Building trust-based relationships across organizational boundaries

Now, I will freely admit that this does sound like something that has been taken directly from an HR or management training manual; however, trust is something that is very powerful. We all understand what it is and how it can benefit us. We also understand how difficult things can be with a complete lack of it. If you have a personal relationship with someone, and you trust them, the relationship is likely to be open, honest, and a long and fruitful one. Building trust is extremely difficult; you don't simply trust a colleague because you have been told to do so—life doesn't work this way. Trust is earned over time through peoples' actions. Trust within a working environment is also a very hard thing to build. There are many different reasons for this (insecurity, ambition, reputation, personalities...