The foundation of all accumulated knowledge on the topic of Trust in Business Relationships is the need for an acceptable level of mutual Trust between the business and all external and internal stakeholders – customers, prospects, shareholders, distributors, suppliers, and very importantly, employees.
The need for mutual Trust cannot be overstated.
To create a Culture of Trust with employees, it is necessary for employers to treat employees the way they want employees to treat their prospects and customers. Employees who are not trusted by their employer will never be able to create a trusting environment with the employer’s prospects and customers.
The latest Edelman Trust Barometer contained several disturbing statistics on the level of Trust involving Australian business.
Despite the traditional distrust Australians have of our governments (53% of Australian consumers said they trusted government to do the right thing), a significantly lower percentage (39% according to Edelman ) said they trusted business to do what is right.
Most disturbingly, Australian consumers’ distrust of business includes the business they work for.
Whenever I raise the topic of employee trust with business proprietors, or senior management of corporates, the response invariably is limited to the extent employees are trusted, and the issue of employees trusting their employer, even after prompting, has rarely been considered, let alone measured and reported. When confronted by the question, it is not unusual for the employer to be annoyed by the need to even acknowledge or address the issue.
Once the GFC induced slowdown in demand for employee numbers passes, and the impending retirement surge of baby boomers hits, employers will need to recommit to those suspended Employer of Choice initiatives. First-mover advantage awaits the insightful employer.
The most advantaged employers will be those who also embrace the new KPI as an “Employer of Trust”.
