Transcript

Hey, everyone, I hope this video finds you well.

And I know, I need a haircut. Someone asked me recently when your organization is going through a lot of change, specifically structural change, how do you maintain trust as a leader within your organization?

Really good question. And we’ve gone through quite a bit of change in the last six months at Brokers International. So as I sat down and thought about the 5 or 6 things that I think about, I thought I would share those comments with you.

And the first thing I always do or attempt to do is share why we’re making the change and more importantly, what the expectation is once that change has been made. I let people know my thinking or the process behind what we’re doing and allow them to ask questions and more importantly, share their concerns.

So I attempt to address their concerns before they ask them. And then I’ll ask, what other concerns do you have that I’ve missed? And often people just sharing or having the ability to share some of their concerns gets some of that anxiety off their chest. So I always ask about the concerns.

I’m as transparent as possible. And I also admit when I don’t know something, Hey, we’re going to make this change might take 3 or 4 months,but I don’t have the exact dates.

And quite frankly, I’m not sure at this point in time how much resource it’s going to take, but I wanted you to know the change is coming and why the change is coming. So again, set the expectation that change is coming. Address the concerns that you know people are going to have.

Next, include as many people as you possibly can. Not only in the planning, but the implementation as well. Make sure that you’re getting as many people to be on board and help with that implementation because as they start to implement, they’ll own it and understand it.

Set realistic expectations and make it safe. Allow your employees to address their concerns, whether that’s anonymously, in a 1-on-1 setting, in a group setting. So if you set those expectations, if you’re transparent and you’re open and you’re honest and you address concerns, I believe people will understand why you’re doing it.

They don’t have to agree, but they need to understand.

I hope that helps.

And good luck with any changes you’re implementing.