“Smart Trust” by Stephen Covey and Greg Link (with Rebecca R Merrill), is a book on use of trust for creating prosperity, energy and joy in a low trust world. Smart Trust is different from blind trust and distrust. Trust is the essential ingredient for better teamwork. But it is not easy. More often than not, we like others to trust us, while we not so much trusting the other. And the reverse is also true. There are certainly one or two examples in every one’s life, when one has faced colossal damage, emotional, monetary or both, by trusting another person. Con artists thrive on their ability to make others trust them blindly, and make millions, if not billions, just by simple heartless cheating.

Between Blind Trust and Distrust, there is a third alternative the “Smart Trust”, which starts at the third chapter of the book. “Knowing a great deal, is not the same as being smart; intelligence is not information alone, but also judgement”.

Smart Trust is judgement. It is a competency and a process that enables us to operate with high trust in a low trust world. It minimizes risk and maximizes possibilities. It optimizes two key factors (a) propensity to trust and (b) analysis. The propensity to trust is primarily a matter of heart. Having high propensity to trust, is a vital dimension of Smart Trust, as long as it is combined with high analysis.

 “Trust but verify”, is the Russian proverb.

Smart trust has three elements :

1.      Opportunity : What is the opportunity ahead, what are you trusting with, what are its dimension. Grameen Bank for example trusts that all its borrower will return the money, Nexflix trusts that all its members will return the DVDs. If this basic is not there probably the business model is not there.

2.      Risk : To trust is to take a take a risk. In organization perspective to not to trust is also to take a risk. Smart Trust is to manage this risk wisely. The task is always to distribute the trust in a manner that the risk is minimised, and that will maximize the prosperity, energy and joy. We have to understand (a) possibilities of the outcome (b) likelihood of outcomes and (c) visibility of the outcome. In short what is the degree of the risk. The need of analysis will depend on the degree of the risk. For example, the need of the written routine to be followed for every process in a nuclear submarine cannot be the same as a newspaper vending machine. Still both the activities have some routine process, only the complexity differs.

3.      Credibility : Just by trusting another person, you cannot get the desired result or output from him. Credibility again has two parts (a) character and (b) competence. If a person does not have competence, even being trustworthy he cannot bring success and joy, because he cannot perform. On the other hand trusting a competent person, who lacks integrity is also not a good option, as he might turn out to be a cheater in the ultimate.

The book has many illustration and stories, to make the things lively. The action points for practising smart trusts are as follows :

a.      Choose to Believe in Trust

b.      Start with Self

c.      Declare your intent and assume positive intent in others

d.      Do what you say you are going to do.

e.      Lead out in extending trust to others.

While doing the above never forget to analyze and putting a proper framework for analysis.

One of the may accolades received by the book is from Yang Yuanqing, CEO Lenovo which says :

‘“Smart Trust” delivers ideas that are thought provoking, tools that work, and a perspective that I think is essential for survival and success on the global stage.”