The Human Margin: Building the Foundations of Trust is a book written by Katherine A. Meese, PhD, and me. Why did we author this book? The research studied by Dr. Meese shows the significant impact trust has on organizational performance. When trust is high, there is better employee retention. Better employee retention leads to better results across the board.
As Dr. Meese and I have presented on this topic, it is gratifying to show organizations that they have in place a way to measure trust. This caught my attention recently when I saw some posts on social media on this subject. They were from companies offering a product to measure trust and from others wishing there were one. You may already have such a measurement: an employee engagement survey.
In our work, we have found there are three questions on the typical employee engagement survey that provide the most direct connection to trust. We call this the “Trust Trilogy.” Here are the three questions, each with a brief explanation.
Is the information received from top leaders (the organization) open and honest? In no way am I suggesting senior leaders provide information that is not open and honest. The key is how well the information is shared and explained. It is normal for an email from the CEO to have an open rate of less than 50 percent. This is why the cascading of the material is key. As explained in The Human Margin, mid-level managers need to be able to cascade information with clear and consistent messaging, in the right sequence, and with the right timing.
The next survey question is, Do you feel you have organizational support? This often comes down to resources like staffing and equipment. People are likely to remember those moments when they feel they did not have enough staff or there were issues with equipment or technology. This is why consistent communication is important. The question to ask is, “Do you have what you need to do your job today?” Usually, the answer is yes. If the answer is no, it hopefully leads to learning why the person feels that way, a good explanation of the situation, and, many times, help in solving the issue.
The third question in the trust trilogy is, Does the organization care about your well-being? This calls to mind items like health benefits, including the EAP. Often hourly employees are not aware of the cost of providing these items. When they find out the dollar amount, they are surprised. Environmental items like safety around the workplace impact responses to this question. Another factor that ties in is whether the organization invests in a person’s skill and career development. Research shows that individuals who receive skill development are less likely to leave to work somewhere else. When I facilitate educational sessions, I share that it is great to be with an organization that invests in skill development. There is a connection between this investment and the feeling that the organization cares about one’s well-being.
Before you spend time and money looking for ways to measure trust, don’t underestimate your engagement survey. Send it out to employees, examine the results, and act on them. Working to measure and build trust is one of the most powerful investments you can make.
