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Credibility and Trust
Unfortunately, in the aftermath of the Enron implosion and the attendant flood of accounting and corporate-governance scandals, corporate credibility is viewed with some skepticism. It's no longer enough just to have a great brand, sparkling financial returns, and a charmed chief executive. Now more than ever, integrity and fair play—and the trust and credibility they generate—are the linchpins of corporate reputation.Credibility and trust lets us place confidence in the conduct of others while, at the same time, taking some risk that the expected behavior won't come about. When trustworthiness becomes part of your character, you are able to cultivate trust-building relationships.Research shows that the ethical tone set by senior and lower-level managers is a central factor in shaping employees' overall perceptions of integrity and fairness at work.[7] Employees' perception of the relative level of their firm's reputation leads to performance-enhancing—or, as the case may be, performance-sapping—outcomes within the organization. If the boss leaves work early or calls in sick when he's really not, subordinates are tempted to do so as well. If employees see leaders making personal long-distance phone calls at work and charging them to the company, or padding their expense accounts, then the employees are be more likely to do so, too.One study found that companies seen by their employees to have a high level of honesty and integrity enjoyed an average three-year total shareholder return of 101 percent. For firms perceived to have a low degree of honesty and integrity the three-year total return was merely 69 percent.[8] To improve productivity and teamwork, it's important that employees throughout the organization feel bound together by trust. A trustworthy work climate lets people rely on decisions and actions of coworkers and enables them to be treated with respect and consideration. Trusting relationships between managers and subordinates generate decision-making efficiencies.Apart from the effect trust has on bottom line results like profits, earnings per share, and other factors traditionally thought to determine a company's success, think about other impacts. When trust is low, organizations decay and relationships deteriorate, resulting in politics, infighting, and general inefficiency. As ethical conduct decreases, employee commitment to the organization falters, product quality declines, customers leave, and employee turnover skyrockets. In the 2000 National Business Ethics Survey, more than three-fourths of all employees indicated that their "organization's concern for ethics and doing the right thing" was an important reason for continuing to work there.[9]The powerful gravitational pull of trust holds your organization together. It enables it to stay efficient and productive, and to make profits. Absent credibility and trust, it is exceedingly hard to forecast outcomes of human interaction. Credibility and trust are strong motivators that draw out the best in people. But building them demands time and patience. The National Business Ethics Survey produced a noteworthy finding: When employees see values like honesty, respect, and trust applied frequently in the workplace, they feel less pressure to compromise their own beliefs, observe less misconduct, are more satisfied with their organizations, and feel more valued.[10]
[7]L. K. Trevino, K. D. Butterfield, and D. McCabe, "The Ethical Context in Organizations: Influences on Employee Attitudes and Behaviors." 8(3) Business Ethics Quarterly (1998): 447–476.[8]J. Galvin, "The New Business Ethics," Smart Business Mag.com (June 2000), p. 94.[9]J. Joseph, 2000 National Business Ethics Survey Volume I: How Employees Perceive Ethics at Work (Washington, D.C.: Ethics Resource Center, 2000), p. 67.[10]Ibid., p. 5.
