Did you know that trust and rapport are two different concepts?
Trust is defined as assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something.
Rapport is a friendly, harmonious relationship, especially a relationship characterized by agreement, mutual understanding, or empathy that makes communication possible or easy.
In other words, you trust in someone and, by extension, the information they share. You count on their authenticity and believe in what they say and do because they have established a level of trust with you. It's a one-way relationship - you trust someone because of their history of reliability in thought or action.
With rapport, there is a relationship established whereby both parties are in agreement. It's a two-way relationship. The parties involved have mutually worked to create the understanding that all enjoy.
Why is this important when we think of the process of taking on a change?
Because we need both trust and rapport to be successful in a change effort, but frequently the aspect of trust is the one that takes center stage. That's because there is a natural emphasis on leaders gaining the trust of their employees. It might be what some would consider table stakes - no one will follow a leader that they don't trust.
Therefore, the focus is on how best to establish trust with your team.
However, you can trust that someone is telling you the truth, that they are painting an accurate picture and still not be willing to make a change. It's quite possible to inherently understand that the information is clear and unambiguous but not to agree with what you are being told. Or not to "buy-in" to the change.
Developing rapport will take a concerted effort and require a different approach than establishing trust. The work to stand up the mutual understanding and free flow of communication that is the core of change agility is different from simply establishing your reliability as a trusted source of information. It's the absolute requirement for creating the change capability of a team, but it doesn't happen without an intentional process.
Note: the state of rapport can be conflated with liking someone. It is not the same thing. Liking someone is nice, but rapport is more foundational in a relationship for supporting change. You don't have to like everyone you work with to have rapport with them. Liking everyone you work with is a pretty high bar, to be honest.
How do you create the circumstance that fosters rapport?
Not surprisingly, much of this is based on good communication practice and process. Open dialogue, mutual problem identification and mitigation, are essential. Then develop messaging continuously going up and down the organization chart to create the atmosphere needed for the "pull the line" permission for new processes and technologies. If all parties are committed to the change, that will establish a mutual agreement that results in rapport.
Bottom line: Creating rapport means that leaders trust that their team is going to optimize the new process and technology, and the team trusts that leadership understands the impact of the new process or technology on the work of the team.
TIP OF THE WEEK
Don't take building rapport for granted, make the investment in time and resources to accomplish a highly functioning team.
A well-executed facilitation plan can build rapport for a team. It's especially important to include virtual facilitation expertise to fully engage remote team members.
ARTICLE OF THE WEEK
We've talked a lot in the past few months about the process of change management. How do we get from where we are to where we want to be.
This article is a great snapshot of the process of change. Action, movement, momentum. Most change initiatives follow this general guideline. Read more here.
We've been working on a ton of new change management tips and resources for you!
I'm honored to be speaking at SCDM Live. The Society for Clinical Data Management is an international organization of over 2,400 members, "connecting and inspiring professionals managing global health data." This year, at the annual SCDM Live conference, I'll be speaking about how to "Stop Playing Small" and the value in Clinical Data Managers using LinkedIn to boost personal branding.
I'm also excited to have been asked to speak at Berlin Change Days. Berlin Change Days is an international conference and workshop for change-makers and facilitators. I'll discuss how we can create a plan to connect again and establish a personal plan for reconnection after 2020.
Don't forget: Week to Change and season two of The Change Manifesto are also LIVE.
See you soon --
