Get yourself ready because America is going to roar back. Unemployment is beginning to drop, we have vaccines getting distributed, and as usual, Americans will get the job done. In short, that’s just who we are, and no matter the challenges, we always get it together. If you own a business or want to start one, now’s the time to do it and hone your business leadership skills.
As we know, things have changed significantly since 2019 (e.g., remote working, increased artificial intelligence, etc.). And now that the situation is settling, there’s a chance for business leaders to maximize their opportunities. In other words, while others consider their next steps, you could set yourself up for explosive growth. Remember, during every challenge and downturn, competition closes the unprepared businesses, unfortunately. But, it also offers leaders new opportunities and ways of doing business.
With that bullishness front and center, nevertheless, trust issues exist by workers. Let’s face it, the pandemic shook everyone to the core, and our country shed millions of jobs. Unfortunately, many of those jobs won’t return, and if they do, they’re different. For those workers lucky enough to hold onto their jobs, chances are they experienced cuts in income. However, faced with no work and lesser pay, workers stepped up to help business leaders keep things going. Quite frankly, it was a moment where (when possible) business leaders teamed with workers to rise together.
Increasing the Trust With Teams By Developing Two Skills
As any business leader knows, research demonstrates that when teams are engaged, they have higher performance levels. Of course, that makes sense. But, we have to dig just a bit deeper. As with any relationship, if you want a good one, trust needs to be at the core of it. In 2020, the Edelman Trust Barometer revealed that if business leaders had the following two skills, it increased trust.
1. Business Leadership Based on Competence
The first skill that leaders had to demonstrate was competence. That should be obvious, but sometimes leaders don’t recognize that they too have to perform. When there was so much confusion at the start of the pandemic, it was a moment for business leaders to rise, no matter how tough it was to do it.
Candidly, in those early days of the pandemic, I had no idea at one point if our company, the nation’s largest social enterprise in that particular niche, would survive. However, I decided early to demonstrate competence at dealing with something I never experienced, nor any living business leader, with candidness and transparency.
In other words, as decisions happened, I took the time to explain my rationale and thinking. Remember, when things are uncertain, teams will look to leadership to guide the way. Even if it’s something that the company never experienced, you’ll go a long way toward trust-building to demonstrate knowledge about the decisions you make and why. The best way to guide yourself is to lean into the data as much as possible. Data is straightforward and helps others understand the basis of your decisions.
2. Ethics Remains an Essential Skill for Today
Sure, it may sound dated, but ethics matters. If you want to demonstrate to your team that you’re someone who warrants their trust, you have to do what’s right and ethical. Unfortunately, ethics could sometimes seem as if it’s short supply. During times of economic stress, in particular, there’s always going to be someone out there looking to make a quick buck.
For example, during the pandemic, we’ve seen fake N95 masks get confiscated and sites offering phony job offers by enticing people to subscribe to their databases. After plowing in money, unemployed people soon discovered they could find job listings with a free search. In short, ethical behavior matters, and it never goes out of style. However, although ethics is constant, and it could expand and change.
During a pandemic, for instance, an extreme situation, one could argue that ethics changes. The most straightforward example is to think of the medical community. During regular times, a local clinic sees patients more or less on a first-come-first-serve basis. However, the extremities caused by a pandemic, contagion, and illness could make it ethically reasonable to change it up and treat patients on sickest first, even if they just came through the door.
So as you could see, the idea of ethics should be consistent for all business leaders. But depending on high-stress situations, the concept of exemplary ethical behavior is flexible enough to conform to a given moment. Moreover, ethics gets demonstrated with transparency, accountability, and good communication between teams and business leadership. Also, ethics means that leaders need to ensure that when things go wrong, they seek explanations and don’t seek to blame.
Leaders Need Their Teams
In sum, we’re moving into a time of great opportunity for business leadership that’s ready to strike. But, it also requires great people to work along with side leaders. After a tumultuous time, remaining mindful about trust skills will only help you, as a leader, achieve greater levels of success.
© 2021 Wayne Elsey. All Rights Reserved.