Trust is a popular buzzword in the workplace today. Organizational management gurus are quick to tell us that workplace trust is an essential ingredient for improving profitability and building an engaged employee culture.
How can you inspire trust among your employees? It starts with the leadership.
Here are three tips to help you inspire trust at work:
1. Model respect and honesty.
The behavior you demonstrate in the workplace and show to your employees is the behavior they will emulate.
If you expect them to follow your directions, embrace new strategies, and execute new procedures, they need to witness you behaving the same. They need to believe what you say is true. They need to know that your leadership will protect their back.
Consistently modeling such leadership behavior, day in and day out, will boost employee loyalty to you and your company. Such respect and honesty toward your employees will inspire trust.
2. Offer greater support for employee input in decisions.
One of the most effective ways to improve employee engagement is by allowing individuals more control over how they perform their work.
With projects, ask their feedback regarding how they believe that they can improve their results. Allow their input in work decisions so that they feel a sense of ownership in the projects. They will be more open to your feedback if they have contributed to the overall plan and will be more trusting in your comments.
Employees appreciate the respect that comes from asking their opinions. It gives them a feeling of trust that you believe in them.
3. Allow employees to make mistakes.
Although this sounds counter-intuitive, allowing employees to make mistakes can give them a comfort level in trying innovations and creative processes.
Let the employees know that they will not be penalized for making a mistake, if they acknowledge it and offer perspectives of how they have learned from the mistake. You are likely to get a workforce that has a greater trust in your leadership.
Employees who are trusting or who trust, provide higher productivity and are more willing to help one another. Rewarding business improvement ideas also is a byproduct of testing new ways of doing procedures or testing new product innovations.
Employee Trust is a Competitive Advantage
Sustaining a company’s competitive edge requires an engaged workforce that feels comfortable in the workplace and maintains a high level of trust.
If the employees trust the leadership and know that there is support for their opinions and trying new ideas, they will be more motivated to stay with the company longer and believe this company is a great place to work.
Ann Gatty
Dr. Ann Gatty is a business development strategist with 30 years’ experience, who believes that everyone has the capabilities to get where they want to go if they are enabled with the right strategies and tools. As a business consultant she builds businesses to work brilliantly. She is the co-founder of StrategicPeopleSolutions.com, an organization that helps businesses develop strong leaders while creating a culture where self-improvement is an intrinsic part of the organization’s value system. Ann works with clients to develop a strategic path towards the life they’ve always imagined. Ann can be reached at 855-284-4448 or [email protected].
Follow Me: