Building Trust

Trust is essentially our belief in the reliability, honesty or ability of another person or group of people, and the level to which we trust those around us is critical to the success of our collaboration and relationships with them. Just as there is a virtuous circle that comes from building trust with people, likewise when trust is damaged in some way, relationships can quickly deteriorate, resulting in people feeling detached and disengaged from each other, not sharing resources or information or even working against each other. Designed with a particular focus on new leaders but suitable for all staff, this course looks at how trust develops, its importance in working relationships and what we can do to improve our own ability to build and maintain it.

Learning objectives:

• Explain how and why trust develops
• Identify the difference between cognitive, emotional, and transactional trust
• Explain why building and sustaining trust is a key skill for leaders
• Determine the impact of a breakdown or lack of trust
• Identify the importance of perspective-taking and empathy
• List steps we can take to improve our own ability to build and maintain trust