The IABC Handbook of Organizational Communication: A Guide to Internal Communication, Public Relations, Marketing, and Leadership

The Organizational Trust Model

We hope the argument for doing something about organizational trust has been convincing. Yet the obvious questions remain: What can be done? How can trust building become more intentional and less elusive or accidental? There is no final answer, but we think identifying five critical drivers of trust provides a framework for both leaders and communication professionals to begin to consciously and intentionally build trust.

Earlier we referenced the research we conducted that was sponsored by the International Association of Business Communicators Research Foundation. We described our review of more than 3,500 research studies describing organizational trust. The specific research that forms the basis of the five ...