96 Culture and trust in technology-driven organizations
trustworthy behavior in order to gain and retain trust. Trust within an
organization is based specically on the caliber of leadership within the
organization. When building trust, it is necessary to pay attention to
every aspect of an organization’s structure such as management policies
and practices, values, and expectations of its members and especially the
behavior of its leaders. There are many behaviors exhibited by managers
that can help improve trust. Some of these behaviors and expected out-
comes are listed in Table8.4.
8.10 Interpersonal communication
There is no profession that does not require communication and inter-
action with others. Interpersonal communication is complicated due to
factors such as the diversity of cultures in the work environment. People
from varying cultures communicate differently, therefore not being
knowledgeable of the various cultural traditions can limit the ability to
engage in effective communication. Communicating with others is an
essential skill in business dealings and building effective relationships.
Interpersonal communication skills are an important attribute in devel-
oping relationships within organizations. This type of communication
involves an exchange of information and feelings through verbal and
nonverbal means. Interpersonal communication is not only about what is
communicated or the language that is used; it is also about the unspoken
Table8.4 Trust Behaviors and Outcome
Behavior Expected outcome
Honesty. Promote respect and trust.
Honor agreements. Promote credibility and trust.
Open communication. Provide clarity to expectations and
facilitates trust.
Admit mistakes when they are
made.
Promote respect and a sense of humility
and humanity.
Provide honest and constructive
feedback.
Facilitate trust.
Be willing to give and able to
accept constructive feedback.
Demonstrate humility.
Maintain condentiality. Facilitate trust and open communication.
Delegate. Demonstrate trust and respect for people’s
knowledge, skills, and ability; this
eliminates the tendency to micromanage.
Involve others and seek their input. Promote ownership and pride in work.
Be consistent and reliable. Build condence in leadership ability and
behavior.
97Chapter eight: Tactics for building and maintaining trust
words represented by body language and facial expressions. A good
understanding of interpersonal communication is an essential part of
developing lasting relationships and trust during interactions. The fol-
lowing should be considered to assist with improving communicating:
• Be aware of gestures during communication.
• Control tone of voice.
• Listen actively.
• Be cognizant of facial expressions, eye contact, and eye movement.
• Remain cognizant of body language.
• Understand the culture of the person with whom you are
communicating.
8.11 Soft side of management
The “soft” side of management is the caring relationship and leadership-
friendly part of a manager based on emotions. The rmer strategic side of
management is the role of management that makes plans, sets up struc-
tures, and rmly monitors performance. The real challenge for most lead-
ers is being able to maneuver between displaying the rm side versus
the soft side. Overemphasizing the rm side of management can lead to
fear and mistrust among workers. Being an effective leader does not come
easily for many because often managers are unable, unwilling, or uncom-
fortable with revealing their softer side. The softer side of management
involves acting upon intangibles that can sometimes be seen based on
actions or reactions. On the other hand some intangibles such as empa-
thy, intuition, and the ability to access the needs of others are not visible.
Effective managers know when and how to display the appropriate level
of vulnerability when communicating. Building relationships that lead to
trust oftentimes means that managers are willing to display the softer
side of their personalities, letting others see their humanity so that a con-
nection can be made and trust can develop. Showing one’s humanity does
not mean that weakness exists. On the contrary, it demonstrates that the
manager is condent and secure in his or her knowledge, abilities, and
competence as a leader.
8.12 Leader’s role
Management effectiveness depends on the ability to gain the trust of sub-
ordinates and colleagues. When trust is relatively high, employees are
more committed to authority and are willing to do whatever it takes to
help the organization succeed. An employee’s attitude toward change
and ability to maneuver through the change management process is
affected by his or her trust in management. The more an employee trusts
98 Culture and trust in technology-driven organizations
management, the easier the change management process becomes. Some
leaders make decisions that are based solely on their connection and rela-
tionship with others. These decisions will unintentionally have an adverse
effect on building trust with the majority of people in the organization.
Another scenario to consider is that there are times when some leaders
make decisions based on their needs and what is easiest for them. Such
actions should be avoided because of the damaging effect it can have on
the workers.
There are many benets achieved when employees trust their lead-
ers. These benets affect the entire organization on various levels. Some
of the obvious benets of having trusted leaders in an organization are
listed below.
• Leaders who are trusted empower workers to think and make
decisions.
• Leaders who are trusted facilitate productivity because workers are
inspired to create and produce without fear of failure.
• Leaders who are trusted encourage focus on the task to be
accomplished.
• Leaders who are trusted ignite passion and excitement for the task
at hand.
• Leaders who are trusted foster innovation and new ways of solving
problems to help the company move forward and successfully com-
pete in their business.
• Leaders who are trusted can be instrumental in facilitating an
employee’s decision to remain with an organization.
Trusted leadership is contagious because when trust is present within
an organization your customers and business associates know it and they
will respond accordingly. Therefore, they are more willing to trust the
organization. This level of trust among the customers leads to repeat work
and can open up additional external untapped opportunities that arise
through word-of-mouth recommendations from current clients. Listed
below are actions that leaders can take to build and maintain trust.
• Demonstrate concern for employees.
• Be predictable.
• Develop trustworthy relationships.
• Ensure your actions and words match.
• Keep condences.
• Do not gossip.
• Treat all employees fairly.
• Communicate often and completely.
• Confront issues in a timely fashion.
99Chapter eight: Tactics for building and maintaining trust
• Display competent leadership skills.
• Act with integrity.
• Keep commitments.
• Display competence in management skills.
• Listen attentively and with respect.
• Exhibit empathy and sensitivity to staff needs when appropriate.
• Lead with humility.
• Apologize when you make a mistake.
• Fulll promises.
8.12.1 Performance appraisals
Conducting performance reviews is an integral part of a manager’s
role. Most employees dislike the process and consider it to be cumber-
some, a waste of time, and not necessarily an accurate account of their
performance. If not performed appropriately, performance reviews can
drastically reduce employee motivation to buy into the vision of the
organization and limit productivity, as well as inhibit trust in manage-
ment and the organization. A performance appraisal (PA) is a systematic
process that is used periodically to evaluate an employee’s job perfor-
mance. The review is evaluated against pre-established goals and objec-
tives. A documented PA is typically conducted annually. However, it
is a good practice to conduct a mid-year review to provide feedback to
employees on their performance for the rst six months of the perfor-
mance period.
PA data are generally conducted using two primary methods; objec-
tive data and judgment of the responsible manager. In order to have a
meaningful PA experience, good preparation is needed from both the
manager and the employee. The following should be incorporated into
the PA review process to bring ease and meaning to the process.
• Ensure that enough time is allotted for the PA discussion.
• Meet in a private place.
• Review all documents from the previous PA cycle.
• Review and have on hand the PA discussion documents and notes
accumulated during the year (include awards, achievements, and
feedback from customers and co-workers).
• Discuss employee success since the last PA review.
• Discuss obstacles that the employee may have encountered since the
previous PA.
• Discuss all training needed and completed to ensure employee
success.
• Discuss ways you as the manager can assist the employee in achiev-
ing his or her goals.
100 Culture and trust in technology-driven organizations
• Listen attentively.
• Provide open and honest feedback.
8.12.2 Reward and recognition
One of the most expeditious and effective ways to express appreciation is
often one of the most simplest and overlooked: saying “thank you.” Thank
you is appropriate and effective even when most of the duties performed
are viewed as a normal part of the job. Hearing “thank you” represents a
spontaneous and timely yet effective means of expressing gratitude in a
way that can mean a lot to anyone. Expressing gratitude should be done
often and with sincerity, and can be done privately or publicly in front
of co-workers. When expressing gratitude ensure you mention the task,
project, or behavior you are recognizing. There are various ways to recog-
nize groups, such as picnics, luncheons, breakfast celebrations, plaques,
certicates, and nancial incentives. A good reward and recognition
program can be the catalyst to helping employees recognize how much
their contribution to the success of the organization is valued and appreci-
ated. Employees who feel valued are more open to supporting and trust-
ing management and the organization.
8.12.3 Succession planning
The succession planning process is an important process to ensure that
an organization retains the talent and skilled workers need to carry on
the business of the organization. A leader’s ability to plan strategically
is another measuring stick that can be used to determine if a leader is
to be viewed as being competent. Succession planning refers to the pro-
cess or strategy used to identify and develop potential successors for key
positions within a company. Key positions may include leadership posi-
tions or highly skilled technical positions that are difcult to replace.
Oftentimes key positions may require specialized training, license,
or experience level that is difcult to replicate. An important aspect of
succession planning is to create a suitable match between the compa-
ny’s future needs and the desired career path of individual employees.
Awell-developed succession planning process can serve as a means to
increase the retention of high-performing workers because through suc-
cession planning the value of the worker is being demonstrated by the
company’s investment in employee development. This is another process
that can serve to reduce motivation and productivity as well as decrease
trust in management and the organization if not properly carried out.
Therefore, it is incumbent upon managers to approach this process care-
fully andcommunicate appropriately. This is yet another opportunityfor
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