Audience: Leaders and Managers
Overview: What elements are involved in developing trust and high-performing teams?
By: Cynthia Kyriazis, Chief Experience Officer, The Culture Think Tank
As the Chief Experience Officer for our company, I have the privilege of having conversations with all types of professionals interested in discussing what it takes to develop and maintain a healthy organizational culture.
This includes conversations with clients, prospects, and even internal discussions.
Notice that I don’t talk about only what it takes to develop a healthy culture, but also what it takes to maintain one.
After all, cultures of any kind are living, breathing entities filled with human beings who want clear communication and need a high level of trust to perform at their very best level. In fact, it’s proven that high-performing teams require high levels of trust in order to live up to their full potential.
So when I’m asked ‘What does it take to have a culture someone wants to join or remain working for?’ I need to thank my colleague, Delise Simmons, our Chief Culture Officer.
Years ago she helped all of us understand that what employees want is fairly straightforward. They want their leaders to…listen to what they need.…care about their need(s)…and take some type of action to begin to address the need(s).
Keep in mind that action doesn’t have to 'fix everything.' However it does need to least show and communicate that a first step is being taken, progress and communication continue, and the ball isn’t dropped.
And this leads me to football. Yes. Football.
I didn’t become a football aficionado until a few years ago and for me Super Bowl LVII was both a bit stressful and fun. Why? Because I lived in Philadelphia for 20 years and have lived in Kansas City for an almost equal amount of time.
I truly love my friends in Philly, but support my local team wherever I am. OK, now that you have a bit of context the common denominator here for me is…Andy Reid.
I’ve been somewhat fascinated with Andy for a while. In press meetings, the players frequently reference his leadership, his style, what he expects, and how he makes them feel.
But I am an inquiring mind that needs to know. I wanted to know how his ‘magic’ works.
And then it happened. Someone forwarded this post to me (Chiefs Coach Andy Reid uses 1 simple tactic to build trust with his players—and anyone can do it) and I melted away.
An awesome one-minute, 421-word Master Class on how to build trust and a high-performing team.
Listen. Care. Act.
No magic. Just a consistent, honored, human-centered approach.
Do you practice this type of approach? Are you consistent? Are there biases that might be getting in the way?
Maybe you can go out there, toss the ball around and think about how to begin. Remember, no magic is needed.
PS I wrote this post before Superbowl LVII results were in. After the Chiefs won, I watched player media interviews and heard some remarks about Andy Reid and his leadership…but mostly about his humanness…
He takes 53 grown men and helps them grow their abilities while not disrespecting them.
I respect his leadership and I try to be as much of a leader as he is.
Travis Kelce
He's a coach for the players. He's amazing. I hurt myself last game and he cared about me.
I got the help I needed and worked overtime to get ready for this game. Because Andy is amazing.
JuJu Smith-Schuster
He’s a great coach, but he’s really a great human being because he really cares about people. He cares about us as men and players and that’s why you hear us speak so highly of him. He really cares about us.
Pat Mahomes
Cynthia Kyriazis is the Chief Experience Officer at The Culture Think Tank. Her experience includes executive coaching, meeting facilitation, consulting and training