Five ways to build trust and connection in an unconnected team

Angela Civitella

If you want to build a strong and long-lasting team, trust is essential. Research has shown it takes an average of 89 weeks to execute change within a company — and 39 of those weeks were a direct result of mistrust. This is the cost of lack of trust.

Have you ever experienced a low-trust workplace? Imagine an office with unreliable, inadequate, disloyal, uncommunicative and inconsistent behavior. It’s an environment where no one wants to be and it definitely doesn’t produce or maximize results.

Have you ever experienced a high-trust workplace? Imagine a team working together, helping each other, speaking highly of one another, communicating more often, all while each individual takes ownership of his or here own responsibilities. This is a productive environment. 

Trust is the safe haven where people share their dreams and their struggles to reach their potential individually and as a team.

So, how can you, as the leader, build a high-trust workplace? 

Stats first (you know how I love those): A survey of 33,000 people in 28 countries concluded that one in three people don’t trust their employer. The same survey realized that trust decreases from top positions to the lowest.

Sixty-four percent of executives trust their organizations, while only 51 percent of managers and 48 percent of other staff stated they trust their organizations. Employees remarked that they trust their peers more than the CEO and upper-level executives of their company. That means the higher up you go, the more critical it is for you to build trust with those beneath you.

So, leaders, guess what? Building trust starts with you. It’s time we ask ourselves some questions:

Five Questions That Determine If You’re a Trustworthy Leader

1. Do people constantly question your expectations of your team?

2. Would most people describe you as someone who is reliable?

3. Is there a high amount of gossip and disrespect among your team?

4. Do the majority of your team members underperform at the tasks you ask them to do?

5. Do you trust people to take on new responsibilities?

The Five Elements of TRUST

Transparency (T). Be accountable, state expectations and give feedback. Honesty and communication are key for transparency.

Respect (R) everyone. Do not, I repeat, do not pick and choose.

Unite (U) your team. Gossip and cliques are like cancer. The cure? Trust, and lots of it. Get to building bridges instead of destroying them.

Show (S) that you care. “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” - John C. Maxwell. Smart guy.

Trust-Building Activities (T) build morale. It’s been proven that when someone enjoys the people they work with, they’re happier and are more productive. So, provide trust- building activities. It’s like magic.

My challenge to you is to make an effort every day on building one of the five elements of TRUST. Today, work on being transparent; tomorrow, work on showing others respect; and so on. Keep going until you’ve built a high-trust work environment and more respect in the workplace.

Angela Civitella is an executive, a business leadership coach and the founder of Intinde (www.intinde.com).