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June 2005

More Trust, Better Communication Solve Workplace Problems

At first, my colleague’s statement sounds simplistic.  Yet it reflects a powerful perspective on solving organizational problems. 

We were discussing problems you find in many organizations—low productivity, poor quality, high turnover.  And then, my colleague said:

“If you improve trust and communication in an organization, most other problems take care of themselves.”

You probably already know that I believe trust is the foundation of leadership, of an effective team, of a Responsibility-Based Culture, of a profitable organization.  

As I’ve said before, if people don’t trust you as a leader, they won’t work as hard, they won’t be as engaged in their work.

I’ve also said that I believe communication is essential in a team or organization, or in any relationship for that matter.  We must communicate if we want to be effective leaders.

So my colleague had hit upon two concepts that I consider very important.  But what I want to explore now is the RELATIONSHIP between trust and communication. 

They go together because if you improve trust, you automatically improve communication.  Let’s look at why this is so.

As you may know from my work helping organizations create a Responsibility-Based Culture, I believe that Trust is comprised of four elements:  Congruence, Openness, Acceptance, and Reliability. 

Each element has two behaviors that build that element, and because I want to focus on Openness, let’s discuss the two behaviors that build Openness:  Receptivity and Disclosure.

Receptivity means that I’m receptive to opposing opinions, to new ideas, new ways of doing things.  Because I’m receptive, and willing to give those ideas a fair hearing, I don’t dismiss those opinions or ideas outright. 

If I’m receptive, you’re more likely to feel comfortable in expressing your ideas, and more important, your true feelings about a particular issue—information I need to make sound decisions.

Disclosure, the other behavior that builds Openness, means that I don’t have hidden agendas, that I express my true feelings about an issue, that I explain my intent for doing something or for requesting information from you.  It also means that I share information freely. 

Notice how “sharing information freely” is different from a lot of organizations, where leaders hoard information as if they were playing Texas Hold ‘Em. 

But the workplace isn’t a poker game, even though some organizations operate by the misguided belief that “information is power,” that the more information you keep, the more powerful you are. 

Actually, the opposite is true:  You have a greater, more positive impact on people, and on productivity and profitability, by sharing information freely.

How does this concept of Openness, of displaying Receptivity and Disclosure, affect communication?  First, Disclosure requires me to communicate this information in some way. 

It means that I as a leader must communicate, so that you have the information you need to do your job. 

Second, by demonstrating Openness, I’m encouraging you, as an individual, to exhibit the same Openness, the same Receptivity and Disclosure. 

When you see that my expectations of you are clear, that you can give me honest feedback without the fear of retaliation or ridicule, you’re more likely to communicate openly with me.

And if others see this behavior in us, they are bound to be more open as well; they’ll be more likely to show Receptivity to new ideas and differing opinions, more likely to disclose their feelings, motives, and aspirations.

So, more Trust, especially when it comes to Openness, will automatically promote more, and better, communication. 

OK, maybe it won’t solve all problems.  You’ll still have the malcontents who are never around when you need them to do something, but otherwise seem always to be at the water cooler. 

But more Trust and better Communication make most other problems just a little easier to solve.  I’m sure my colleague would agree.

What are you doing to build Trust?  How are you displaying Openness?  How well do you exhibit the Receptivity and Disclosure that tell others you’re worthy of their Trust?

Until next edition, keep leading the way!

Copyright (C) 2005 by Terry Wall

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