Commitment and Trust
The foundation for research on trust in an exchange context was started during late 80’s and early 90’s but researchers used different concepts and indicators for measuring trust. The dimensions used to measure or define trust are benevolence and credibility, integrity, reliability, predictability, fairness, honesty, competence, goodwill, constancy. Trust is defined as a belief by one partner in a relationship exchange that the other partner will not act against their interests, where this belief is held without undue doubt or suspicion and in the absence of detailed information about the actions of the other partner.
Commitment is defined as a desire to develop a stable relationship, a willingness to make short-term sacrifices to maintain the relationship, a confidence in the stability of the relationship, and investments in the relationship. Commitment is defined as the belief of a firm in a dyadic exchange that the existing relationship with another firm is very important and hence it deserves maximum efforts to maintain it for long-term period.
The relationship has given a strong emphasis on developing commitment through trust. The parties engaged in a trusted relationship evaluate the relationship as highly valued and are willing to commit themselves to such relationships. In order to develop commitment, the buyer should have belief that the seller does not have any negative intentions and its present and/or past experiences are believed to be a strong predictor of future intentions. Moreover, the firm should believe that the partner firm will act with credibility and benevolence in future exchanges as well.
The word team is often explained as “Together Everybody Achieves More”. By working together, people are capable of achieving incredible things. Without cooperation of men, there wouldn’t be pyramids, a worldwide distribution system of goods and services, and the current level of knowledge in healthcare would be questionable. Teams only produce results when people work together and for people to work well together, trust is the most important factor of success.
The growth of team functioning can be described a pyramid of 5 layers. The layers are somewhat sequential, which means that each higher layer is built on top of the lower layer and the higher the team functions in the pyramid, the better it functions. These 5 layers are described a challenge: a lack of trust (1), fear of conflict (2), lack of commitment (3), avoidance of responsibilities (4) and lack of focus on team results (5).
The base of the pyramid is defined by the lack of trust between team members. This lack of trust can result in team members not willing to be open and honest within the group. Examples of open and honest behaviour are admitting you were wrong, or to share personal weaknesses with one another. When people fail to trust each other, they will also fail to have open discussions because of fear of conflict. Open and honest discussions are necessary to get new ideas on the table or to get a detailed plan for a good idea. When people are afraid of conflict in a team, there can only be shallow conversation and limited progress in making decisions and execution of tasks.
The fear of conflict in its turn leads to a lack of commitment. In short, when team members cannot be open and honest in team discussions, they will not automatically be committed to the conclusions and decisions made in that meeting. This in turn leads to a lack of responsibility for the decisions made and when people do not feed responsible for a decision, chances are they will avoid responsibilities.
7.1 Guidelines for Creating Trust Among Your Team
Define duties. Your job description was created for a reason, but this doesn’t mean that you can’t lend a helping hand to others when needed. Do your assigned duties, then look for ways to be of service to others on your team?
Implement an open-door policy. It’s important that members of teams can talk to one another and that employees can reach management when an issue arises. Always remain positive when confronting others about an issue that is bothering you.
Follow through. Keeping your word is one of the fastest ways to build trust with others on your team. A simple way to keep track of on-going, multiple projects is to put a note in your calendar to check on progress. Ask questions about the task and offer help if needed.
Listen sincerely. Instead of talking often, try listening more. Ask questions to guide team members in thinking through issues and coming up with their own solutions. Everyone wants to be heard.
Recognize the efforts of others. Recognition goes a long way in building trust on teams. Be sure to compliment others and show interest in their projects–appreciation matters. Perhaps you are finding yourself frustrated by your communication at work, when you know you can do better. Building trust among top-performing teams has so much to do with increasing communication skills and ensuring that everyone feels valued.