My entire career has been built on the principle of trust in relationships: with executives, team members, partners, and suppliers. I believe a company’s culture is created through trusting relationships. I wrote about this in a 2022 blog post about trust in business:
“Organizations are made of people, and we know that people can shift the partner relationship one interaction at a time. We tend to think we’re in a B2B world. However, at AchieveUnite, we like to think of the world in which we live as Human to Human (H2H).”
So, how do we create trust, especially within our own teams?
We know that collaboration is a key component of trust, and the more we collaborate, the easier it is to get to know our team members and share ideas and experiences. Trust is built over time via many interactions, and while collaboration is a big part of this process, so are difficult situations. We recently hosted a LinkedIn Live event on The Science of Partnering Trust where Sergio Bea, Vice President of Global Enterprise & Channels at Accedian, talked about creating a culture of connection and trust:
“It’s in the tough times when all the things you’ve invested in building trust with your teams, with your colleagues, with your customers, with your partners. That’s the moment when they come through for you. And I’ve seen it. I’ve seen it multiple times. So, to me, it’s that trust building throughout the years is absolutely critical to business outcomes.”
Knowing how challenging it can be to create trust and collaboration in teams and with partners, AchieveUnite built an assessment called PQi®, or Partnering Quotient Index, that helps business teams identify their individual partnering tendencies. PQi® workshops then build awareness, support behavior changes, and teach applications relevant to your organization and your goals. Our clients report that this work accelerates trust in team and partnering relationships, creates unity, and promotes collaboration.
Trust-building is especially important during mergers and acquisitions. The M&A process is time-consuming and can be exhausting if team members are not well integrated into a collaborative, trusting culture. Collaboration and trust allow for a greater sense of ownership and accountability within teams. When working together on a project, each team member contributes to the end goal in a uniquely meaningful way. This can help to foster a sense of pride and accomplishment that can drive your business forward.
“You get these two teams with different cultures and different styles and suddenly you bring them together. And most of us have never been in the room together. And trying to work remotely where we’re scattered all over; it was a real challenge. We all came [together for PQi] and it was life altering and energizing. The ability for my team to be more productive, understanding each other’s skill sets and how we work better together was just immediately seen to the point where I said, ‘We need this for the whole organization.’” – Dalyn Wertz, Executive Director, Indirect Channel Program & Marketing at Comcast Business.
PQi® is the first-of-its-kind, scientifically verified psychometric assessment that measures how and how well we build trust, the foundation of all relationships and partnerships. PQi® was developed with researchers at leading business schools at the University of Notre Dame, Arizona State University, and the University of Glasgow. It works by opening a dialog about how we individually approach partnerships and helps us see how others might approach them differently.
“We had sellers from Korea, Japan, the UK, Latin America, France, the U.S., and Spain. And what PQi gave us was this new common language that crossed cultural lines. It was such a wonderful way to begin the entire session. And we did carry it out throughout the time that we were together the rest of the week. It was kind of magical…because it enriches your level of conversation immediately, and you’re able to really engage in a very genuine, productive way from the go.” –Dr. Renee Velez Pizarro, WW Commercial Segment and Digital Sales Director, Hewlett Packard Enterprise.
Could a tool like PQi help your organization thrive and grow? Contact us today!
