficient trust to stay. According to Gallup, organizations that involve employees in decision-making processes experience a 27% reduction in turnover rates . That is, not only are innovation and higher quality decisions a byproduct of teams that trust their leaders who practice inclusiveness, but those teams also see increased retention. As a result, the team is more likely to buy into the proposed vision and change because they see themselves as active participants in the journey.

4. Credibility

Trust is the lifeblood of leadership and leadership is nothing without credibility. People don’t follow leaders who aren’t credible. James Kouzes and Barry Posner underscore this point, noting that "credibility is the foundation of leadership" (Christian Reflections on Leadership, 120). The story of Adam Neumann, WeWork's enigmatic founder, highlights this critical connection between credibility and leadership. His tenure was marked by a lack of transparency and questionable decisions, including conflicts of interest with his ownership of buildings leased to WeWork. This lack of credible leadership led to WeWork's failed IPO, significant financial losses, and ultimately, the company's bankruptcy filing. Neumann’s failure to lead with credibility highlights the necessity for leaders to act with integrity and accountability, as their actions set the tone for the entire organization and significantly influence its long-term success.

Credibility, grounded in integrity and consistent follow-through, strengthens team trust and commitment. Therefore, leaders who follow through on their promises by demonstrating integrity and commitment make it easier for team members to trust and follow their lead. John Maxwell makes this point when he states, "People buy into the leader before they buy into the vision". Integrity builds strong, trust-based relationships that pay significant dividends to both the leader and the organization.

Conclusion

Building trust with any team isn’t merely a matter of good intentions; it’s an essential and strategic element for organizational success. Leaders who earn the buy-in of their teams typically foster an environment where trust can flourish by demonstrating empathy, reframing challenges as opportunities, leading with a commitment to inclusive practices, and embodying credibility. These qualities result in more resilient and high-performing teams that readily buy into the vision and are more amenable to a culture of continuous improvement and the dynamic changes organizations undertake as they grow through life cycles.