Do you sense that there are many people within your organization that simply don’t trust each other? A lack of trust can drastically affect a company’s culture for the worse—and that, in turn, affects the bottom line. But what does trust really entail in the workplace? Expert Claudia St. John has some advice.
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Claudia St. John, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, is the author of Transforming Teams and president of Affinity HR Group, LLC, a national human resources consulting firm serving hundreds of clients nationwide.
Are your sales and customer service teams arguing or just not getting along? Do some members of your leadership team fail to openly share their thoughts and concerns? Are your best performers bogged down in work, unable to delegate because they worry someone else won’t do the job right?
All too often, behaviors such as these are the result of a breakdown in trust—a fear that someone will fail to perform or a fear of expressing one’s honest views and concerns. These breakdowns can occur at all levels of an organization, and they can have the cumulative effect of keeping an otherwise productive team from working well together.
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But, what is trust? And when it’s broken, what’s a manager to do? We talk about “trusting environments” and “trust-building exercises,” but what do we really mean by the term “trust”? For many, it is simply an emotional expression of confidence. But there is much more to it than that.
Defining Trust
Trust is actually comprised of three distinct components. When someone says, “I trust you,” they are really making three separate assessments about your …
… Sincerity. What is your capacity to be honest in your intention and communication? Can you be believed in what you say? Sincerity suggests that what someone says has validity or credibility that is backed by evidence or sound thinking. We can “trust” what he says.
… Reliability. Are you reliable, and can we be confident that you will meet the commitments you make? Reliability suggests someone is able and willing to keep her promises. We can “trust” that she will do what she says she will do.
… Competence. Are you competent, and do you have the ability to do what you say you can do? Competence relates to one’s true ability. We trust that he has the skill, knowledge, and resources to fulfill his commitment.
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When sincerity, reliability, and competence are aligned, we enjoy trusting relationships. However, if one or more of these is out of alignment, things can head south … quickly. When working with teams that have suffered some sort of breakdown in trust, it is always important to move from the emotional basis of “lack of trust,” where people can get stuck in some form of hurt or injury, and move to the domains of sincerity, reliability, and competence.
Is trust an issue in your workplace? If so, there are solutions—the five steps to restoring trust in the workplace appear in tomorrow’s Advisor!