Is a Lack of Trust Driving Away Your Success? As a leader, your priorities are vast. However, nothing takes a higher priority than building trust in your team and organization. Without trust, you get high turnover, reduced performance and revenue, and a lot of stress. With trust and a good plan, your firm can flourish. Trusted Colleagues In working with organizations, my horses repeatedly show that people move toward trust and away from fear. Horses are masters at reading energy and can find the truth of an organization no matter what the corporate mission statement says. To horses, a lack of trust indicates a source of fear and triggers a flight, fight or freeze response. The same is true for individuals working in an organization lacking trust. Your employees may not be “running away” in an obvious manner, but research has shown that a brain under stress is unable to recall and process information as quickly as it can in a more relaxed state. Our flight/flight/freeze response is instinctive and deep. Once triggered, it can wreak havoc if left unaddressed. Several of my high performer clients left key positions because of a lack of trust at their former organizations. One was in charge of a $100 million mission critical project, another led international efforts for a prestigious law firm, and another directed legacy projects for a government contractor. In all cases, the firms were surprised by these resignations and the effects of the departures were devastating. As a leader, you must address the source of fear and replace it with trust. Especially in times of uncertainty and change. Break down defenses through authentic dialogue and develop a clear plan to move forward. Trust yourself and trust your people to work the plan. You don’t have to have all the answers, but you do need to communicate and take charge. Here are five tips to boost trust in your organization: Share the broader vision – Clarify where the firm is headed and explain how each team contributes to the overall mission and vision. Roll this out to the individual level so each knows the importance of his or her specific role. Empower – Know the strengths of your team and use them. If you don’t know the strengths, use an assessment tool like Strengthfinders. Communicate regularly to build engagement. Connect in person or through webcasts if staff is nonlocal. Be frank and honest about the status and progress of efforts. People know the difference between a canned response from corporate and heartfelt communication. A canned response cannot be trusted. Always do what you say you’re going to do or explain why you pursued something different. Listen – Encourage feedback and ideas and listen carefully. Acknowledge and track feedback even if it results in no action. People like to be heard. Provide mechanisms to brainstorm new ideas in fun and creative ways. Tom and David Kelley’s Creative Confidence provides fantastic approaches. Recognize and appreciate your colleagues and staff. One of the biggest mistakes a leader can make is to forget to express appreciation. Bonus generously if possible, and be sure to always give credit to teams and individuals for superior efforts and to those working hard in the trenches. A simple “thank-you” from a leader goes a long way. Look for and acknowledge the “good” and you will get more “good.” Our worlds are shaped by our focus. Building trust is a process and takes time. There is no fast track. Enlist the help of your most trusted colleagues and consider support from a coach or consultant to help you maintain objectivity, listen and see the truth. The rewards are priceless – the trust of others and a thriving organization. Founder of Jaeger2, Strategies for Success, Shari J. Goodwin is a strategist, executive coach, author, speaker, and life-long horsewoman and dog-lover. She helps leaders navigate change with confidence, build trust and achieve the impact and results they desire. She can be reached at www.jaeger2.com.

You have an exciting work environment...people are running around like crazy, lots of energy and enthusiasm all over the place, and everyone is having a great time...except for one employee who doesn’t “get into that”. This employee is sitting at the desk, quietly doing his/her work. And you notice when you are in meetings, this employee rarely speaks up. Do you see them as a hindrance to your organization? Hopefully not!

Many of us in the DC metro area experience the stress of dealing with the daily traffic congestion and long commutes in order to get to work on time, and I don't even need to describe what happens during a snowfall. Due to these stresses we face as well as the increasing number of millennials in the workforce, many employers are looking more seriously at telework options. This is an area gaining in popularity for various businesses and industries, and its usage is expected to grow. With the new technologies available to us, working from home is becoming a more viable alternative without the risk of employees losing touch with their employer and customers. Some employers do not realize there are also cost effective reasons for initiating a telework program. Listed below are four cost effective reasons for considering a telework program in your organization.

As a consultant, I often go to organizations and provide advice and counsel to leaders at varying levels in the organization. For a good number of clients, that advice is at the management level and higher, and I don’t have regular communication with non-supervisory employees. So while visiting a client site a few days ago, I was in the break room getting something to drink, and happened to strike up a conversation with an [non-supervisory] employee about the political primary. We held a pretty robust conversation for a few minutes, and near the end, he looked at me and said, “Who ARE you”? It caught me off guard, and frankly I found it quite amusing. But in thinking back about the conversation, I realized that this is a question that people struggle with all of the time. So it got me thinking about human communication, and what we are REALLY saying when we communicate.

The Cultural Problems of Reclassifying Exempt Employees to Non-Exempt under FLSA In June 2015, the Department of Labor (DOL) proposed a key change to the provisions for determining exemption from overtime by raising the minimum standard level for salaried workers from $455 per week ($23,660 per year) to $970 per week ($50,440 annually). While the rule is not yet final and is not expected to be in place until 2016, organizations all over the US are preparing for the impact, both financially and culturally. Many times the latter is overlooked.

We’ve all been there... You filled out your annual self-evaluation. Your manager reviewed it. Your manager reviewed your performance and sent their review and your self-review to your second level manager for review and approval. You have a meeting with your manager to review the appraisal. You sign off on the appraisal. Your manager signs off on your sign off. Your second level manager signs off and finalizes the appraisal.