Trust in the workplace increases morale, productivity and lowers expensive staff turnover.  It also provides fertile ground for much sought-after innovation.  If you’re a manager or an aspiring leader, it’s important to know what it takes to build trust.  And with today’s turbulent business environment restoring trust after increasingly common things like layoffs, pay cuts, drastic operational changes or a business deal gone south means rebuilding the trust you once had from the ground floor.

If you’re wondering if your organization has trust issues, Psychology Today offers 10 ways to tell if trust is lacking where you work.   The symptoms of a trust deficit are telling and they easily reveal how productivity and innovation can be stifled if this goes unaddressed.

Ken Blanchard says there are four key elements leaders should keep in mind when building or restoring trust.

1. Demonstrate that you’re ABLE to get the job done and produce results while providing people with necessary resources and information.
2. Show up as consistent, BELIEVABLE, honest, fair, equitable and transparent in your dealings with people.
3. Be a good communicator who is CONNECTED.  You comfortably share information about yourself and interact with people in ways that say you care about them.
4. Be DEPENDABLE, reliable, accountable for your actions, and follow through on what you say you’re going to do.

How might Blanchard’s ideas, called the Trust Works! ABCD Trust Model, help you build or restore trust in your leadership, team or organization?

For weekly tips on thriving in today’s ever-changing workplace, check out my Office Talk Reports as heard on KYW Newsradio in Philadelphia.  Read or listen to these 60-second reports for the best ways to chart your rise to the top.