If the popular quote, “Employees don’t leave bad companies, they leave bad bosses,” is to be believed, then why aren’t bosses getting wiser? Why are companies continuing to foster antiquated notions of how to create thriving cultures and brands, yet advancing and encouraging managers who continue to lead ineffectively?

To answer this question, there are a few assumptions to consider:

• When you are promoted to “boss” you’re now “in charge.” You have the positional authority and clout to ensure your message is received as intended, those who follow you will abide by your direction and recommendations, and you are a person of influence.
• Employees believe that their boss will have the company’s best interest at heart, representing what is right for all involved, even at their own personal or professional cost.
• Because employees follow the direction of the manager to meet expectations, the employees trust the manager. They believe the manager is looking out for them while guiding the team, department and company towards shared success.

These assumptions, however, are often false.

First, positional authority — or positional power —  is not the same thing as having influence. Employees will often follow their boss’s instructions not because they feel inspired or motivated to do so, but because their paycheck depends on it. A Harvard Business Review article about toxic bosses shares that often, when the boss is out for themselves and their own self-interest, the team and the organization suffer. No longer do employees blindly trust that their boss (or their boss’s boss) is looking out for them or is necessarily forthcoming and truthful.

In today’s work environment, employees are more skeptical, critical and even vocal (on online company review sites, with friends and colleagues, and sometimes with clients) about their disappointment over the lack of trust they feel for their boss and the company that supports them.

How to Build Trust

In fact, trust is not a difficult thing to grow. Some may follow a philosophy of “trust but verify,” while others trust blindly, believing all people are generally good and forthcoming, and others aren’t aware that the faith they put in their boss is trust.

How can learning and development (L&D) leaders help managers build trust and credibility?

Here’s a clear formula that has been tested and taught across industries, professions and cultures for more than three decades: Values + Action = Credibility.

Let’s consider the formula in more detail, which you can incorporate into your leadership training programs:

1. What are your personal values — not your parents’ values, your colleague’s, partner’s, cultural or community values, but your values? What is the moral lens through which you evaluate and make decisions, and determine which options you’ll pursue (that you believe are “good” or “right”) and which you’ll refute (that you believe are “bad” or “wrong”)?
2. How do your actions align with your values? Those you seek to lead and influence need to see evidence of your actions matching what you claim to believe. Then, and only then, can trust and credibility emerge.

Most leaders will profess they are leading through their values and morals — and they may be. However, unless they connect the stated value to the observed action, credibility isn’t formed. It’s only when the value is clearly made known, and then others see tough decisions, choices and behaviors that correlate to that value, that trust is built.

How Trust Becomes Fractured

When people fail to share what they stand for and believe (i.e., their values) or if they fail to live consistent with their values (i.e., their actions), the formula falls apart. As leaders continue to navigate change and competing interests, values can be tested. It’s those moments when employees see the cracks form. Consider the manager who professes to prioritize and value collaboration and teamwork yet takes credit for the project’s success because they fear their career is in jeopardy. Imagine the manager who encourages others to be honest with them because they value integrity, and then they are found out to be hoarding information and are not being forthcoming.

Trust is fragile. It can take a long time to build and can be fractured in a few misplaced strokes of the keyboard or a poorly phrased comment. Social media, instant and constant information, highly skeptical and scrutinizing employees have all driven increased pressure on the trust muscle some leaders are trying to develop.

How to Rebuild Trust

When thinking about repairing broken trust, think of the Japanese art of Kintsugi. Here, when something breaks — a ceramic or glass bowl, for example — it is repaired with gold, “creating a more beautiful object through the acts of breaking and repair.” Kintsugi encourages fixing rather than discarding, thus placing a higher value on the objects brought into our lives. The idea represents an acceptance that things break, and how they are treated after they’re ruined can affect how they are seen. The same goes for people and trust.

Regaining trust from employees who might have one foot out the door with their boss isn’t simple or easy.

Here are three steps you can train leaders on for rebuilding trust:

1. Understand what happened: A situation where you’re caught making an unguarded, disparaging remark about a co-worker can be highly unprofessional and damaging. It could cause your team to question your overall attitude toward them, their work and your commitment to shared values. By understanding what led you to speak in such a reckless way, you can see why you blurted out these views.
2. Own where you fell short: In the above example, it’s obvious that an apology to the co-worker is warranted. They may or may not choose to forgive you, and your actions could have damaged the relationship beyond repair. You may also need to apologize to your team for the unprofessional way you spoke about another member of the leadership team. Accountability for your mistake will help them see that you can admit when you’re wrong.
3. Verbalize and then act to make change: With what you’ve learned, and your accountability, now communicate how you’ll avoid making the same mistake again. Then — most importantly — do what you’ve said you’ll do to prevent repeating the mistake.

To be a boss that people want to work hard for, to be a leader who empowers and grows their teams to be bigger and greater than they thought possible, means understanding, valuing and protecting the trust you have at all costs. Training leaders on the tips outlined in this article can help them begin building and repairing trust, fostering a workplace culture where employees feel respected, supported and motivated to do their best work.