People Just Can’t Be Trusted!

Power Idea by Laura Dillingham, Executive Strategic Partner of HPISolutions

The world of work is changing and it’s going to continue to change. Do you have a hard time with people working a hybrid schedule or remotely? Are they getting the work done and meeting the goals? Do you feel uncomfortable if you can’t physically monitor them? Do you try to reach them and can’t? There are answers to all these concerns.

I have learned from working with leaders that they know their team. I use an activity when I coach. I ask the person to write down the names of their employees. Then I tell them I am going to take one person away at a time. I then ask them to put them in the order they are going to give them to me. Do you think they give me their best person first, second, third or even fourth? The leader has just ranked their staff.

How do leaders rank their team? Well, it’s really pretty simple. Some of the criteria they use may be:

• Who has good communication skills
• Who meets the goals and objectives
• Who works smarter, plans, and uses time management
• Who does what they say they’re going to do; they can be counted on every time
• Who is a strong team player, partners and works well with others
• Who steps up when there are issues to try to resolve them
• Who steps up to help others to ensure the work gets done and deadlines are met
• Who makes good decisions
• Who is dependable, consistent, and trustworthy

A good rule of thumb is past behavior is a good indicator of future behavior. If the employee has consistently met all the criteria above, what would make you think they won’t continue to do that in the future? The bigger question is if you don’t trust someone why are they still working for you?

There are steps you can take to build a hybrid and a remote culture. These are just a few:

1. Create an exceptional onboarding process; be explicit about your work policy
2. Communicate the vision, mission, and goals clearly
3. Prioritize meaningful work; set clear goals, objectives, and due dates
4. Specifically define how you work together
5. Schedule face time using current technology
6. Set a foundation built on trust and psychological safety
7. Always assume best intent

Allowing your employees to thrive and reach their full potential is a way to build trust while strengthening organizational culture. Your organization may also need to establish a new strategy that fosters collaboration, equity, and visibility.

Have a great week!

Laura