Seek Openness – Not Transparency
New Book giveaway!!
20 complimentary copies available.
Leave a comment on this guest post by Edgar and Peter A. Schein to become eligible to win one of TWENTY complimentary copies of “Humble Leadership: The Power of Relationships, Openness, and Trust.”
(Deadline: 8/18/2018)
*International winners will receive digital versions.
Transparency is a cardinal value of traditional management culture. Yet, transparency is distinct from the social interaction concept of openness.
All too often, transparency and openness have very different impacts on the human beings running organizations.
Machine transparency:
Transparency could be thought of as a feature of a machine that provides unfiltered visibility into its inner workings. A “well-oiled machine” designed with transparency might display its efficient productivity to all employees, leaders, and customers. Is this the path to productivity, quality, safety, and innovation?
Human openness:
Humans in organizations are not elements, nodes, or “cogs” with their output rates measured as transactions along value chains. If this is what we seek when “we value transparency,” we should not be surprised when communication does not increase, productivity remains flat, and attrition rates increase.
What if a talented engineer leaving for another company told you in an exit interview that she felt that transparency worked against her, controlling her, rather than empowering her? Would you still value transparency in the same way?
Reduced trust:
In starkest terms, transparency can be experienced as a weapon (of mass control) as much as it is a tool (of mass communication). How we frame “transparency” in our assumptions and values impacts how employees perceive it—and, all too often, the impact is that it reduces trust.
Relational systems:
In our work, we have found companies can improve their success and grow by focusing on building trust between people in relational systems. If transparency is a visual attribute of a physical system, trust is a collective, interpersonal dimension of a relational system.
Trust is built through mutual openness instead of transparency.
We prefer to think of organizations as human systems in 2018. Leaders in these organizations succeed and grow through improving their connectedness (personal “Level 2” relationships), rather than by increasing transactional throughput in “well-oiled machines.”
Trust:
By emphasizing trust, we emphasize the mutuality of work relationships. This is why we have chosen to emphasize “openness,” which is what two work colleagues who trust each other can leverage to optimize the information flow required to make decisions.
If transparency is a throughput attribute of a machine, openness is a shared process of a group that filters and features information that others need to produce and improve results.
Share your thoughts and insights for a chance to win a copy of Humble Leadership.
About the authors:
Edgar H. Schein is Professor Emeritus from the M.I.T. Sloan School of Management. He’s a pioneer in organizational studies, organizational culture and leadership, process consulting, career development. Ed’s contributions to the practice of O.D. date back to the early 1960s and continue with the recent publication of Organizational Culture and Leadership 5th edition and now Humble Leadership: The Power of Relationships, Openness, and Trust, co-authored with Peter A. Schein, co-founder of OCLI.org who brings 30 years of hands-on experience in large and small companies leading growth initiatives in Silicon Valley.
Looks like this would be a great read for me and my team!
Thank you for the pause for reflection on how I define transparency for my team. In framing it as openness and the human relation, I believe it will strengthen our interactions.
Had not thought of transparency this way before! Fascinating comparision between machines and humans…
I am currently working on a trust and team building workshop and a lot of it focuses around openness and transparency I hadn’t thought that there was such a difference between the two but this book will be fantastic as a reference for that course.
My working definition of transparency has been openness, so the information here is nothing new for me. I agree with the importance of building trust.
Prior to reading, I viewed “openess” and transparency one in the same.. Reading this post and viewing transparency as concrete ( machine).. I can see where openess is favored. In the example of the exit interview.. I don’t see being transparent with someone can be controlling them but rather speaking a truth.. I guess it boils down on how you frame the transparency… This post left me FULL from the food for thought.. thanks!
Hi Dan,
I love the idea of humble leadership and think in review that I am a proponent. There is no greater leadership trait than knowing your Staff – by name and person. From there, the rest flows and all sort of other leadership aspects that we NEED to use to be successul, is accepted well by Staff because we KNOW them.
Trust is key!
As someone who has used the word ‘transparency’ frequently since an internal promotion (after a 10 year stent) to Director, this book looks like a must read. The intention behind this concept has certainly been to enhance communication, promote teamwork and empower employees to have ownership in the everyday operations and successes of our organization. It also felt natural as I had been the co-worker of every person on the team the day prior to accepting the position. There is no way to quantify the importance and value of TRUST among members of this small non-profit team as we go about the business of caring for individuals at end-of-life.
Edgar Schein has been a great and positive influence on how I think about groups and teams for years. I find this emphasis on trust and the importance of relational openness to ring true for me. Trust is the key ingredient of a healthy and transformational relational system; and it is difficult to build a culture of trust.
Great insight to the matter and impact of transparency. The assessment mirrors what I have seen in our organization. It impacts performance and behaviors in significant ways.
Whilst I am just at the beginning of my Leadership journey, I have experienced enough distrust and closed off communication channels that this insight is valuable for me not to follow suit. Great post! Get me one of those books here in Scotland 🙂
As an experiential learning facilitator, I have always been the fascinated at the impact of transparency in leadership. These authors provide some interesting perspective on how open this differs from transparency.
Team members spend a lot of time on transactional relationships, which, much like transparency, fosters interaction but not trust. We then wonder why communication within our team isn’t.
We can encourage our teams to be more open; however, I believe a key element is to minimize risk and make it safe to create a different type of work relationship.
Human relationships are the most important asset in a company/business. It’s the relationship that get the job done and done well.
Transparency is such a buzz word, today. Love the concept that openness is more valuable and beneficial for long term results and trust.
I would love to hear more on building work relationships within organizational culture & trust!
I appreciate the distinction between Openness and Transparency. For me, I view openness as a means to a team’s engagement and empowerment; and transparency (when done right) facilitating feedback loops and measuring/setting expectations.
The difference between openness and transparency is a must for organizations seeking to build trust. Looking forward to reading more on this topic and sharing it with my organization and my faith community..
I have never considered the difference between openness and transparency. It seems that openness is similar to vulnerability and, as such, promotes deepen8ng and strengthening of human connection and trust. Thank you so much for this post!
Yes, there is an enormous huge difference between open and transparent (read invisible/distant/not caring) managenent – eventhough I have seen the two terms being used as synonyms in several non-native-english-speaking organisarions… ✌🏼
I would love to read more!
This was very insightful. I use transparency a lot when I talk about managing performance and that it must all be transparent and fair….. But I realized that it’s not correct…. because in Leadership and when it comes to employees ( who are the customers of leaders and the organization), I now realize that this “performance management system ” is a relational system…. not a machine or technology. It is all about relationships… and that’s a huge difference!
Thank you….
I am about to go into a Performance Review meeting & reading this post has helped me to frame not only what I’m going to say to my Manager but also has given me the clarity of how I’m going to say it i.e. in the spirit of openness & in an effort of building trust.
Truly “perfect timing”.
Leadership requires trust and openness – agree 100%. Transparency is, no question important, although personal connection/trust makes the difference. I very much like the phrase “mutual openness.” There is great truth in this – I would like my team to be as open with me…as I will be with them.
Well said! In government, at least local, it is perhaps more transparent than ever. However, has become increasingly divisive. This transparency is most assuredly missing the relational aspect. Some are taking pieces of information gained through transparency and misinterpreting or intentionally using it to pursue individual agendas.
I agree that human (ness) is the quality that will build success.
Interesting nuance and explanation between transparency and openness. Thank you.
I really like the idea of openness being between two people and relational. Too often, transparency is one way and using your metaphor, a weapon rather than a relationship builder. Great reflective blog!
This subject got me really thinking…Openness will be a mild way to assist people relate on a level where we trust that we are not compelled to share ourselves. But we choose to share. This, I understand to be a form of connectedness in the system. The thought lines here is profound and worth thinking about some more.
Leadership is about #relationships. End of story – can’t move forward without them.
Right now I’m reading The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle. It sounds like this book would be the perfect one to follow with, as it is looking at similar ideas from another perspective.
As someone who’s also valued and worked on building trust I appreciated this read. I will now add openness to my repertoire. Thank you.
I agree that openness is more valuable as it creates the two way path for both parties to communicate and share freely.
Transparency usually backfires on me. Hope I can learn how to use it properly.
Thank you for your perspective that the impact of transparency is that it reduces trust. Thanks for validating what I was experiencing with my supervisor
My company has been using the word transparency for quite some time and it still does not still well with the staff. This well be a great new approach and hopefully welcomed by the staff.
Would love this book for my team! Very important for building trust and it is a two way path for communication.
While “transparency” has almost become a cliché, openness remains an elusive concept for many leaders and organizations. I would certainly welcome the opportunity to add this book to my library of dogeared leadership books!
I love this concept and is exactly what I am working on with my new team. Building trust is not easy when you want a diverse team, but similar results!
Thanks for providing a great start for transparency. I can’t wait until the book has been released.
I’d love to have this book! Communications and relationships is something I’m really trying to get better at.
Great article! I agree and actively practice openness with all teams I have managed. They trust and support more when their manager involves them and communicates openly and honestly!
Authentic and interactive leadership comes from the heart, the head, and the body. It is a courageous craft utilizing these three components, built on human chemistry and the openness of the individual. Self-aware leaders grow their trust and credibility through their personal integrity and courage. Leaders focus on people and build relationships, recognizing contributions that have driven organizational performance.
The linchpin here is certainly trust. Openness focuses on trust which requires a relationship to exist. Success is built in such ways. Transparency requires neither. It is a simple, cold look at something. Openness is warmer, inviting, and helps build teams and support. Thank you for the thought today Dan, Edgar, and Peter.
I don’t remember the source, but I once heard that trust is not achieved until people go through difficulty together. Until that time is is just respect. Which is a good starting place, after all. I’m really thinking about openness vs transparency.
Looking forward to reading this book.
Well explained difference between “openness” and transparency in this article. In the world of professional academics, relationships built on trust between colleagues and also with students allows for true growth, learning, and mentoring. I have found that building that trust from openness must come from you. You set the example. It is much like the quote from Emerson, “To have a friend, you must be a friend.” The rewards of these relationships built on trust go way beyond the financial bottom line…..the rewards live with you forever.
This is some serious outside the box thinking. When I read the catch phrase I thought, those are the same things. But after reading the post, I realize I couldn’t be more wrong. I need to dive into this more for a better understanding. Thanks for the post!
Trust is the number one item on my team that builds and sustains engagement and job satisfaction. Transparency (or openness) is part of the way we build trust but I appreciate the perspective of it possibly being used a weapon- which destroys the trust you work so hard to build.
If I win or not I’m getting this book for my team.
Fascinating premise. I’d like to learn more.
Openness seems less threatening to an individual. It gives a sense of control. Openness is a choice aided by the culture of the enterprise.
Transparency in the other hand seems like a forced behavior. With very little control resting with the individual.
I appreciate the distinction between transparency and trust. As many have said, trust is critical to performance, it allows for faster, better decisions and it allows for mistakes to be made and learned from which can be huge.
I’d love to share with my team…I like the idea of “mutual openness”…trust really begins with that sentiment in mind!
I work in the IT field as a Project Manager and Business Analyst. Ensuring processes are “transparent” is said very often. After reading the post, I believe that transparency and openness are used as synonyms. We say we want to be transparent, when what we are really striving for is creating a culture of trust and openness between employees.
openness = vulnerability
People who want to be successful and effective will love Humble Leadership built on Trust thru mutual openness. Prof Edgar H. Schein and Peter A. Schein helps us transform from conventional transactional role in organizations to total mutual commitments for creating change and growth on more sustainable basis without resorting to domination and coercion.
Without openness and trust, what is there? I believe the word “transparency” has been maligned by the federal government. Trust is vital to any organization, institution and relationship including the family.
This book is very timely and relevant and seems like a must read! I would like to say it’s about time!
i had never thought about transparency in this way. Thank you so much for making the distinction between transparency and openness and the way to build trust . Would absolutley love a copy of this book!
The experience of the departing engineer nails it – transparency is the thing folks think they want, but the real desire that moves things forward is trust.
Building relationships is hard work – no matter the relationship – but especially as a manager to an employee. Values, missions, rules, expectations have little to no affect when authentic relationships are not first and foremost. Employees will rise to the occasion. I’ve seen it firsthand, as an employee and as a manager. All the best.
This requires both parties to be trust worthy. The very nature of some workers, even good workers, kills that trust – because, by nature, they are not “worthy” of it!
That’s a very interesting distinction between the two terms. I’ve previously been using them almost interchangeably – but looking back, I can think of many abuses of transparency that sowed nothing but distrust.
Thank you for that insight!
Dan
This post was enlightening to me because I’ve always pushed for transparency with my team. I can see how that can be a way to control so instead I’ll work to promote openness instead. Thanks, Dan!
We talk a lot about transparency, when I really think we mean openness. Would love to read this book!
This sound like a good book to read. I try to lead the way I should with remembering that we should all lead like Jesus. It’s a hard way of leading when you are dealing with many different types of personalities and people. However, I feel that I should lead the way of the one who created us all.
This looks like a very educational and informative read. I feel that I would be able to learn a lot from this book. Thank you for sharing!
Openness is a better definition of what people look for in the workplace. I am a leadership Facilitator and in most of the sessions we have, even leaders are uncomfortable with the dynamics of what comes with “transparency”. As when discussed it is often followed by the terms “with as much as you can”. That is not Trust that is control.
I have never stopped to think that transparency could be seen as a negative attribute. I like this distinction between transparency and trust/openness.
Historically I have always viewed transparency and openness as synonyms. Your post now has raised awareness that others in the organization may not share that same interpretation. Considering that transparency may be seen as simply an implement for greater control and restricting engagement is enlightening.
Thank you.
I think this is a really important concept and distinction. We try to be very open and honest with our staff – my favorite phrase is Radical Candor, and I think that this helps me realize the difference needed in trust vs. openness.
Transparency is not pridefull, when i am open and honest there is trust and respect which creates a culture of influence. Leadership is influencing others to follow, the Law of the Lid comes to mind here.
I would like to read this book.
This was very insightful and thought provoking. I will definitely bring this up at our next staff meeting and encourage some discussions. Would love one of the digital versions of the book.
Trust and relationships bring magic to the workplace!
Good article! It helped me define the terms a little better. I always felt transparency was more mechanical and focuses on the inner workings, like an x-ray. Here’s what’s happening on the inside whether is be organizational structure or performance perception. It’s black and white and usually a one way conversation. Openness, which can be similar to honesty, creates an emotional connection. It can create dialogue on both sides which then can improve performance, efficiency, or just improve overall morale.
Without trust you have nothing.
The difference between transparency and openness…mind blowing!
Trust, respect, openness – as noted without openness, there is no trust, and therefore no respect. Interesting how many people start a conversation with “just to be transparent”. If you are truly open that will be unnecessary as the intent will be honest and open without a disclaimer needed. Thank you for sharing this and the other daily thought provoking tidbits that are so simple and easy to put into immediate practice.
I love writings that challenge the words I use and educate me about what those words mean others! Thank you. I see humility as a key attribute of great leaders, so this title catches me in several ways and makes reading it a must.
Always viewed the two concepts as the same thing but interesting to see how they are really very different.
I would love to read more
I would love to read more about this concept.
I have experience the use of transparency to undercut individuals and/or organizations, which was not productive to anyone except for the perpetrator. The distinction of transparency and openness was not something that I thought about much and this article has opened my eyes to a very important concept that can provide a means of developing trust which is indispensable.
I really appreciate the distinction here between transparency and openness. It is not something I have heard called out before.
Looks like a great read!
I am interested in reading more about the transparency versus openness. In our organization, many teachers feel that there is not enough transparency. However, after reading this article, I am starting to see a different perspective of transparency: I hadn’t considered the possibility of control. Trust is absolutely essential in an organization, but gaining trust can be difficult based on how people viewed past supervisors as well as how they question our qualifications for the job. Trust comes over time and in my experience has been lost in an instant. I look forward to reading your book to gain more knowledge and understanding!
I love everything about this concept and have been a proponent of trust-building as the number one priority in business relations. In my healthcare I.T. experience, there is territorialism amongst teams, a demand for transparency without reciprocation and barely a thread of openness. It is sad to see not only because it causes inefficiencies and breeds resentments but, more importantly, because it demoralizes team members. Thank you for sharing this very important concept today. P.S. I hope I win this book but if I don’t, I will definitely get my hands on a copy.
Transparency worked against her, controlling her, rather than empowering her
Trust is built through mutual openness instead of transparency
Openness is a shared process of a group that filters and features information that others need to produce and improve results.
Now there are the nuggets of the day. Ideas worth given consideration to. Thank you.
I love this distinction between transparency & openness. It shows the power of words & shared language. I have seen transparent leaders that “tell it like it is” hurting people & the relationships. To create a culture of openness requires becoming vulnerable & humble. I want this book!!!!
Interesting and thoughtful article. Thank you for sharing with this group. Looking to learn how to move from trust to openness across teams as well.
To me, Transparency would reveal a total shedding of all inhibitions that might later cause us to feel vulnerable and fearful.I think of a transparent film that lets everyone see inside us whether we choose to have our foibles and inner secrets seen or not. Openness in the workplace says I will choose to share honestly with you how I feel about this work, your leadership style , my own skills and ambitions and how we can best work together. Openness in a relationship implies honesty but not brutality i.e. using tact but still being open is not only challenging but possible and laudable for every relationship. To sum up openness to me is a chosen choice made by intelligent thinking people who are open whether it is financially profitable or not.
Interesting! Transparency = a cold transaction; Openness = a more human “touch”. A wonderful, simple, and valuable concept – thank you!
Hey Dan, Edgar, and Peter,
I think the distinction between transparency and openness is an important one. I feel like I have seen companies I work for use transparency as a means of control where I feel like openness comes from a more honest place. You hit this on the nose when you talk about “trust being build through mutual openness” because being open requires a level of honesty that transparency does not. Perceptions are what matter here- transparency can be interpreted as controlling while mutual openness isn’t as likely to have that connotation associated with it. I know many companies use these terms interchangeably but I think the distinction is well worth making.
Thanks for the interesting read!
Brandon
I would love to read this book!
Transparency implies openness but merely is a task indicator. Informing others what you are doing and focuses on responsibilities. Openness and trust allow for thought provoking dialogue. Bigger and better ideas can be discussed without concern of looking foolish. A better way is possible with trust and openness.
I’ve just begun graduate studies in Conflict Management and Positive Commuication. Trust and Openness are key. I really like this fresh perspective. In local government, for the past decade, transparency has been the watch word and so much effort has been put into creating data and analytics that don’t fully address the need.
Our organization talks about transparency all the time, however it seems it seems less genuine. Perhaps the real conversation comes from a place of openness instead. This seems like a more “human,” heartfelt conversation. I would love to study this book and share it with my colleagues.
Trust… it all starts there. We are working on trust building, and I am eager to read this book!
This is a very interesting distinction for sure. Intentions are not always interpreted the same way and growing as a manager to be more cognizant of words which encompass the true goal one wants to foster definitely can have a positive impact on one’s department. I am very interested in reading this book.
I listened to a webinar yesterday on Humble Leadership. Their description of a humble leader is similar to the Servant Leadership approach of ken Blanchard. I particularly liked their definition of openness versus transparency
Many years ago after reading “Open Leadership” by Charlene Li, I came to see the difference and have applied the practice to my management style. It created a fundamental change in the way I related to and worked with the people around me.
Great read as we often talk about “transparency.” Thanks again Dan
What an interesting comparison – transparency vs. openness!
Those with whom I have worked and consider “Transparent” do not always have my trust. However, I find I trust those whom I view as “Open”. Great food for thought!
Powerful line:
Trust is built through mutual openness instead of transparency.
I’ve always used these words kind of interchangeably. I get it, though. As a leader, I can be transparent with organizational numbers, etc. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean I am open to ideas on how to improve them from members of my team, and/or that I even seek insight from them at all.
I have seen this, within an organization that I sit on the Board of Directors, the Board was always accused of not being “transparent” so we changed “our ways” and began showing more information. This, as the blog says, had the reverse effect and created the opposite result – almost too much information. So we’ve adopted the more open approach both in our meetings and communications, it seems to be working better – first 6 months. Still have those doubting Thomas’ though, but those too can be assets use openness if used correctly.
Interesting comparison. Sounds like a good topic for group reflections on a team meeting. I would enjoy reading this book, and use it with my team 🙂
I’ve always thought that I should be transparent, but this perspective makes sense. By being open, but not automatically transparent, we consider the audience and to what those people might be sensitive or outright afraid. We owe it to our peers/customers/audience to care for their sense of safety when at all possible.
Lots of food for thought here – transparency is wonderful when, as you mention, it is framed correctly. Openness is much more valued as it creates connections and connections are at the core of all we do in business and our personal lives. Great topic.
I believe the word “transparency” has been misused so much politically and socially that mistrust among stakeholders in both arenas do not trust many systems. We desperately need to have individuals within leadership positions who are dedicated to building and maintaining trust of their stakeholders. I hadn’t thought of defining “openness” and “transparency” differently, but it makes good sense to do so…
Very interesting take on the transparency!
Openness is built on honesty, integrity, and the ability to be conscious of the ego contribution to confidence. You want to be able to work effectively but to include others in the process and not be distracted by imperfection.
Very insightful. Too often we pride ourselves on transparency of information, but fail to communicate said information in an open manner. Sometimes it’s a fine line. This book will help to better understand and identify when this is happening.
Insightful distinction. Transparency is over- and misused. Openness is about how we interact with each other and how being in relationship with colleagues improves our work environment, productivity, and retention.
I thought this was very insightful. The “aha” it created for me was that you can achieve openness without revealing all of your insides (transparency). I had always highly valued transparency – and indeed, I think in certain environments transparency should be highly valued. But now I see that openness is to be far more highly valued in most business environments. Also, it seems like transparency is a more rules-based value – in other words, you can always fault someone for not being transparent when something is revealed that was previously withheld. Whereas, openness can be experienced in ways other than fact-finding, revelatory methods. Thanks for this excellent article.
Working on transparency in my current department. Great article to help us with all of the trust issues we face that is coming about with this new transparency concept in the dept.
I have so much to learn in this area. Thank you for putting it at the forefront of my mind.
It looks to me that transparency can be commanded by management . Whereqs openness is an individual trait requiring mutual trust between human beings to manifest itself.
Openness applies to human relationships . Agree.
Transparency applies to the way we perform our tasks; where there should not be a hidden agenda.
Transparency requires politics to be replaced by diplomacy and a concern for the ethical impact of our decisions.
Sounds like an outstanding book. I would be honored to win a copy.
Trust and relationships are the basis for impact. Would love to read this book.
Interesting perspective on this concept. I like the focus on trust…but I do think transparency still plays a huge role (as opposed to executive level not sharing information that would be helpful to staff and management)
As a member of a school district administrative team I would love to read and possibly recommend this book as a part of our learning over the 18-19 school year!
Wow, Dan, you get a lot of posts when you have a good book prize. I have never thought of transparency vs. openness in this way before. To me being more open changes the relationship to one that creates and shows more vulnerability between the leader and the workers. This will create powerful trust, more engaged and loyal workers will result. Interesting book. I hope I win one. Thanks,
I am a new leader and also mentor to staff this book sounds like a fantastic tool to continue this journey and build skills
This was a fantastic read! I often times conflate “openness” with “transparency”. This has definitely given me something to think about and will probably change the way I use the word “transparency”. Thanks for helping me separate the two!
Seems like an amazing read
Am bringing in a team from a well known university’s nonprofit center of their college of business to provide a 10 days over several months training program for a group of nonprofit leaders our foundation funds. I’m going to make sure they know about your blog today. Your wisdom in this column was a great differentiation that I had not thought of in the way you described it. And, a critical difference it is. Thanks, Dan.
I am working for a company which values transparency. I have always wondered why it is, that even though it is transparent, there is an ever growing turn over rate. Possibly it had something to do with culture, but at the same time, I could never really quite break down what it was. Dan, from your post, it gave me some insight, and that human openness is the key to trust, and I clicked on the link for the book, and the phrase that struck a chord with me is, “Leadership is always a relationship.” I’ve always been told to build relationships. I’ve always been told to lead, and often I have been told that leading at the top can be lonely. A simple reminder of reminding myself to put two and two together that leadership and building relationships go hand in hand. It has given me some insight into what the company is going through, that it is transparent, but there is no trust amongst ourselves. Truly it is more transactional than trustful. Thank you again Dan.
That was really eye opening
Hmmm…. never looked at it that way. Always assumed (and explained!) them as essentially two ways of saying the same concept. Sceptic as I was about this article, I looked up both words’ definitions in the Cambridge dictionary. Especially the synonyms word cloud there reveals it: transparency as machinistic origins, whereas openness is about behaviour.
Thanks for opening my eyes in this aspect.
That book would be a good read too 🙂
Both transparency and openness in all human interaction require one crucial skill and realization to fully work. The understanding – and acceptance – of the fact that we are profoundly different from each other. It’s not enough to understand that you are you and I am me, you have to grasp the depth of these differences to the point that you understand that you cannot even begin to assume what the other thinks or feels.
Usually it is quite enough for only one part of the discussion to realize this to make the openness possible in interaction. But usually the situation is such that neither realizes this and makes assumptions based on their own restrictions and fears, reflecting them on the other.
This would be great read for me as a starting leadership coach, just to get some more basis on the issues I have to manage. 😉
Understanding trust on a team is crucial for any organization. I never related it to openness however it does make sense. Being a newly promoted supervisor and also become a facilitator has given me an insight, understanding and awareness I didn’t know I was capable of. With that said building trust with my team and creating an environment of openness is key I found is key. Thank you for all of your posts they always make me think and reevaluate what I am doing 🙂
Wow, this was a really thought-provoking post on distinguishing between transparency and openness! I think many people implicitly allude to openness when they use the term transparency, perhaps equating transparency to being an “open book.” They key to the distinction is motive: is it to control or collaborate? Even with the concept of openness, there could be a sinister motive to control. Without concomitant attributes of mutual respect, genuine concern, and servant leadership. openness can also be a tool for manipulation. Whether we use the term transparency or openness, the underlying governing principle could very well be the golden rule to treat others as we would like them to treat ourselves. Thank youi8 so much for your guest editorial!
This would be a great addition to the study our office is currently doing on team building focusing on trust, conflict resolution and accountability.
Definitely an interest article that gets me thinking both about how the terms are used and how they play out in my work interactions.
This was incredibly thought provoking! I look forward to reading the book!
As someone who works regularly with teams to build trust, I can attest to the value of openness in the relationships. When we apply transparency to teams it does feel like we are emphasizing the transactional aspects over the relational ones. This book will be added to my list of must reads.
Thank you for the post. Trust is the foundation we need to build our teams on. I thoroughly enjoyed reading Patrick Lencioni’s book Five Disfunctions of a team. Patrick describes trust as the foundation of a strong effective team.
Can not agree more. Thanks God, some one is talking sense.
Great blog! This looks like a great read.
These principles apply not just in business, but to the church as well (which often functions like a business :-).
I have heard the term transparency and thought of it as a good thing, I had not considered it to be merely a transactional or mechanical term. Openness does seem to describe what I have been looking for when seeking transparency within my organization. Building trust and openness with our team is something I am looking forward to learning and practicing.
OK, I immediately need much deep Consideration on this post!!! Two quotes: “In starkest terms, transparency can be experienced as a weapon (of mass control) as much as it is a tool (of mass communication).” And “Trust is built through mutual openness instead of transparency.”
Immediate thinking: (1) Hadn’t ever Considered the two ways transparency can be used – naively would never have made the connection between transparency and control, but it’s quite obvious that control is easiest when one is able to see and hear all that’s going on. (2) Would think both control and communication in this context still don’t need to be ‘mass’ … but maybe that’s because transparency need not (is not???) human connected. (3) Wondering about mutual openness AND transparency … does there HAVE to be transparency for openness, if not what’s openness like without transparency.
As noted lots for me to Consider deeply – which I already know I must do. Reading the book would certainly be a good source. Maybe I’ll be selected for one of the 20 that are being given away …
I just wish more leaders in high level positions would be more humble and allow openess within the team. If people are not allowed to be open and honest about the issues facing the organization, it will continue to mediocre. Instead of complicating things, people should be open about a problem and present it to a team in a non-threatning way in order to fix the problem; not to complicate it or back stab anyone. It’s sad when the top leader is the one who creates this type of environment.
The content in this post is greatly appreciated and I completely agree! Thank you… THANK YOU!
I need to read this book! Many companies do say they value transparency, but there are absolutely different meanings and control does happen to be the intent sometimes.
I am working on building trust on my team this year. These concepts seem very useful to that effort.
I never drew a distinction between the two, but it makes perfect sense. Great topic!
Transparency with regard to decision making of all or key decisions is invaluable and not tied to the image of cogs and machinery at all.
Interesting views on transparency.
Great Post! What a thought provoking message. It is one thing to have transparency in an organization and another thing altogether to trust each other enough to share information in order to get things done. I witnessed examples of both transparency and openness at work today; the first gave me heartburn while the latter brought me closer to completing a project.
I wrote a 3-paragraph comment and it didn’t post because the email I used was not the one I have for my WordPress account.
I’m writing this because I can’t afford to write it twice. That reminds me of a wise saying about internet coustomers, it goes like: if what you have is not user friendly enough they won’t spend too much time on it.
I would very much like to read this for and with my team.
I have followed Edgar Schein for many years as an important ‘thought leader’ and look forward to reading this new book by him and Peter Schein. The topic is definitely relevant to the clients I work with as a talent management consultant, coach and speaker.
Transparency allows all of a person’s actions to be seen by others. This can feel like a violation.
Connectedness is very important and often overlooked in process driven busy world.
Love this and it’s exactly what I promote when working with leaders. Openness includes the need to be vulnerable… which can build huge trust.
Openness and trust are great foundations to build upon.
OMG! This seems plucked out of my mind, and I’m so amazed by the timing and affinity of thought in this article that I will have to reread it and the book to find any critiquing. Dan has been on a roll with taking us to esoteric levels with these coaching nuggets, like the recent one on nuanced fear. How often I have dared to be contrarian to lemming notions that I am SO gladdened to see that the deep insighful thinkers, who were hushed in the din of the so-called disruptors and their snakeoil notions, are gradually traipsing back in the room and speaking up. The concept of transparency has been so misused it conjures an image from drug-dealer scenes scantily clad women in flourescent lit backrooms shrinking wrapping paper money or bagging their illegal products. Yeesh! It is what has contributed to invasive, dehumanizing
surveillance and a backsliding of morals in our culture. And there is all the difference to where one can be open to see, hear, and trust in one another. I am looking forward to reading the book. The article sparks a glimmer of hope.
Enjoying the thoughtful separation of ideas in the Schein’s work. I also find Edgar’s enthusiasm for his topic and his age a wonderful example to all of us to stay engaged deep into our later years.
Openness has to be practiced in the form of “lead by example” by the top management and then “talk the walk” and not vice-versa. this has to become a natural habit – not as a SOP. there are numerous organizations which have succeeded enormously under the toughest conditions by adopting this approach. also, the need to look at how openness is practiced with sensitivity is as critical as the objective of openness.
If I hear ‘just to be transparent’ one more time, when in reality, they aren’t being open – this book nailed it! I appreciate the comments around how the practice of openness must be paired with sensitivity, and while I wholeheartedly agree, would add, grace and humility to that.