--- title: Why Trust and Leadership are More Integrated than Ever description: If you are a leader in the process of assessing the past year and planning for the next, here are 3 quick things you can do to embrace the trust and leadership of your key employees. image: https://www.advantexe.com/hubfs/leadership-trust-integration.png --- [![logo-advantexe-150.png](https://www.advantexe.com/hs-fs/hubfs/logo-advantexe-150.png?width=150&height=123&name=logo-advantexe-150.png "logo-advantexe-150.png")](https://www.advantexe.com) ![blog-banner-2022](https://www.advantexe.com/hs-fs/hubfs/blog-banner-2022.png?width=973&name=blog-banner-2022.png "blog-banner-2022") ### The Advantexe Advisor Blog - providing a deep and applicable understanding of the system of business. # Why Trust and Leadership are More Integrated than Ever By Robert Brodo | Nov 20, 2018 8:19:22 AM | [![Share on Facebook](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/facebook-24x24.png)](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.advantexe.com%2Fblog%2Ftrust-and-leadership-integration%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook) [![Share on LinkedIn](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/linkedin-24x24.png)](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.advantexe.com%2Fblog%2Ftrust-and-leadership-integration%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dlinkedin) [![Share on Twitter](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/twitter-24x24.png)](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.advantexe.com%2Fblog%2Ftrust-and-leadership-integration%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.advantexe.com%2Fblog%2Ftrust-and-leadership-integration%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&source=tweetbutton&text=Why%20Trust%20and%20Leadership%20are%20More%20Integrated%20than%20Ever) [![Share on Pinterest](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/pinterest-24x24.png)](http://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.advantexe.com%2Fblog%2Ftrust-and-leadership-integration%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dpinterest&media=) [![Share on Email](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/email-24x24.png)](mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.advantexe.com%2Fblog%2Ftrust-and-leadership-integration%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail%20&body=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.advantexe.com%2Fblog%2Ftrust-and-leadership-integration%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail) One would think that in the virtual business world we live in where capturing someone’s attention for ![leadership-trust-integration](https://www.advantexe.com/hs-fs/hubfs/leadership-trust-integration.png?width=240&name=leadership-trust-integration.png)more than 38 seconds before they are eyeball deep into their smartphones that the digital transformation would have taken care of something as trivial as building trust among leaders, peers, colleagues and direct reports. But as all effective leaders know, that hasn’t happened, and, in my opinion, it never will because of the human element of [leadership](https://www.advantexe.com/business-leadership-development-programs) and interpersonal relationships as it’s related to building or destroying trust. The digital disruption never will find some slick app-based alternative to trust because at the end of the day, leadership is the execution of your [business strategy](https://www.advantexe.com/blog/do-you-have-a-business-strategy-or-a-list-of-tasks) through the people who work with you and for you.  The job of being a great leader is to understand the strategy of your business and then align the right resources to make sure the strategy and [value proposition](https://www.advantexe.com/blog/the-importance-of-authenticity-in-your-value-proposition) is being executed flawlessly through the team leveraging the resources of the business. Leaders are only going to be as good as their strategy and as good as the people they hire to execute that strategy. A lot of what happens in between is merely a function of those two elements. One of the biggest and yet unrecognized catalysts of success in business is *trust* which is the foundation of the human element I mention above. Trust and leadership are two difficult things to master and I think they are more important and more integrated together now than ever before despite all the technology we’ve created and surround ourselves with. When executing a strategy through people, there is a natural inclination to trust some people more than ever. But why is that?  Why do leaders trust certain people more than others? Is it situational? Is it related to the strategy?  Is it related to the [leadership skills](https://www.advantexe.com/blog/leadership-development-programs-can-create-the-right-point-of-view) of the leaders? **What is trust?** Before answering any of those questions, it’s important to define what we mean by trust in the business environment.  Here is one definition I cobbled together from a quick internet search: *The obligation or responsibility imposed on a person in whom confidence or authority is placed: a position of trust. charge, custody, or care: to leave valuables in someone's trust. something committed or entrusted to one's care for use or safekeeping, as an office, duty, or the like; responsibility; charge.* In applying this definition to business leadership, we can say that trust is basically the responsibility a leader gives to someone else with the belief they are going to do everything possible to commit and achieve an objective. **What breaks down trust?** Trust is broken down in the business environment when the promise of the commitment is broken.  Sometimes, depending upon the severity and magnitude of the breakdown, the trust is broken forever.  By way of example, today’s news about the [arrest of Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/19/business/nissan-carlos-ghosn-misconduct.html) for misappropriating compensation is a break in trust that will never be fixed and will have long lasting effects on the company and its value.  In every day Manager-Employee parlance, trust can be broken by lying about vacation days, saying you will finish a proposal and then forgetting about it, or inflating hours on a project.  **What builds trust?** Trust is built in the business environment by doing what you say and overdelivering on the expectations.  When a manager sees and experiences an employee doing everything possible to do that, trust is built and will last the length of the manager-employee relationship.  The trusted employee enjoys the privileges that go with trust and the ability to focus on the work and not issues related to the relationship. **Business Leadership is Embracing Trust** As we come to the end of 2018 and start the planning process for 2019, leaders around the world are going to look at their businesses and the teams they’ve assembled to execute their strategies and see the future through the lens of trust.  I predict that the most successful leaders will be the ones that are able to trust their direct reports to take ownership and accountability to execute the strategy. **Embrace the Trust** If you are a leader in the process of assessing the past year and planning for the next, here are 3 quick things you can do to embrace the trust of your key employees: 1. Thank them and let them know how much their trust means to you 2. Be specific about the goals and objectives for 2019 and what they have to do to achieve them 3. Have a collaborative dialogue about the resources they need to achieve their goals and objectives and because you trust them, do whatever it takes to get them the resources they need [![why-does-leadership-matter-infographic](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/1153922/cbfef0cf-e318-4874-9de0-2e7fe97a1463.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/1153922/cbfef0cf-e318-4874-9de0-2e7fe97a1463) ![Robert Brodo](https://www.advantexe.com/hubfs/Blogs/rob-brodo-author.png) **About The Author** Robert Brodo is co-founder of Advantexe. He has more than 20 years of training and business simulation experience. 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