101Chapter eight: Tactics for building and maintaining trust
the “justlikeme” syndrome to rear its ugly head. Careful consideration
must be given to the selected successor.
8.12.4 Employee engagement
When many people think of employee engagement, they immediately
think about granting the employee the ability to participate in all busi-
ness decisions. Employee engagement refers to the active involvement
of employees in shaping the culture of the organization and participat-
ing in the success of the organization. There are some decisions that are
necessary to be made by senior management on behalf of the employees.
However, employees should be actively engaged in some decisions that
affect them and the organization. When referring to employee involve-
ment, focus is being extended to creating an environment in which people
have animpact on decisions and actions that affect their jobs as well as
being involved in some decisions in the business dealings of the orga-
nization they support. Employee engagement is a leadership philosophy
involving practices that demonstrate people are valued and are invited to
contribute to continuous improvement and the ongoing success of an orga-
nization. Employee involvement has these benets for an organization.
• Facilitates employee growth
• Empowers employees to participate in the business
• Increased trust in management
• Increased employee retention
• Increased productivity
8.13 Leadership styles
Leadership style plays an important role in determining whether a man-
ager is able to build relationships and gain worker trust. We know that
workers will follow a leader they trust even when times are uncertain and
difcult. There are many leadership styles a leader can assume during
interactions with subordinates and colleagues. At times it is necessary to
change styles based on the individual or team that is being led and the
accompanying circumstances. There is not a “one size ts all” style when
it comes to leading people. There are times when leaders must adapt their
styles to the situation at hand. Effective leaders know when they need
to change their style in dealing with the many challenges they face. We
will explore three leadership styles and their impact on building trusting
cultures in an organization setting. The three leadership styles discussed
in the upcoming sections are situational, servant, and the micro leader.
These leadership styles were selected for discussion because they can
have the greatest impact on building or eroding trust in organizations.
102 Culture and trust in technology-driven organizations
8.13.1 Situational leadership
Situational leadership entails the adjustment of leadership styles by
managers to t the development level of the followers they are is trying
to inuence. With situational leadership, it is incumbent on the leader to
change his or her style, as opposed to the follower adapting to the leader’s
style. Situational leadership entails four predominant leadership styles.
These styles are discussed briey below.
• Telling: Leaders tell their subordinates what to do and how to com-
plete a task. During this stage the leader has an opportunity to build
relationships with subordinates and create an atmosphere for trust
to develop.
• Selling: Leaders still provide information and direction, however,
there is more communication with the follower. Leaders work to get
followers on board. This stage presents the opportunity for managers
to begin demonstrating leadership competence and developing trust.
• Participating: The leader works with the team and shares decision-
making responsibilities. The leader focuses more on the relationship
with the worker.
• Delegating: Leaders pass on many of the responsibilities to the subor-
dinates. The leader assumes the role of monitoring progress and has
less involvement in making decisions. During this stage the leader
has an opportunity to demonstrate trust in the worker which can
solidify the trust developed during previous interactions. The leader
has an opportunity to demonstrate trust in subordinates that has
developed and been nurtured during the rst three stages.
The situational leadership style is optimal for building trust through
use of the telling, selling, and participating styles and reinforcing trust
through use of the delegating leadership style.
8.13.2 Servant leadership
A servant leader demonstrates value for everyone’s contribution to the
decision-making and problem-solving processes and often seeks out
the opinion of others. Servant leaders are completely devoted to serv-
ing theneeds of the organization and the people they lead. A recognized
strength of this leadership style is that it steers a manager away from tak-
ing on a self-serving attitude. Some characteristics of a servant leader are
listed below.
• Values diversity in decision making
• Skilled in the development of others; deeply committed to professional
and personal growth of others
103Chapter eight: Tactics for building and maintaining trust
• Cultivates trusting cultures
• Helps people with issues
• Encourages others to excel and succeed
• Listens attentively; committed to listening to others; listens recep-
tively to what is being communicated
• Thinks strategically and long term
• Acts with humility
• Thinks of others as opposed to himself
• Sells ideas as opposed to telling; relies on his or her persuasive
ability to build consensus within groups
The servant leader style, practices, and philosophies place a leader
in a good position to build and maintain trusting relationships because
the primary focus is on others as opposed to him or herself. The servant
leader shares information and power, puts the needs of others rst, and
focuses on helping people develop and perform to their highest capacity.
8.13.3 The micro leader
A micro leader is a leadership style where a manager closely observes and
controls the work of subordinates to the point of stiing organizational
growth. Most people who have been in the workforce for any length of time
have been exposed to a micro leader. These leaders are often recognized
quickly by the people they manage. Managers with this style of leadership
can shake your condence in your own abilities and create a co-dependent
workforce. Once worker condence is shaken, the worker generally becomes
timid and afraid to move forward without guidance. These leaders are
known by their peers and subordinates as “power hungry” with the need to
control everything and everyone. The micro leaders tend to have a problem
trusting people and people tend to have an issue with trusting micro lead-
ers. Signs and characteristics of a micro leader are listed below.
• Resists or is unable to delegate
• Corrects tiny details as opposed to looking at the big picture
• Discourages others from making decisions without consulting him
or her
• Overly involves him or herself in overseeing the projects of others
• Places the worker under a microscope
• Requires subordinates to always consult with him or her before
making a decision
• Makes all decisions without considering input from others
• Has all of the answers and is never wrong
• Does not allow subordinates to have autonomy to complete their
work
104 Culture and trust in technology-driven organizations
Competent and effective managers set up those around them to
succeed. Micro leaders, on the other hand, prevent employees from
making decisions and taking responsibility for their decisions. People
tend to grow when they are allowed to make decisions and deal with
the consequences of those decisions. Micro leaders restrict the ability of
people to grow and limit what the organization can achieve inasmuch
as every decision must be funneled through the manager. In addition
to creating stress and discontent among employees, the micro leader’s
style inhibits employee development, effective relationship building,
and building trust.
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