September 2026 · Provocation
Trust as a value. 🤔
Trust is of such fundamental importance that it is one of the three pillars of my practice. But is it a value? Nope.
A cursory search reveals that '60–70% of organisations list trust as a value'.
I do not believe that to be true. I do not trust that information, in fact.
And that's a neat segue to my concern about the word 'trust' appearing in organisational values sets.
You cannot 'do' trust.
Trust is neither a decision nor a behaviour. It is something other people give you as a result of your decisions and behaviours.
What you can do is honesty. Truthfulness. Consistency. Reliability. Even ... and this pains me a little ... integrity.
You can choose to build trust through those things.
Trust is of such fundamental importance that it is one of the three pillars of my practice.
But is it a value?
Nope.
Erika Clegg, strategic adviser to founder-led and family-owned organisations. Start a conversation.