Page 213 - Build a Culture of Employee Engagement with the Principles

184 Carrots and Sticks Don’t Work

co-workers provide you with anonymous feedback to the state-
ments above. It’s better to know the truth than operate from an
inaccurate perspective.

Benefits of Trust

Trust impacts an organization’s bottom line in several ways.
As employees experience higher levels of trust, they feel more
respected and have more respect for their supervisor and orga-
nization, which translates into increased discretionary effort and
greater productivity. Employee-supervisor relationships with
high levels of trust also lead to greater creativity and initiative,
as employees feel safe being innovative and taking risks. While
trusting relationships provide an environment that encourages
employees to be innovative, environments characterized by dis-
trust eliminate initiative for risk taking and innovation. Employ-
ees who are micromanaged will rarely go beyond precisely what
is asked of them.
When people trust one another, there is an open sharing of
information and resources. In a culture of distrust, people horde
resources for fear that others might use them to their advantage.
Similarly, employees are more willing to share ideas and col-
laborate when they trust one another and trust that their ideas
will not be belittled, held against them, or stolen. The ques-
tion “Permission to speak freely?” asks whether one may speak
directly without fear of retribution. Naturally, the free sharing of
ideas leads to increased collaboration and better decision mak-
ing. Trusting environments augment improved team function-
ing, productivity, and efficiency. People who trust one another