“TRUST” The underlying support
- June 17th, 2021
- Posted in Management Practices
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TRUST is the underlying support for sustained high levels of employee engagement and retention.
Whether we choose to trust a product or a service and the organizations that provide these or trust in a relationship, personal or professional,
TRUST is the basis for commitment
In the employer/employee relationship, this commitment translates into pro-active work behaviors that benefit the organization and all its stakeholders, which includes employees themselves, customers, and other stakeholders.
We label these pro-active work behaviors as indicating “Employee Engagement”
High turnover is a negative outcome in organizations where trust and ethical behavior are seen as lacking or on the decline. There is no positive correlation between high turnover and high employee engagement and productivity.
Here are results of two surveys, with slightly different goals and focuses that look at the impact of trust in organizations.
The first survey focuses on the behaviors that impact the development or destruction of trust amongst and between various interacting groups. The second survey looks at the effects of declining levels of trust on turnover and specific employee behaviors at work.
A Survey of Trust in the Workplace by Paul Bernthal, Ph.D was done in the mid 1990s. This survey examined trust levels amongst 4 groups, peers, leaders, other teams, and senior Management in 57 organizations. The full survey details may be accessed using this link Survey of Trust in the Workplace, Dr. Paul Bernthal
Just about half of respondents expressed the belief that trust was an issue in their organizations.
The results also indicated that demographics such as position in the organization, tenure, even industry and company size did not affect ratings significantly or consistently.
Some of Dr. Bernthal’s findings are as follows:
- Trust in senior management tended to be the lowest vs. trust of other leaders, peers and other teams.
- The level of trust in senior management stood as a predictor of the general perception of trust in the organization as a whole.
- Those who were seen as trusted leaders were seen as demonstrating behaviors such as consistency, dependability/reliability, support during risk taking, and keeping direct reports’ best interests in mind.
- “Trust Building” and “Trust Reducing” behaviors were identified however, *there was more universal agreement on “Trust Building” behaviors.
THE TOP 5 BEHAVIORS THAT BUILD “TRUST *
It is interesting to note the differences in ratings depending on who is doing the rating and who they were rating amongst Leaders, Peers, or Direct Reports
- Communicates with me openly & honestly, without distorting any information. Consistency in words and actions – # 1 trust builder (Most important from leaders)
- Shows confidence in my abilities by treating me as skilled, competent associate. (Most important from leaders)
- Keeps promises and commitments (Most important from direct reports)
- Listens to & values what I say, even though he/she may not agree. (Most important from peers)
- Cooperates with me and looks for way in which we can help each other. (Most important from direct reports, peers)
THE TOP 5 BEHAVIORS THAT REDUCE “TRUST”
Again there are differences in ratings depending on who is doing the rating and who they were rating amongst Leaders, Peers, or Direct Reports.
There was not as much agreement on the behaviors that reduce trust.
- Acts more concerned about his/her own welfare than anything else. (Most damaging in leaders)
- Sends mixed messages, I never know where he or she stands. (Most damaging in leaders)
- Avoids taking responsibility for action (“passes the buck” or “drops the ball”) (Most damaging in direct reports)
- Jumps to conclusions without checking the facts.
- Makes excuses or blames others when things don’t work (finger-pointing,) (Most damaging in direct reports)
In 2010 Deloitte conducted a survey titled “Ethics and Workplace Survey: Trust in the Workplace.” Previous versions of this survey had focused on Work-Life Fit, Ethical Behavior and the impact of leadership transparency on productivity. This survey focused on the impact of Trust in the workplace in addition to areas reviewed in previous surveys which also impact trust. The full survey can be found by clicking on this link 2010 Ethics and Workplace Survey: Trust in the Workplace.
A summary of the salient points relative to employee trust in their employer:
The survey found that the recession that began in 2007-2008 has diminished “two important forms of business currency—trust and ethics.”
- 48% of employees who plan to look for a new job when the economy shows signs of stability will do so because of loss of trust in their employer. This loss of trust is directly related to how business and operational decisions were handled over the last two years, E.g. lack of transparent leadership communication.
- Executives seem to concur and believe that trust (65%) and transparency (48%) will be leading factors in voluntary turnover as the economy recovers.
- Fairness is another factor that will drive turnover. 40% employees feel that they have been treated unfairly and that they have been victims of unethical behavior.
- 39% of Executives also believe this is true.
I don’t think it would be a stretch to assume that these folks with one foot out the door are not exhibiting high levels of commitment or engagement in their current roles and productivity and creativity are suffering.
The responses to this question in the Deloitte survey clearly shows that trust between employer and employee is valued regardless of role in the organization and is acknowledged as having a positive impact in several critical areas.
Responses were separated for Employees and Executives
Question: Of the following items, which do you believe are the most positively affected when an employee trusts his or her employer?
Morale
55% Employees 46% Executives
Teambuilding and collaboration
39% Employees 29% Executives
Productivity and Profitability
36% Employees 66% Executives
Ethical decisions
35% Employees 16% Executives
Willingness to stay with the company
32% Employees 43% Executives
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