How to gain TRUST as a CEO – Roger Martin
Written by: on December 14, 2010
“Communicate equally with good news AND bad news” Roger Martin, Dean of the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. Roger gives his advice on how CEOs can gain trust from stockholders, employees and media:
My take? Roger’s on the money. I don’t like being around people that are always sunny side up. I don’t trust people people that only tell me when things are going well. Good luck getting any GenY to trust you in the workplace if you don’t show weakness and imperfection. Being honest about the bad stuff makes me much more trusting of the good news. Think about this: Not showing weakness and imperfection IS displaying weakness.
Trust example: Former UK PM Gordon Brown’s apology after calling a woman a bigot. Does this seem authentic to you? What would you have done in his place? See it here.
Take stock: If you want to be respected/trusted in and out of the office ask yourself: “When is the last time I showed weakness and took the blame? Perhaps said “I was wrong?”