Credibility: How Leaders Gain and Lose It: Why People Demand it

Create a Climate for Learning

Developing capacity requires that leaders provide a climate conducive to learning. As discussed in Chapter Four, for people to be capable of learning they have to be in an environment in which they feel safe. Why the concern for safe surroundings? Because when people are learning, they never get it right the first time. Mistakes are inevitable. People need to know that failure while learning won't be punished. That means they have to trust the system and the people involved. A learning climate, characterized by trust and openness, is a critical precursor to any successful organizational change effort.14

With trust and openness comes greater willingness to communicate about feelings and about problems. As individuals ...