When Paul Krugman of the New York Times and Brett Stevens from the Wall Street Journal both agree that Trump is a bad idea for America and Brexit is a bad idea for Britain, you’d think we’d have a clean sweep majority on what’s best for the world.  Not the case.  Why?  Because the votes are not about left and right.  The votes are about winners and losers in the global economy.  I was shocked when Trump secured one win after the other.  I thought he would fade quickly.  I was dismayed by the Brexit vote and thought in the end, Britain would vote to remain in the EU.  What this teaches me is that I’m out of touch with a segment of America and the world that is feeling angry, disenfranchised, and tired of shibboleths by both conservative and liberal politicians.  People are hoping for a new world that involves trade barriers, bashing bankers, and blocking immigrants.  

The message is a wake-up call for capitalism in America and the world.  We all know globalization is creating winners and losers - many of us were just not aware of how bad it is.  Anyone reading this blog is probably on the winning side of globalization.  The losers in the massive economic shift are hungry for solutions.  American companies must get involved in the business of providing hope.  

The dream of every CEO is a workforce that is deeply committed to a company’s purpose and mission.  Mark Wetterau, the Chairman and CEO of Golden State Foods (GSF), has made unusual progress on this journey.  He believes a key reason is how the GSF Foundation was uniquely positioned to tap into the hearts and minds of thousands of employees.  The story is unique and provides great learning for any CEO. 

As background, Golden State Foods employs approximately 6,000 people and was established nearly 70 years ago. The company provides food products, including protein, liquids, dairy, produce and distribution services to quick service restaurants and retail companies such as Starbucks, McDonald’s, 7-Eleven and Costco. GSF was founded on a strong set of values. These are not just ideals. They are real-world valuespracticed on a daily basis.

Leadership is a relationship between the leader and those who choose to follow.  Trust is the foundation of that relationship.  If you break trust, you damage your future as a leader.  Trust is complex, but it can be broken down into four habits that, if practiced regularly, will raise your “trust meter” significantly whether you are the leader or the one who chooses to follow.   

In a 2015 podcast interview, Rob Reindl and I talked in detail about the four key habits for building trust across an organization. Rob is the former head of HR for Edwards LifeSciences.  Edwards is the global leader in the science of heart valves and hermodynamic monitoring. The company is known in the health care space for its outstanding culture of trust.