The 4 Pillars of Trustworthy Leadership
The recent kerfuffle involving the resignation of the Governor General of Canada, after a disastrous report on the toxic work environment she allegedly created, inspired me to write this post. Why is it that in 2021, despite the multitude of excellent books, articles, TED talks and social media publications, there are still managers and executives who mistakenly believe that leadership is a matter of title or hierarchy? The result: distrustful organizational cultures; heavy, unhealthy or downright toxic work climates; teams that work in the same place but not necessarily together; high turnover, absenteeism or burnout rates; unmotivated employees; short-term results only, etc.
So what makes a good leader? This topic has already been discussed so extensively that I will not go into a new list of skills and qualities here. I will simply list the six elements that I think are the most important:
Vision - A good leader has a vision. He doesn't wait for it to be whispered in his ear. And when he has one, he communicates it to his teams and inspires - rather than dictates - them to embrace it and make it happen.
Motivation - A leader motivates and mobilizes his troops. Rather than positioning himself as a star, he aims to make others shine by building on their strengths and motivating them to develop their full potential. Also, instead of focusing on tasks or processes, a good leader focuses on people.
Leadership - A good leader provides direction and guidance to his or her team. Leading is not an honorary role linked to a title, which confers power over others. It is about making decisions, while listening to the ideas and advice of others. It's about knowing when it's time to step up to the plate, to lead by example or to lend a hand. It's also about knowing when it's time to step back and let others take the initiative. And it's not about micromanaging. Micromanagement kills creativity and initiative.
Service - A leader is at the service of his team, not the other way around. It's up to him to take care of his employees, to provide them with the support and tools they need to succeed in their work, to steer them in the right direction. It is also his responsibility to recognize their efforts and achievements.
Empathy - Knowing how to put oneself in the place of others is one of the essential qualities of a good leader. Understanding employees' concerns, helping them find solutions to their problems, taking an interest in their well-being, their lives, who they are: empathy is a proof of emotional intelligence and a great strength. It inspires, helps build relationships, builds trust and ultimately leads to team success and lasting results.
Trust - Finally, a good leader trusts his or her co-workers. With this trust, people feel valued, will give their best and give free rein to their creativity. This works much better than mistrust or micromanagement. A climate of trust is also essential to a team spirit, where people will work together towards a common goal. The leader who creates a climate of trust will in turn attract the trust of his team members.
This last point deserves attention, in my opinion, because when employees do not trust their manager or leader, the risk to the organization and its performance is enormous.
While many organizations are pushing their managers to take leadership or communication training, I would be willing to bet that virtually none of them offer confidence training. Yet trust is directly linked to certain HR performance indicators, such as workplace engagement, commitment and retention.
Organizations that don't know how to create and maintain a culture of trust end up with a cynical work climate, where employees openly distrust their leaders, who feel threatened by this attitude, establish a management style based on control and monitoring. In such work environments, political games, withholding of information and finding blame in a crisis reign supreme.
According to a 2014 study by the University of Bath, England, trustworthy leadership is based on four elements:
Putting relationships at the heart. Trust is born out of relationships. A good leader puts trust at the heart of his priorities. He doesn't isolate himself in his ivory tower but takes the time to build relationships with his teams, to get to know the people around him. He also allows himself to be discovered by them, so that the relationship is true, human and two-way.
Recognizing and developing uniqueness. People trust their managers when they feel valued by them and recognized in their own individuality. A team is not monochromatic, but is made up of unique individuals, each with his or her talents, skills, knowledge and attributes. A good leader knows how to recognize the strengths of each individual and build on them. He also encourages people to develop continuously and focuses not only on his own needs, but on those of his team.
Enabling mutual responsibility. In a work environment where trust reigns, everyone, regardless of their role in the organization, is responsible for their actions. Thus, a good leader will recognize when he or she is at fault if he or she makes a mistake or a bad decision. Similarly, he or she will give credit for an achievement to the person who made it rather than to himself or herself. This last element is fundamental to earning the respect of his employees. Indeed, who wants a boss who keeps all the flowers for himself but rejects the pots on others... Finally, the notion of co-responsibility, which implies that a part of the responsibility must be passed on to his employees, is essential to build trusting leadership. Making someone accountable indicates trust and allows the person to gain experience, learn from their mistakes and develop their sense of responsibility, as well as their self-confidence. It's a win-win situation!
Engaging with real people. A trustworthy leader is perceived above all as a real person: someone with a personal history, values, personality, qualities and flaws. It’s someone who does not consider that showing his vulnerability or emotions is a weakness, on the contrary. It’s someone who is not ashamed to acknowledge his wrongs, to ask for forgiveness, to say thank you. And it’s someone who is perceived above all as benevolent. When team members feel safe with him, then naturally they will want to make a maximum effort, give their best, stay loyal to the organization and play the team card.
In short, trustworthy leadership is a matter of soft skills rather than hard skills or know-how. The more emotionally intelligent a leader is, the more his employees will want to trust him. It is also important that his intention be perceived as sincere and that his empathy be real. Afterwards, if he is competent in what he does, keeps his promises and respects his commitments, he will hold the keys to trustworthy leadership and, therefore, to a happy, fulfilled team. It's really all so simple...
