Trust is one of those difficult to measure yet highly important factors in creating great companies. I’ve been doing a little research about it in the business literature, and keep coming back to the work of Stephen M. R. Covey – the author of The Speed of Trust: The One Thing That Changes Everything.
Covey emphasizes character and competence as the keys to trust. Okay, that makes sense, but you can’t stop there . Like integrity it is a fine ideal, but when does the rubber meet the road? How do you demonstrate it? What is the behavior associated with the value?
I pulled the following checklist from an article Covey wrote in 2009:*
13 Behaviors of High-Trust Leaders Worldwide
1. Talk Straight
2. Demonstrate Respect
3. Create Transparency
4. Right Wrongs
5. Show Loyalty
6. Deliver Results
7. Get Better
8. Confront Reality
9. Clarify Expectation
10. Practice Accountability
11. Listen First
12. Keep Commitments
13. Extend Trust
I would add one more – communicate well, communicate often. When you get to the point where you feel like you must have told everyone 3 times, ask someone randomly in the hall what their understanding is of your last communication. If they don’t have it, talk about it one more time.
You’ve got a quarters’ worth of weekly focus items in the list above. Share it with your senior team and ask them all to share it with their teams. Let’s get everyone aligned around the behaviors.
As Covey says, high trust companies outperform low trust companies by 300%. Go get those results!
*How the Best Leaders Build Trust by Stephen M. R. Covey, www.LeadershipNow.com
illustration courtesy of facilitators.franklincoveyphilippines.com