Throughout my extensive career in this photoluminescent life safety specialty, I have been a communicator of ideas that have sharpened the professional skills of experts I have been fortunate to work with over the years since 1988. To help Educate & Inspire the professionals I connect with in the future, I wanted to touch on the important topic of trust in this latest edition of From the General Manager’s Desk.
First Let’s Define Trust
Trust is hard to define and there is not a crystal-clear definition of trust in the business world.
Merriam-Webster defines trust as:
- 1a: assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something.
- 1b: one in which confidence is placed.
- 2a: dependence on something future or contingent: HOPE
In business, trust is choosing to be vulnerable and willing to take calculated risks. When a person or a business says they trust you and/or your organization, what they are really saying is they are willing to be vulnerable and take that risk of doing business with you.
“The best way to find out if you can trust somebody is to trust them.”
Ernest Hemingway
Words That Communicate Trust
Honesty, Respect, Loyalty, Transparency, Consistency, Openness, Sincerity, Assurance, Reliability, and Integrity.
Why Trust is Important
Trust in business is difficult to understand, therefore, I want to communicate why trust is important.
What does it take to be a successful business? What causes success?
In business, multiple factors lead to success, but nothing is more important than relationships. The factor that causes success the most is relationships. Professional business relationships between leaders and employees, strategic partners and companies, businesses and customers, suppliers and companies, etc. The essence of an effective business is relationships, and the cornerstone of every relationship is TRUST.
When Trust is Present
Its presence cements relationships by allowing people to live and work together, feel safe, and belong to a group. Trust makes people feel eager to be part of a group, with a shared purpose and a willingness to depend on each other.
When trust is intact, people will willingly contribute what is needed, not just by offering our presence, but also by sharing our dedication, talent, energy, and honest thoughts on how the relationship or group is working.
How to Build Trust
In business interactions, people can intuitively feel when trust is present or not present. Trust can take a long time to build, and a split second to lose through a non-mindful act. By establishing professional relationships, positively contributing to those business relationships, and trusting the other professional/organization within the relationship, trust will build over time. If both professionals/organizations of the business relationship perform these critical steps, the relationship will be mutually beneficial for many years.
How Trust is Broken
Many Professionals today have “trust issues” with companies they do business with and for justifiable reasons.
Trust is hard to define, but we do know when it’s lost. When that happens, we withdraw our energy and level of engagement. The absence of trust can cause fragmentation, conflict, poor performance, and relationships to end.
The most common ways trust is broken in business relationships include dishonesty, lack of follow-through, and inconsistency.
How to Repair Trust
To restore trust, you must uncover the root of the problem that caused you and/or your organization to lose the trust of your business relationship or relationships. Always remember that you cannot buy the trust of your employees, customers, colleagues, partnerships, or your competitors. It must be earned and if lost, repaired. There are multiple strategies your organization can implement to repair trust, but each approach has its limitations and will be dependent on the event that caused the trust to be broken.
Here at American PERMALIGHT®
Our team does everything we can to increase the level of trust potential customers, current customers, strategic partners, vendors, and competitors have for our organization.
Since our inception back in 1988, American PERMALIGHT® has been known for manufacturing quality products and providing excellent customer service. Most professionals within this photoluminescent niche industry fail to realize that we were the trailblazers leading the charge for the Codes and Standards for this non-electrical, non-radioactive technology to be implemented, adopted, and enforced within the United States.
Every decision our organization makes is centered around trust, and this is demonstrated through our continuous commitment that goes above and beyond the Standard of Care associated with this critical photoluminescent life safety industry.
This is also visible in the continuous innovation our team creates within the life safety industry, and the photoluminescent specialty market we serve. Through our latest innovative solution, Professional Offerings & Services by American PERMALIGHT®, we are pioneering a new approach that establishes even greater trust, complete transparency, and value above and beyond products and customer service.
Trust in today’s competitive market is deeply engrained into our differentiation strategy and is the key component of our goal to provide our PERMALIGHT® Certified Partners a sustainable competitive advantage that is mutually beneficial for both organizations.
Thank You for reading and should you or a member of your team need anything, please do not hesitate to reach out.
I hope you have an awesome month while staying healthy and safe.
Marina Batzke
American PERMALIGHT® General Manager
