We believe in a harmonious relationship between manager and employee, one that meets the needs of both parties to maximize production potential and a sense of well-being. As such, we’ve put together a practical guide on building trust and connecting the dots for managers and employees alike.

Section I: Purpose of Our Guide on Building Trust

Our intention is to provide new managers with a tool to help them navigate the people management aspect of their role. This guide is designed to help new and experienced managers navigate through complex employee matters to mitigate risk and foster positive relations.

This guide is not intended to be used as a resource for understanding policies, procedures, or practices unique to the individual organization and is solely intended to be used as a guide on the relational aspects of the manager’s role to help build efficient and engaged teams to produce the best possible outcomes.

Note: Nothing in this document is intended to be nor should it be misconstrued as legal advice. In all employment-related issues, it is important to seek counsel from your HR partner and Legal as necessary.

Introduction

A good manager’s impact on an organization can’t be understated. Managers are the frontline for building engaged and productive teams or for contributing to low-morale and less productive teams. While a good manager who helps employees flourish is critical to the success of the business, they are not built overnight.

According to Gallup, an analytics and advisory company based in Washington D.C., 70% of the variance in team engagement is driven by the manager. Meaning managers have the greatest influence on a team’s engagement and performance.

There is plenty of supporting data on the impact a good manager can make, but there is also data supporting the impact a bad one can make. A SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) survey found that 84% of workers in the U.S. said that bad managers create added work and stress.

As a manager, driving business results is likely top of mind but without understanding how to connect with and motivate people it will be an uphill battle. Manager burnout is often the result of constant conflict resolution and managing interpersonal team dynamics. While it would be misleading to say these people-related issues could be eliminated entirely, they can be greatly decreased by fostering a high-trust culture.

Trust is the cornerstone for highly productive and highly engaged teams. It’s a simple question, do employees trust the manager or who they work for? If so, organizations can expect more productivity for less. If not, an organization’s efficiencies drop and the same results cost more and take longer to achieve.

High-trust workplaces have a clear advantage and have a substantial impact on the bottom line, but they are not easy to build. Many factors can create barriers on the path to building trust in the workplace including:

• Underutilization of skills;
• Unsafe work conditions;
• Lack of job clarity;
• Toxic work environment;
• Negative work culture;
• Limited growth opportunities;
• Lacking support from team and/or manager.

These types of workplace challenges can have lasting ramifications on a culture and take time to repair. As a manager, it’s important to understand the complexities that are unique to the organization and work to rebuild trust.

Section II: Responsible Parties

Manager:

The manager is responsible for creating an environment for employees to be productive without the distractions of interpersonal conflict between peers or the manager. The following responsibilities, while not all-encompassing, represent the key areas expected from the manager:

• Ensure basic needs are being met for employees including pay, benefits, safety, and work-life balance; not all situations related to basic needs are avoidable, but the manager’s role is to guide employees when needs are not being met.
• Understand who the key stakeholders are in the people management process including HR, leadership, and legal (in union environments, labor relations).
• Be aware of people-related policies and consistently apply them across all employees.
• Consider team dynamics in the hiring process.
• Address all concerns promptly with objectivity.
• Play an active role in career development and advocate for employees.

Employee:

The employee is responsible for completing the essential functions of their job and aligning with the values of the organization as it relates to both behavioral-based and performance-based expectations. The employee is expected to:

• Perform all duties required of the job and demonstrate competencies in their role.
• Understand and follow all organizational policies and procedures.
• Bring any concerns to their manager to address; if they are not comfortable going to their manager, they can follow the chain of command or reach out to HR.
• Take accountability for their actions and to demonstrate a willingness to improve when not meeting expectations.

Section III: The Manager and Employee Relationship Model of Trust

Trust:

Trust is the single most important factor in a relationship and is often associated with a strong manager-employee relationship. We have all heard the saying that trust is hard to gain but easy to lose, which is why the manager must understand the causal relationship between the four pillars of trust: Psychological Safety, Development, Transparency, and Confidentiality.

The overlapping relationship between these four pillars and trust is the crux of the people management process. While there will be complexities in the workplace that can present challenges in the manager-employee relationship, trust is the foundation for overcoming them.

Psychological Safety:

Managers must ensure that employees feel safe to be their authentic selves, make mistakes, and voice their concerns. Psychological safety exists when there is no fear of judgment, innovation, and autonomy are valued, and concerns are addressed.

Development:

Organizations typically prioritize growth and development as a key component of their people strategy, but the roots of upward mobility are planted by the manager. Employees feel important to their manager when there are regular conversations about goals.

Transparency:

Managers play a crucial role in the information and feedback loop for the employee. The manager needs to understand the change management process and handle situations appropriately and honestly. Communication is a core competency of the manager role.

Confidentiality:

Managers must have a deep understanding of employee confidentiality and its impact on the manager-employee relationship. This understanding should include knowledge of what constitutes confidentiality in the context of concerns shared.

Section IV: The Four Pillars of Trust

Part 1: Psychological Safety

Psychological safety isn’t the result of one thing, it is the outcome of multiple behaviors and actions being observed consistently and sustained over time. As such, it can be assumed that psychological safety is the reflection of the culture of a department and organization.

In any relationship, we need to feel like we are respected, cared for, and heard, otherwise, we wouldn’t remain in that relationship—it is no different with our workplace. This is why the manager’s influence over their team is the strongest indicator of long-term retention, as well as turnover.

Fortunately, there are steps managers can take to increase psychological safety. While psychological safety can feel like an abstract thought, it is an overall sense of well-being and belonging that is almost tangible to those experiencing it.

When employees can be themselves without fear of judgment and are encouraged to use critical thinking, even if that means going outside of the standard process, it can result in new efficiencies and innovations.

Now, as many managers find out, cultivating this type of environment can feel like a tall task and, the truth is, it can be, but it is achievable through intentionality and consistency. Work environments where employees are enabled to be their best selves produce better, more efficient results and should be a goal all managers strive for.

Much of what fosters psychological safety at work is done so through good management practices such as open communication, active listening, fairness, recognition, and accountability.

Open Communication

Effective communication is a core competency for people managers because it is critical to the operations and success of a department. Employees need to have clear and concise expectations and objectives—essentially, they need to know what the goal is and how to get there.

Communication is the basis for the manager-employee relationship because it is an integral part of all four pillars of trust. Open communication between the manager and employee creates positive team dynamics and encourages employees to speak up, share their thoughts, and contribute in ways that correlate with employee engagement.

All relationships rely on communication and often it is that very thing that can avoid misunderstandings, resentment, and eventual avoidance. For positive team morale, open communication must be encouraged including productive conflict allowing team members to work out their problems in a respectful way.

A manager’s ability to communicate gets tested in moments of high stress or anxiety. Whether it’s an upset customer or a change in process, the manager’s communication takes front and center—his or her aptitude in these types of challenges can either bring the team together or pull them apart.

Communication isn’t just about expressing feelings and talking through issues, it’s about knowing when to stop talking and to start listening.

Active Listening

It seems so simple, right? Managers just need to not always do the talking and to listen to their employees more. Oh, if only it were that simple. Active listening is the act of giving someone your full attention. Not just hearing the words but understanding the feelings and emotions behind them.

We are all guilty of passive listening and there are all kinds of reasons for that. Active listening means we must stop thinking about all our problems and give the person speaking our unabated attention.

Managers often become sound boards, therapists, and coaches, so it is important to be engaged in the conversation to provide advice, feedback, and support. Employees want to feel heard and appreciated by their managers and know they have an advocate in their career journey.

Providing an outlet for employees to openly express their thoughts increases well-being and it is a powerful tool for managers to understand the inner dynamics of their team. A manager who does not actively listen can quickly lose sight of the real issues that may exist in the department.

Fairness

One of the greatest challenges facing managers in the workplace is determining what is fair. There is a high level of subjectiveness to fairness as everyone’s perception of what is fair is influenced by their own experiences. This is why managers must be consistent in how concerns are addressed, changes are applied, and decisions are made.

Following standard procedures and establishing best practices helps to ensure equity across the team. However, managers must also be self-aware of their tendencies and avoid playing favorites even if they may naturally gravitate to specific employees on the team. Managers may feel a closer connection to their high-performers or employees because he or she has shared interests, so understanding how to treat each relationship the same is important.

There is a great fallacy in the idea of fairness since it is truly in the eye of the beholder. Even by following a consistent approach to managing employees, it may be impossible to avoid perceived inequities. Yet, there are proactive steps managers can take to avoid losing the trust of the wider team if claims of unfairness are made. These steps include:

• Avoid autonomous decision-making when there is a people impact.
• Seek feedback and counsel when applying policy.
• Communicate business support and reasons for changes.
• Be aware of your own biases and how they affect your judgment.
• Address all concerns with objectivity.

Recognition

How managers choose to recognize their employees can come in many forms, but recognition is most effective when done so genuinely and sincerely. Employees have unique preferences on how they are recognized. Whether it be by verbally praising and expressing gratitude or writing a nice email, either way, employees want to hear that they are appreciated for their efforts.

Many organizations have rewards and recognition programs that offer a platform for recognizing employees, but managers can have a definitive impact on their team by regular, in-the-moment acknowledgment of good work. Large organizations often attempt to drive engagement through company-wide recognition programs, but the real culture-building happens at the local department level.

When managers make a habit of recognizing their teams, it can quickly lead to more peer-to-peer recognition. Peer-to-peer recognition is perhaps more powerful than praise received from the boss due to it more likely being an organic expression of gratitude or praise.

In fact, most people analytics and advisory companies now recognize peer-to-peer recognition as being the greatest driver for employee engagement by increasing a sense of belonging and well-being. When we like who we work with, we have a stronger connection to the work we are doing.

For many of these same reasons, recognition from manager to employee, as well as peer-to-peer contributes to psychological safety. Managers who understand and leverage this type of feedback amongst their teams help to form stronger connections and increase productivity and engagement. 

Accountability

Taking ownership goes hand-in-hand with psychological safety. When a manager creates an environment in which employees feel safe making errors or trying new things, it encourages accountability. Vice versa though, if a manager runs the department using intimidation or fear as a tactic to influence behavior, employees may feel they can’t speak up or take accountability without it resulting in punitive action.

Managers must also be equipped and empowered to appropriately respond to employees who are not taking accountability for either performance or behavioral-based concerns. When employees are accountable for their work, it leads to high-quality output and a desire to produce or provide a better product or service.

Teamwork relies heavily on accountability. An environment that encourages ownership of one’s actions produces positive work relationships and high-powered teams. Employees can trust their teammates are going to honor their commitments when there’s accountability.

As a manager, it is imperative to have open lines of communication with the team to stay attuned to areas where there is no accountability. Employees may feel that there is an inequity if a teammate is not taking their fair share of the workload. This can quickly erode trust if not dealt with appropriately.

There is not one approach that will lead to an employee feeling safe to be themselves as everyone has their own experiences that shape their perceptions and needs in life. These best practices, when prioritized and followed, will let employees know that they are heard and appreciated, which if done consistently over time can lead to highly engaged and productive teams.

Part 2: Development

Organizations often make the mistake of thinking that development is only about career advancement. While offering career advancement opportunities is certainly advantageous for retention, it’s important to understand that development is about more than being promoted. It’s about progress with purpose.

Development becomes more purposeful when we track and monitor progress because we see the payoff from our hard work and the impact we are making. Managers should work closely with each employee to understand their goals, both professionally and personally, align to departmental and organizational goals, and meet regularly to track and support them.

This practice of meeting regularly and discussing goals to develop employees builds trust but it is only a part of the process. Developing and facilitating employee growth is only as good as the actions that follow and advocate for them.

Managers may feel pressure to get employees promoted, which can lead to hesitation to have development-related conversations, but it is important to remember that advocating for an employee is more than a promotion.

Of course, a manager can advocate for an employee when an internal opportunity arises, but they can show support in other ways as well. This is why having dialogue around development is critical to supporting employees—managers need to know what their goals are to know how to best support them.

There are many ways for an employee to advocate for their employee. It could be fighting for that raise they want, speaking highly of them in front of leadership, giving them assignments with more visibility, or throwing their name in the hat for a new role or project.

The development process is a critical part of trust building that is essential to the manager and employee relationship. Without it, employees are left to feel like their growth is not supported or taken seriously. To support development, the manager and employee should set goals and track those goals through regular feedback.

Goal Setting

Understanding the job description and the essential functions of the job are, of course, a crucial part of being competent but these things alone do not bring meaning and purpose to the role. Setting goals that are individualized for the employee can help with demonstrating the impact they have, as well as how their goals tie into the organizational goals.

The manager plays a pivotal role in helping to align the employee goals to the overall business strategy while also clarifying how performance is measured. Employees should set both short and long-term goals that are measurable. These goals should be challenging but also attainable.

The goal-setting process should be interactive with both the manager and the employee providing their input on the goals and support or resources needed to be successful. Goals can range from tactical day-to-day assignments and more challenging project-oriented tasks.

Spending time focusing on personal career goals is also a way to build trust between the manager and employee as it shows an interest in helping the employee grow. These goals can be aspirational but there should be a realistic path to achieve them and honesty about timelines.

As employees progress towards these types of goals, managers can become the architects for giving incrementally more responsibilities and projects offering visibility in the organization.

Regular Feedback

Providing consistent feedback is perhaps the most effective development method and has multiple positive impacts on the manager-employee relationship. Regular feedback is necessary for the continued alignment of goals and tracking progress throughout the fiscal year.

While technology has simplified the performance management process, without regularly occurring check-ins employees can quickly feel as though they are lacking direction and support. Managers are in the best position to monitor performance and help employees improve.

These regular check-ins also increase employee engagement. When employees feel supported and heard by their managers, they’re more likely to feel connected to the mission. These discussions should be conversational but structured to ensure the right questions are being asked.

Questions Managers Can Ask:

–          What challenges are you facing at the moment?

–          Are there any barriers you’ve run into and how can I help you be successful?

–          What accomplishments have you had lately?

–          What do you want to accomplish today (or this week/month)?

Regular check-ins are not intended to replace the more spontaneous conversations managers have with their employees to build connections and offer real-time feedback. Providing just-in-time feedback is important too, especially when a behavior or action needs to be corrected promptly.

Managers need to recognize good work frequently and avoid falling into the trap of only providing criticism when giving feedback. Managers must balance positive feedback with constructive criticism. Regular feedback allows for all parties to be aware of areas of concern and expectations, as well as the behaviors to continue.

Part 3: Transparency

In many ways, the transparency pillar is the foundation for trust. Managers must be honest, clear and open to feedback, and accountable. When managers are not frequently communicating with employees, whether it be good or bad, insecurity and distrust can quickly fill the silence.

An important distinction to make is that managers shouldn’t just share information before it is finalized, nor should they overstate information to avoid appearing as though they are withholding something. Instead, managers should be vulnerable enough to let employees know when they don’t have the answers.

Transparency is closely tied to vulnerability. It is hard to share information that could be painful or cause anxiety and it’s just as hard, if not harder, to open yourself up to feedback. Yet, these things are not just the right thing to do, they quite literally can change a relationship.

It’s an instinct for many to have a guard up, especially in a manager-employee relationship. Managers may feel as though their words could easily be misinterpreted or worse, manipulated, to be used against them. Employees may see their manager as representing the company and not having their best interest in mind.

While these dynamics can place a strain on the manager-employee relationship, by leading with transparency managers can build a high-trust, high-production culture. Transparent leading is done through clear and frequent communication, honest and open feedback loops, and accountability.

Clear and Frequent Communication

Communication is a core competency required for management. Without the ability to communicate, managers could soon find their teams disengaged. Being a good communicator is different than being good at talking to people.

Effective communication is the ability to know how and when to share information and provide and invite feedback from others.  The miscalculation managers often make is to use canned messaging without understanding the human element involved.

Employees want to know why not just the positioning the company takes on without understanding the people impact. Managers should always follow key talking points and messaging but also not forget to be authentic.

By communicating clearly and frequently, employees will feel in the know versus in the dark and will more likely be aware of expectations. Communicating often tells employees that their manager cares about their well-being and it transfers into trust.

Honest and Open Feedback

Providing feedback is an essential part of the development process for employees, but another important element of the manager-employee relationship is being open to receiving feedback.

There are multiple ways for managers to create an open feedback loop including regular one-on-one meetings, real-time feedback, and surveys.

While surveys should not be the only time feedback is solicited, they do present an avenue for employees to share their concerns anonymously, in most cases. However, survey questions are only one-dimensional meaning leaders need to share results back and ask for honest discussion around pain points.

Open feedback is crucial to the success of the team so that real actionable steps can be taken to improve when necessary. Managers who foster an open feedback loop with their teams can proactively remove barriers, help navigate challenges, and continue developing as leaders.

Accountability

For any successful work relationship, all parties must be accountable for their actions. Trust will quickly deteriorate if there is no ownership taken at all levels of an organization. Managers set the tone for accountability with their employees through honesty, keeping commitments, admitting mistakes, and learning from them.

Managers also must address concerns about employee accountability. Confronting these issues can make for tough conversations but avoiding them will only amplify the effects it has on a team.

Accountability is an integral part of coaching and managers are in the position to coach when issues arise. A manager that models accountability through openness to change and coachability helps to create a culture of learning.

Part 4: Confidentiality

Trust is predicated on confidentiality and the ability to confide in someone else when concerns come up whether professionally or personally. Managers are often placed in the position of being privy to sensitive information and must practice discernment in how and with whom that information gets shared.

In the workplace, employee confidentiality isn’t solely about trust, it is also heavily rooted in the legalities of the employee contract. A manager may not have access to all protected employee information, but they will likely be aware of pay and potentially health-related information.

While the medical details of an employee are not necessary for the manager to be aware of, many employees might openly share this information with them. As a manager, it is important to make sure the employee knows they do not need to disclose this information to them, rather they should work with HR, or a third-party leave administrator if a form of accommodation is needed including leave of absence.

Managers are responsible for remaining objective and professional when employees bring them concerns. While it is best practice to involve HR when investigating employee concerns, it’s critical for the manager to ensure privacy for the employee who raises concerns.

In scenarios when a new manager comes from a staff-level role in the department, there may be already established relationships in place. Managers must remain professional and not share unnecessary information with employees regardless of the relationship.

Ensuring that sensitive conversations are in private settings is also recommended to avoid others on the team overhearing discussions that are not prudent for them to know. This includes conversations to address performance and behavioral-based issues, share employee concerns, and anything related to confidential job details.

Using good judgment and discernment will help managers navigate complex matters that require a level of sensitivity. High-trust cultures are built by leaders with integrity and professionalism who hold themselves accountable to protect the dignity and privacy of their employees.

Section V: Conclusion

The manager’s role is a big responsibility and regardless of the manager’s span of control or number of direct reports, the people management aspect of the role is both challenging and rewarding.

As a manager, there are many people-related processes and systems to learn. Whether it be HR policies or payroll functions, regardless of the learning curve, it is important to remember the human element involved and enjoy the process.

Employees look to their manager for guidance, comfort, support, and connection. For some, this new responsibility of people management can be overwhelming. Managers should make sure to get to know their key stakeholders:

Senior Leadership

Chances are, as a manager there will be direct support provided by the senior leader (senior manager, director, etc.) throughout the onboarding process and beyond. Although these senior leaders will want to see their managers grow and take on more autonomous roles, managers should seek advice and guidance from them as needed.

Senior leaders have likely been in middle management positions with larger spans of control before and their experiences are invaluable to the manager’s role. As managers begin to interact and build relationships with leadership, finding mentors can provide additional sources of knowledge.

Human Resources (HR)

New managers should quickly become acquainted with their HR team. Many organizations have structured new manager onboarding processes that will involve an introduction to HR policies, processes, and systems. 

HR is a valuable partner for managers as they navigate the first several weeks in the role and beyond. As people-related issues will inevitably arise, the partnership with HR is critical to the success of the manager.

HR also offers a direct link to senior leadership and organizational strategy that the manager can benefit from to help with aligning departmental and organizational goals. Through this partnership, managers can grow and develop as leaders and HR can use data and best practices to leverage managers in building a strong culture.

Talent Acquisition is also a key stakeholder for managers and partners closely to understand the department and specific jobs to actively recruit for when there are openings. Managers work alongside their recruiter to review applicants, interview, and start the offer and hiring process.

Managers may also partner closely with other Centers of Excellence (COEs) within HR such as Benefits, Compensation, Talent Development, and Workforce Planning.

Finance

Managers are tasked with managing their department budget and working in collaboration with Finance to budget plan and track expenses and costs. Whether the department is fixed or variable, revenue generating or not, the manager must be a strategic partner with Finance.

Finance also plays an important role, often a decision-making one, when there is a job opening or if the manager determines additional headcount is needed based on business needs. While managers need their leadership team’s support when adding costs, they ultimately need to provide support for such requests to Finance.

Discover more manager strategies and insights on building a high-trust team with our full Manager Guide here!