About the Author

Melanie Marshall believes that everything we do is based on trust. As an organisational trust strategist, she builds bridges between strategy and delivery, enabling leaders and organisations to tackle the tough stuff, create meaningful partnerships, and unlock the magic of people for genuine and lasting benefits. Renowned for her ability to clear the noise and keep things real, Melanie works with leaders at all levels, in government, hospital, military, and private organisations.

Reviews

Trust is one of the single most important predictors of positive and productive relationships and organisations. There are almost one million research papers published about trust in leadership, more than two million research papers looking at trust and management and almost 2.5 million research papers about trust in organisations, which underpins the importance of this subject. Melanie Marshall's book cuts through but is based on this mass of research and offers practical ideas and principles to help build trust in organisations and teams whilst being easy to read and powerful. This is an important subject, and this book deserves to be read in every organisation.- Dr David Wilkinson, Editor-in-Chief, The Oxford Review.
If a person was to pick up this book and think they were going to receive a clear cut, textbook definition of what is trust, then they would be mistaken. But what the reader will gain is an abundance of practical gems that will get them thinking, reflecting, and hopefully changing their behaviour - all towards the goal of cultivating TRUST! The conversational, deeply researched, sometimes witty and honest style of Melanie's writing has impact. Even if you only read the pop-outs, you will get something rich from this book.- Jacqui Parle, Director, Consulting Services, BPA Analytics Pty Ltd.
When trust in our economy erodes, we know what happens - downturns and recessions. Melanie Marshall shows us something we sometimes overlook - without a climate of trust in our workplaces, our organisations face similarly bad outcomes. This book will help you understand that withholding trust, or waiting for others to show it first, is the path to downturn in the culture of a workplace. Melanie is a wise guide in helping us to appreciate the skills, methods and thinking that will allow us to step up and build the economy of trust we need in our workplaces, our organisations, and our lives.- Tony Hewson, Organisational Behaviour and Culture Change Executive, Royal Australian Air Force.
I was enthralled within the first few pages. Melanie has managed to capture and validate what we have all experienced. This book is for leaders, managers, and anyone who has felt the impacts of a toxic workplace. Cutting through the fog of distrust and poor organisational culture, this book offers a clear path forward. Melanie challenges your mindset on leadership with personal and relatable stories that allow the reader to reflect on their own career and the role they play. This is a powerful book that overturns current leadership and management thinking - providing us all hope we can do better.- Susan Chambers, Nurse Manager.
This book is well paced and provides a well-structured path when following the HEART+SOUL approach to trust. I found the book very affirming at a personal and professional level, and really enjoyed the nuggets of wisdom. As a manager who has focused on kindness, I have been told that my management style is not forceful enough, but this book has confirmed that my focus on 'soft' skills is in fact the right path for me. Insightful leaders reading this book will understand that long-term results follow from trust, but not the other way around.- Tony Jamieson, Manager, Youth Justice Learning and Development, Department of Children, Youth Justice & Multicultural Affairs.