Radical Trust July 28, 2008 How Today's Great Leaders Convert People to Partners (John Wiley & Sons, Inc., $24.95)
Trust is vital to business, but sadly, employees do not often place faith in management. Conflicting demands, limited resources and competing loyalties all make it hard for managers to earn the trust of employees, a serious problem considering the need for strong working relationships. Radical Trust, by acclaimed business consultant Joe Healey, comes to terms with this predicament, demonstrating the qualities essential for creating sound partnerships.
Radical Trust underlines the four competencies that a manager must have in order to establish trust. Taken together, the competencies call for managers who practice what they preach, demonstrate competency, communicate well and show empathy towards workers. Healey places special emphasis on the first competency, "Character Trust," which corresponds to how well managers advance their expressed values. He points out that character trust provides a foundation for all the others, and notes that it actually coincides with a business leader's economic self-interest. This highlights the main theme of the book, the idea that business leaders stand to benefit from looking after other people.
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