Ted Bruccoleri
Glenn Krauser
Cathy Lange
Karla Leavelle
Volume 3, Issue 11, November  2015 
ONE SOURCE Serving all your human capital needs
Trust - The Life Breath
 of a Healthy Team 
    
The great comedian and late night TV legend, Johnny Carson, launched his career in the mid 50s with a quiz show called "Who Do You Trust?" Interestingly, a twist on this title should be something on the minds of all organization leaders....Who Trusts You?

Trust for organizations is a very big deal these days for numerous reasons - trust with customers, with members, with peers and team members, with employees, in fact, with all constituencies.

Warren Buffett put it this way: "Trust is like the air we breathe. When it's present, nobody really notices. But when it's absent, everybody notices."

An organization's corporate culture of trust is considered central to almost any successful enterprise, be it businesses, schools, sports teams, charities or the media. That trust must extend from the CEO through the senior management team, to all employees and ultimately to business partners and customers.

A good contemporary example is Netflix which is said to have breached its trust with customers. In 2011 it abruptly changed its pricing scheme. In two months, the company lost a million more subscribers than it anticipated. The stock plunged 14 percent.

The Buck Starts Here

A culture of trust must start somewhere. Not surprisingly, that somewhere is the CEO's office. And before that trust is recognized and embraced by customers, it must first flourish among senior management who then disseminate it throughout the organization.

Today we'll focus on the fundamentals of trust.

What You Can Do to Build the Culture of Trust

According to Human Capital Advisors Partner Glenn Krauser, there are several elements or pillars of trust in organizations. Three important ones are honesty, consistency and communication.

Those pillars or building blocks of trust are developed and reinforced by organizational and individual behaviors. The CEO or Executive Director must be the role model in creating and living these behaviors and attitudes which include, but are not limited to, the following:

Organization
  • Establish clearly articulated mission and values which are 'lived' by all team members.
  • Share the strategy and goals with all team members starting with the senior management team and flowing down to every employee.
  • Communicate with clarity and aim for full disclosure. Establish channels of communication, be it periodic meetings, written correspondence or regular internal news briefs. Town hall type sessions with the top leader can be a very impactful way of creating and maintaining that trust.
Personal Operating Style
  • Know yourself. Take a hard look at how you are behaving and think about how it impacts how others view you and your organization.
  • Walk the talk. Be a role model.
  • Be consistent. Think before you act so that you are sending a message about how things are done. People feel comfortable and safe when they understand and trust the rules.
  • Don't play favorites. Having special relationships, or even friendships with subordinates, is very common in any organization but don't allow that to create a situation that undermines the fairness you are trying to maintain.
  • Accept criticism even if it isn't delivered in the most diplomatic way. Don't be defensive.
  • Manage your emotions so people are comfortable to voice their feelings and opinions.
  • Encourage openness. Listen to new ideas and new ways of doing things, even if contrary to your closely held beliefs and experience.
Walk the talk. People feel comfortable and safe when they understand and trust the rules.

Communication Style and Substance
  • Be direct and don't "mince" words.
  • Leaders, of course, have to be mindful not to share sensitive or confidential information, but disclose as fully as possible.
  • Deliver on your promises and commitments so under promise and over deliver.
  • Communicate frequently - personal is best but use the written word effectively too.
  • Deal with bad news and problems directly and as candidly as possible.
  • Admit your mistakes.
Dealing with People Individually
  • Treat everyone with dignity and respect.
  • Listen actively and be empathetic.
  • Work hard to connect on a personal/emotional  level with people.
  • Fully focus on the people with whom you are connecting.
There is an old expression that you can really judge a person by how they behave in tough or unfavorable times. So, too, can you judge an organization. Have your team attuned to dealing with adversity in the same way as they deal with success.

There is a lot to consider, but when you focus on the importance of trust in your organization, you will continuously build that trust with your broader constituents as well. And that will go a long way to building a high performing team.

Never forget - trust is precious, easy to lose and very hard to regain. So building and maintaining it is a tall order and one that should be always paramount in every team member's priorities.

We end with this caution from German philosopher Friedrich Nietszche - "I'm not upset that you lied to me. I'm upset that from now on I can't believe you."

Never forget - trust is precious, easy to lose and very hard to regain. 
 
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BOOK OF THE MONTH

pile_of_old_books.jpg

Beginning with this issue of The Human Capital Advisor, we will recommend a noted book expanding on the topc presented. This month, Stephen M.R. Covey's Speed of Trust is such a recommendation. With over 1,000,000 sold, Covey provides leaders with an in-depth look at the key elements of trust and how it reaches and impacts all constituencies.

For a book review, please click below.
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CEO/Executive Director Roundtable
 for
Nonprofit Organizations

Tuesday, December 15
12 noon ~ 2pm

Hosted by Human Capital Advisors
and
Gelman, Rosenberg & Freedman CPAs

4550 Montgomery Avenue Ste 650N
Bethesda, MD 
(2 blocks from
Bethesda Metro)
RSVP to Moderator John Hrastar, HCA CEO 
Advisor
703-579-6800 x800

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Contributing to this newsletter.....    

Glenn Krauser
HCA Partner & Practice Leader, Talent Acquisition
As leader of HCA's Talent Acquisition practice, Glenn's team delivers a full suite of retained search services. He also provides clients with a full complement of human capital services, including strategy, performance management and assessment, organizational structure and team effectiveness. Glenn serves as a thought leader and partner to several client CEOs and senior management teams. Prior to joining HCA, he served in senior level human resource roles at AT&T Solutions and comScore, Inc and before that with Arthur Andersen and Coopers. Glenn holds a BS in commerce from the University of Virginia.


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Sarah Happel 
HCA Business Advisor
Sarah provides a range of leadership development programs and executive coaching services for both senior and emerging leaders. For over 15 years as an entrepreneur and thought leader, she has worked with global businesses in five languages, creating leadership and global mobility programs for organizations such as PwC, VW and the World Bank. Sarah helps leaders and executive teams determine winning strategies. Known for spearheading thought-provoking cohorts which spark personal and professional transformation, she oversees leadership certification programs throughout the DC area. Accredited by the International Coach Federation and Georgetown University's acclaimed leadership coaching program, Sarah holds a masters in communication from Kansas State and has taught human communication at the college level. A recipient of the prestigious Fulbright grant, Sarah also serves as board advisor for the International Monetary Fund Family.


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What is your organization's most pressing human capital issue? Give us your ideas and comments on current articles and future topics.

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