SP UDAAN 2023 Disha Workshop 1 Pre-Read PDF

Business Case of Trust. Almost everywhere we turn, trust is on the decline. We find low trust in our society at large, in our institutions and in our companies. Research shows that only 51 percent of employees trust senior management, and only 28 percent believe CEOs are a credible source of informa...

Business Case of Trust. Almost everywhere we turn, trust is on the decline. We find low trust in our society at large, in our institutions and in our companies. Research shows that only 51 percent of employees trust senior management, and only 28 percent believe CEOs are a credible source of information. This compels us to ask two questions. First, is there a measurable cost to low trust? Second, is there a tangible benefit to high trust? Few argue with the notion of trust. Everybody is in favor of it and nobody is against it. But at the end of the day, many CEOs don’t really believe that internal organizational trust is directly connected to their company’s bottom line. Instead, they believe that trust is merely a soft, nice-to-have, “social virtue.” An increasing number of CEOs, however, are convinced that this so called “soft” trust factor is, in reality, a “hard-edged economic driver.” From an abundance of research, consider just four studies: 1. A 2002 study by Watson Wyatt surveying 12,750 workers across all industries showed that high-trust organizations had a total return to shareholders (stock price plus dividends) that was 286 percent higher than low-trust organizations. 2. A 2005 study by Russell Investment Group showed that Fortune magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” (in which trust comprises 60 percent of the criteria and is the “primary defining characteristic”) earned over four times the returns of the broader market over the prior seven years. 3. In a 2006 a study done with the Coca-Cola Retailing Research Council, top executing grocery stores had significantly higher trust levels than lower executing stores. 4. A 10-year study of hundreds of outsourcing contracts done by Warwick Business School in the U.K. demonstrated that outsourcing contracts that are managed on trust, rather than on stringent service level agreements, lead to benefits for both parties- as much as an additional 40 percent of the total value of a contract. What are the economics of trust that make these returns possible? Trust always affects two measurable outcomes-speed and cost. When trust goes down, speed goes down and cost goes up. This creates a trust tax. When trust goes up, speed goes up and cost goes down. This creates a trust dividend. It’s that simple, that predictable. For example, Sarbanes-Oxley was passed in response to Enron, World-Com and other corporate scandals. While Sarbanes-Oxley has helped maintain trust in public markets, this has come at a substantial price. All executives subject to Sarbanes-Oxley rules know the amount of time it takes to comply with its regulations, as well as the added cost of doing so. A recent study pegged the costs of implementing Section 404 alone at $35 billion-exceeding the original SEC estimate by 28 times. Compliance regulations have become a prosthesis for a lack of trust-and a slow moving and costly prosthesis at that. Clearly, Sarbanes-Oxley demonstrates the relationship between low trust, low speed and high cost. On the other hand, consider the example of Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett in acquiring McLane Distribution-a $23 billion company-from Wal-Mart. A deal of this size involving public companies would typically take several months to complete and cost several million dollars in due diligence. But because both parties operated with high trust, this deal was made with one two-hour meeting and a handshake. In less than a month, it was completed. Buffett wrote in his annual report: “We did no due diligence.’ We knew everything would be exactly as Wal-Mart said it would be-and it was.” Imagine- less than one month and no due diligence costs. High trust, high speed, low cost. Once we understand the hard, measurable economics of trust, it’s like putting on a new pair of glasses. Everywhere we look, we can see quantifiable impact. If we have a low-trust organization, we’re paying a tax. While these taxes may not conveniently show up on the income statement as “trust taxes,” they’re still there, disguised as other problems. Once we know where and what to look for, we see low-trust organizational taxes everywhere, including the following: Redundancy. Redundancy is unnecessary duplication. A costly redundancy tax is often paid in excessive organizational hierarchy, layers of management and overlapping structures designed to ensure control. Bureaucracy. Bureaucracy includes complex and cumbersome rules, regulations, policies, procedures and processes. It’s reflected in excessive paperwork, red tape, controls and approval layers. One estimate put the cost of complying with federal rules and regulations in the U.S. alone at $1.1 trillion-more than 10 percent of the GDP. Politics. Office politics divide a culture against itself, generating behaviours such as withholding information, infighting, operating with hidden agendas, spinning, manipulating and holding meetings after meetings. These behaviors result in all kinds of wasted time, talent, energy and money. In addition, they poison company cultures, derail strategies and sabotage initiatives, relationships and careers. Disengagement. Disengagement occurs when people put in enough effort to avoid getting fired but don’t contribute their talent, creativity, energy or passion. Gallup’s research puts a price tag of $250 billion to $300 billion a year on the cost of disengagement. A primary reason for disengagement is that people feel they aren’t trusted. Gallup shows that 96 percent of engaged employees-but only 46 percent of actively disengaged employees-trust management. We have to wonder which came first, the chicken (distrust) or the egg (disengagement)? It’s a self-perpetuating cycle that gradually grinds the organization to a crippled pace. Turnover. Employee turnover represents a huge cost, and in low-trust companies, turnover is in excess of the industry standard-particularly of the people you least want to lose. Performers like to be trusted, and when they’re not, many will seek employment in places where they are. Churn. Churn is turnover among customers, suppliers, distributors and investors. It results when low-trust interactions within the company are perpetuated in relationships with external stakeholders. Studies indicate that the cost of acquiring a new customer versus keeping an existing one alone can result in an increase of as much as 500 percent. Fraud. Fraud is flat out dishonesty, sabotage, obstruction, deception and disruption-and the cost is enormous. A 2004 study estimated that the average U.S. company lost 6 percent of its annual revenue to some sort of fraudulent activity. In Enron’s case, the fraud tax was ultimately 100 percent, sinking the company. Just as the taxes created by low trust are significant, so the dividends of high trust are also incredibly high. Consider the speed with which Warren Buffett completed the McLane acquisition. Consider the studies cited earlier. When trust is high, the dividend we receive is a performance multiplier, elevating and improving every dimension of the organization. Specific dividends include the following: Increased value (Watson Wyatt shows an increase of 286 percent.) Accelerated growth (Customers buy more, refer more and stay longer with companies they trust.) Enhanced innovation (High creativity and sustained innovation thrive in a culture of high trust.) Improved collaboration (In low-trust cultures, collaboration is mere coordination or, at best, cooperation.) Stronger partnering (The Warwick Business School study shows a 40 percent dividend.) Better execution (The Franklin-Covey study shows every measure is substantially higher.) Heightened loyalty (All stakeholders-employees, customers, suppliers, distributors and investors-stay longer with high-trust companies.) When you add up all the dividends of high trust-and you put those on top of the fact that high trust decreases or eliminates all the taxes as well-is there any doubt that there is a significant, direct, measurable and indisputable connection between high trust, high speed, low cost and increased value? So, what’s the role of the CEO with respect to trust? It’s threefold: First, recognize the business case for trust-be an advocate instead of an obstacle. Second, see leadership as “getting results in a way that inspires trust.” In other words, personally model trust through character, competence and demonstrated behavior. Third, align organizational systems and structures around trust. In the words of Campbell Soup CEO Doug Conant, “The first thing for any leader is to inspire trust.” Bottom line, nothing is as fast as the speed of trust. Nothing is as profitable as the economics of trust. It’s truly the one thing that changes everything. *Stephen M. R. Covey is the author of the book, The Speed of Trust: The One Thing That Changes Every- thing. Your Reflections: 1. Think about your personal experience with respect to an issue/problem that might have arisen due to lack-of-trust in your organization or team. 2. What do you think are some of the ways in which you can build trust amongst your team? How would that lead to tasks being done with “High trust, high speed, low cost” as mentioned in the article. ------------------------------------------------------------xxxx--------------------------------------------------------------- Leadership Communication: 8 best practices for Effective Leadership Communication: One vital trait that distinguishes great leaders from poor leaders is the ability to communicate with both transparency and compassion. This is a key aspect of not only individual development, but employee development as well. According to Harvard Business Review, two of the top six traits for great leaders are communications skills. It is absolutely essential for leaders and their teams to possess effective communication skills in order to overcome challenges, reach their goals, and enable their organizations to grow and succeed. “Developing excellent communication skills is absolutely essential to effective leadership. The leader must be able to share knowledge and ideas to transmit a sense of urgency and enthusiasm to others. If a leader can’t get a message across clearly and motivate others to act on it, then having a message doesn’t even matter.” — Gilbert Amelio. Communication is critical for leaders as it enables them to share first-hand knowledge and experience with their employees. As we have mentioned before, it is extremely important to lead from the top down and lead by example. To communicate more efficiently, leaders must understand the core principles of communication. Effective leaders think with clarity, convey ideas, and share information with a multitude of audiences across the entire organization, as well as with partners, customers, shareholders, and influencers. Common Barriers in Leadership Communication Despite effective communication being an essential leadership skill, it is still often overlooked throughout a lot of organizations. In more cases than not, leaders tend to think their communication is better than it really is. Below are some common barriers for great leaders to overcome: Resistance to change: When leaders are resistant to change, they often are concerned too much with making mistakes or fail to communicate properly and have the right protocols in place.  Uncertainty or lack of clarity: This can happen when a leader or leadership team is unsure of what to communicate, or how to communicate the message appropriately. To deliver a clear message and get your point across, you need to give your employees context that they can understand. Conflict in the organization: Workplace conflict can occur for a variety of reasons and becomes a large barrier for effective communication. This is a great opportunity to improve your communication and find resolutions to the conflict at hand. Varied communication styles: Everyone has their own communication preferences; some need direct approaches while others prefer more indirect. This also takes into account too many assumptions or viewpoints, as leaders and employees have different ideas and perspectives on the messages being communicated. Disruption: Interferences affect the ability for leaders or teams to concentrate on what is being communicated due to a busy surrounding, emails and calls, or other interruptions. Lack of communication channels: Either a lack of how the message is communicated, or unawareness of how to appropriately communicate through various channels such as in-person, email, or meetings. Dishonesty or lack of transparency: Effective communication cannot happen when there is a lack of trust and if leadership holds back certain information. It will be more difficult for your teams to process the information you are communicating to them. Lack of listening: Leaders need to listen just as much, if not more, than they talk. They often do not encourage enough feedback or clarification when communication specific messages. Barriers to effective communication within leadership teams often lead to decreased productivity rates, limited company culture and values, and poor staff morale. Everyone, especially leadership, should be actively trying to overcome the barriers to effective communication within their organization while also trying to improve upon their overall communication skills. Keep in mind that communication is often done through various channels which include everything from direct conversation, email, and phone to social media and even body language. Giving attention to possible communication barriers will greatly improve the impact and effectiveness of interactions, while also improving employee engagement and knowledge retention. Improving Your Leadership Communication Skills Effective communication for leaders can be extremely powerful. Leader communication can not only connect, motivate, and clarify for your teams, but also has the power to do the exact opposite. Poor communication skills can divide, disrupt, and confuse your employees. Research has proven that leadership communication is directly related to the organization’s bottom line. Quantum states that when poor communication transpires from the top down, it can cost large organizations millions of dollars each year. For leaders to be effective, communication is not just part of the job—it is the job. Thriving organizations will have open lines of communication, from the top down. Below you will find 8 best practices to improve your leadership communication skills: Best Practices for Leadership Communication: 1. Great leaders value transparency: Leaders that demonstrate transparency strive to practice what they preach and consistently have clear expectations and communicate effectively. This requires a desire and willingness to be open and honest with your teams, while also demonstrating a level of humility and vulnerability. 2. Great leaders have confidence: If you display a lack of confidence, your teams may feel apprehensive and apathetic. It is critical to display a level of confidence that is unique to you, so it does not come off at arrogant or too forthcoming. Confidence helps to bring uniformity and trust to your team. 3. Great leaders listen more than they talk and encourage dialogue: As mentioned above, effective communication goes both ways. Encourage your employees to speak up, provide feedback, and ask questions. 4. Great leaders have strong coaching skills: Employee coaching is an integral part of performance support and management because it empowers employees and is key to building and maintaining a self-motivated team. 5. Great leaders communicate goals and responsibilities clearly: Giving clear direction is one of the most important tasks for any great leader. By communicating the visions and goals, or something as simple as job responsibilities, leaders help motivate the team to achieve top efficiency and success. 6. Great leaders know their audience and utilize the storytelling approach: True leaders naturally demonstrate respect for their employees and their organization and understand that storytelling has the ability to resonate and engage those people. The storytelling approach can also help to build empathy within the organization. 7. Great leaders understand the importance of training: A good leader believes that the development and growth of their employees is pertinent to the success of the organization. They lead by example. Leaders know that training is an opportunity for employees to not only improve their skills and grow their knowledge base, but also become more effective in the office. 8. Great leaders challenge their employees: Leaders are not just present to support their teams, but they also need to challenge their employees to be the best that they can and reach their full potential. This can include everything from pushing employees out of their comfort zones to mentoring and career advancement opportunities. Great leaders do not all lead the same way or have the same approaches for their teams. Nonetheless, for an organization to truly be run efficiently and effectively, it must have effective communication at the leadership level. Continue to develop communication by showing confidence and conciseness with all levels of employees. Communicate with distinction by focusing on direction and strategy. Define skills by using storytelling and connecting with your people. Remember, communication is at the heart of every successful organization, and it all starts at the leadership level. Your Reflections: 1. What do you believe are your strengths in communication as a leader? 2. Can you recall a time when your effective communication made a significant impact on a project or team outcome? 3. What challenges have you faced in your leadership communication, and how have you addressed them? ------------------------------------------------------------xxxx--------------------------------------------------------------- Building your resilience We all face trauma, adversity, and other stresses. Here’s a roadmap for adapting to life-changing situations, and emerging even stronger than before. Imagine you’re going to take a raft trip down a river. Along with slow water and shallows, your map shows that you will encounter unavoidable rapids and turns. How would you make sure you can safely cross the rough waters and handle any unexpected problems that come from the challenge? Perhaps you would enlist the support of more experienced rafters as you plan your route or rely on the companionship of trusted friends along the way. Maybe you would pack an extra life jacket or consider using a stronger raft. With the right tools and supports in place, one thing is sure: You will not only make it through the challenges of your river adventure. You will also emerge a more confident and courageous rafter. What is resilience? Life may not come with a map, but everyone will experience twists and turns, from everyday challenges to traumatic events with more lasting impact, like the death of a loved one, a life-altering accident, or a serious illness. Each change affects people differently, bringing a unique flood of thoughts, strong emotions, and uncertainty. Yet people generally adapt well over time to life-changing situations and stressful situations — in part thanks to resilience. Psychologists define resilience as the process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats, or significant sources of stress—such as family and relationship problems, serious health problems, or workplace and financial stressors. As much as resilience involves “bouncing back” from these difficult experiences, it can also involve profound personal growth. While these adverse events, much like rough river waters, are certainly painful and difficult, they don’t have to determine the outcome of your life. There are many aspects of your life you can control, modify, and grow with. That’s the role of resilience. Becoming more resilient not only helps you get through difficult circumstances, it also empowers you to grow and even improve your life along the way. What resilience isn’t: Being resilient doesn’t mean that a person won’t experience difficulty or distress. People who have suffered major adversity or trauma in their lives commonly experience emotional pain and stress. In fact, the road to resilience is likely to involve considerable emotional distress. While certain factors might make some individuals more resilient than others, resilience isn’t necessarily a personality trait that only some people possess. On the contrary, resilience involves behaviours, thoughts, and actions that anyone can learn and develop. The ability to learn resilience is one reason research has shown that resilience is ordinary, not extraordinary. One example is the response of many Americans to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and individuals’ efforts to rebuild their lives after tragedy. Like building a muscle, increasing your resilience takes time and intentionality. Focusing on four core components—connection, wellness, healthy thinking, and meaning—can empower you to withstand and learn from difficult and traumatic experiences. To increase your capacity for resilience to weather—and grow from—the difficulties, use these strategies. Build your connections Prioritize relationships. Connecting with empathetic and understanding people can remind you that you’re not alone in the midst of difficulties. Focus on finding trustworthy and compassionate individuals who validate your feelings, which will support the skill of resilience. The pain of traumatic events can lead some people to isolate themselves, but it’s important to accept help and support from those who care about you. Whether you go on a weekly date night with your spouse or plan a lunch out with a friend, try to prioritize genuinely connecting with people who care about you. Join a group. Along with one-on-one relationships, some people find that being active in civic groups, faith-based communities, or other local organizations provides social support and can help you reclaim hope. Research groups in your area that could offer you support and a sense of purpose or joy when you need it. Foster wellness Take care of your body. Self-care may be a popular buzzword, but it’s also a legitimate practice for mental health and building resilience. That’s because stress is just as much physical as it is emotional. Promoting positive lifestyle factors like proper nutrition, ample sleep, hydration, and regular exercise can strengthen your body to adapt to stress and reduce the toll of emotions like anxiety or depression. Practice mindfulness. Mindful journaling, yoga, and other spiritual practices like prayer or meditation can also help people build connections and restore hope, which can prime them to deal with situations that require resilience. When you journal, meditate, or pray, ruminate on positive aspects of your life and recall the things you’re grateful for, even during personal trials. Avoid negative outlets. It may be tempting to mask your pain with alcohol, drugs, or other substances, but that’s like putting a bandage on a deep wound. Focus instead on giving your body resources to manage stress, rather than seeking to eliminate the feeling of stress altogether. Find purpose. Help others. Whether you volunteer with a local homeless shelter or simply support a friend in their own time of need, you can garner a sense of purpose, foster self-worth, connect with other people, and tangibly help others, all of which can empower you to grow in resilience. Be proactive. It’s helpful to acknowledge and accept your emotions during hard times, but it’s also important to help you foster self-discovery by asking yourself, “What can I do about a problem in my life?” If the problems seem too big to tackle, break them down into manageable pieces. For example, if you got laid off at work, you may not be able to convince your boss it was a mistake to let you go. But you can spend an hour each day developing your top strengths or working on your resume. Taking initiative will remind you that you can muster motivation and purpose even during stressful periods of your life, increasing the likelihood that you’ll rise up during painful times again. Move toward your goals. Develop some realistic goals and do something regularly— even if it seems like a small accomplishment— that enables you to move toward the things you want to accomplish. Instead of focusing on tasks that seem unachievable, ask yourself, “What’s one thing I know I can accomplish today that helps me move in the direction I want to go?” For example, if you’re struggling with the loss of a loved one and you want to move forward, you could join a grief support group in your area. Look for opportunities for self-discovery. People often find that they have grown in some respect as a result of a struggle. For example, after a tragedy or hardship, people have reported better relationships and a greater sense of strength, even while feeling vulnerable. That can increase their sense of self-worth and heighten their appreciation for life. Embrace healthy thoughts. Keep things in perspective. How you think can play a significant part in how you feel— and how resilient you are when faced with obstacles. Try to identify areas of irrational thinking, such as a tendency to catastrophize difficulties or assume the world is out to get you, and adopt a more balanced and realistic thinking pattern. For instance, if you feel overwhelmed by a challenge, remind yourself that what happened to you isn’t an indicator of how your future will go, and that you’re not helpless. You may not be able to change a highly stressful event, but you can change how you interpret and respond to it. Accept change. Accept that change is a part of life. Certain goals or ideals may no longer be attainable as a result of adverse situations in your life. Accepting circumstances that cannot be changed can help you focus on circumstances that you can alter. Maintain a hopeful outlook. It’s hard to be positive when life isn’t going your way. An optimistic outlook empowers you to expect that good things will happen to you. Try visualizing what you want, rather than worrying about what you fear. Along the way, note any subtle ways in which you start to feel better as you deal with difficult situations. Learn from your past. By looking back at who or what was helpful in previous times of distress, you may discover how you can respond effectively to new difficult situations. Remind yourself of where you’ve been able to find strength and ask yourself what you’ve learned from those experiences. Seeking help Getting help when you need it is crucial in building your resilience. For many people, using their own resources and the kinds of strategies listed above may be enough for building their resilience. But at times, an individual might get stuck or have difficulty making progress on the road to resilience. A licensed mental health professional such as a psychologist can assist people in developing an appropriate strategy for moving forward. It is important to get professional help if you feel like you are unable to function as well as you would like or perform basic activities of daily living as a result of a traumatic or other stressful life experience. Keep in mind that different people tend to be comfortable with different styles of interaction. To get the most out of your therapeutic relationship, you should feel at ease with a mental health professional or in a support group. The important thing is to remember you’re not alone on the journey. While you may not be able to control all of your circumstances, you can grow by focusing on the aspects of life’s challenges you can manage with the support of loved ones and trusted professionals. Your Reflections: 1. What are some of the strategies you use or apply in your daily life to stay resilient as a leader and as an individual? (you may mention a few strategies from the article above or any other different approach that you follow) 2. Why do you think it is crucial to stay resilient in today’s work environment? ------------------------------------------------------------xxxx---------------------------------------------------------------