'Trust Reforms, Trust-based Management, and Organizational Outcomes: Some Experiences from Scandinavia', a seminar by Professor Åge Johnsen (Oslo Metropolitan University)

Trust Reforms, Trust-based Management, and Organizational Outcomes: Some Experiences from Scandinavia

By Professor Åge Johnsen from Oslo Metropolitan University and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences

Abstract

Many public organizations in Scandinavia have implemented trust reforms but so far there has been little empirical evidence of the impacts of these reforms. This seminar gives an overview of some of the trust reforms and explores mechanisms by which trust reforms impact trust-based management and organizational outcomes, using the trust reform in the City of Oslo as a case. Analyses of survey data from 1006 respondents in 2021 and 801 respondents in 2023 shows that trust reform is positively related to trust-based management, and trust-based management is significantly and positively related to perceived organizational unit performance and organizational citizenship behavior. Trust-based management was not, however, significantly related to trust between managers and employees, which nevertheless was high. The findings indicate that trust-reforms and trust-based management have positive impacts on organizational performance and commitment in big, complex organizations in high-trust societies. Other analyses found that trust-based management also was positively related to organizational innovation, and that integrated leadership and the sharing of work-related information are important for trust-based management. Albeit trust reforms seem to be a distinct Scandinavian phenomenon, trust-based management may be relevant far beyond Scandinavia. 

Keywords: de-bureaucratization, decentralization, empowerment, organizational citizenship behavior, organizational unit performance, vertical trust.