5 Ways to Build Trust and Loyalty

Employee trust and loyalty are essential to building a successful company.

And they go hand in hand–when employees trust the organization and its leaders, they are more loyal.

One of the best leaders in this area is Pat Gelsinger, former CEO of VMware and current CEO of Intel. In 2019, Pat was voted the best CEO in America for large companies, with a staggering 99% employee approval rating.

Clearly, he’s doing something right.

Here are five things Pat does to build trust and loyalty with his employees:

1. Understand the work. Leaders need to be actively involved in the work. You can relate to your employees differently when you understand the details of their work and how each part contributes to the company’s overall goals.
2. Be willing to have fun. Break out of the mold of a typical CEO and be yourself. Put yourself out there and be willing to have fun with your employees. That’s what builds real connections and relationships with employees.
3. Encourage and celebrate innovation. Make sure employees have the tools, resources, and mentoring they need to do their best work. Encourage employees to collaborate and take risks. Reward innovation and experimentation, even if the ideas don’t succeed.
4. Be accessible. Employees trust leaders who are authentic and vulnerable. Be accessible online and in person so employees can get to know the real you. That means stepping away from your desk to spend time with employees.
5. Focus on doing good. Attitude is everything. When you focus more on doing good and helping others than serving yourself, employees will see your humility and generosity. They’ll follow your example and want to do good and serve the company as well.

Trust and loyalty come from being authentic and building relationships with employees. When employees know you as a human, not just as a leader, they are more likely to trust you and stay loyal to the company.

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