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Team Effectiveness

What HR teams can do to build trust

No company can really hope to succeed unless its employees have faith in the mission, but building and maintaining that trust is an ongoing matter.

It can also be adversely affected by events in the wider world – such as economic pressures. So, what can HR teams do to shore up employee trust?

Assess existing levels of trust

The first step is to assess the current levels of trust among employees, which is something that HR managers should do on a regular basis. That will highlight the areas that need to be worked on. You do not have to create special assessments for this – you can use focus groups, engagement surveys and other standard methods of getting feedback.

Once the results are in, communicate them to your employees and let them know how you plan to improve trust.

Encourage management transparency

The second step is to persuade managers of the need to be clear about why they are taking certain actions. If employees understand the thinking behind them, it will help to prevent distrust from building – particularly when they do not agree with the actions.

In some cases, managers may need additional training in ‘soft’ skills like active listening and emotional intelligence. Working with an outsourced HR consultancy can help you to plan and implement those training programmes.

Act as a communications mediator

HR teams can act as mediators between employees and managers, helping to keep lines of communication open.

At FiveRivers Consulting, we provide HR change management services that can help in building trust. Call us now.