Why trust breaks down in service transitions

Mariam Refused to Train Her Replacement When she resigned, the transition plan seemed simple: She’d spend her final two weeks training the new hire and handing over responsibilities. But Mariam flatly refused. Her words were sharp but telling: “Why should I help the company that didn’t help me?” Leadership was quick to label her “unprofessional.” But HR knew the truth, this wasn’t stubbornness. It was about trust that had been quietly eroding over months, maybe years. Unresolved concerns, broken promises, and a sense of being undervalued had piled up until her final act at the company became an unspoken statement. The Hard Truth Is → How employees exit often mirrors how they were treated while inside. If trust, respect, and fairness were missing during their time there, expecting full cooperation on their way out is wishful thinking. If you guide teams or shape policies, please note: A smooth offboarding process doesn’t start on someone’s last day, it starts the moment they join. To protect both relationships and knowledge transfer: → Build trust consistently, not just when someone’s leaving → Address issues promptly instead of letting them fester → Treat every employee like a long-term partner, even if their journey is short When people feel valued during their time with you, they’re far more likely to leave as allies, not adversaries. An exit is often the final chapter of the story you’ve been writing with someone all along. Make sure it’s one worth reading. #PeopleAndCulture

The first 90 days of your contract will define the next 5 years A few years ago, I worked on an FM contract that was plagued by trust issues. The relationship between client and provider had completely broken down. Not because of recent performance problems. But, because of what happened during mobilisation several years earlier. The provider had told the client everything was green. Performance was excellent. No problems whatsoever. Meanwhile, the client could see services failing, staff confused, and basic processes not working. That disconnect between what was being reported and reality created a trust deficit that never recovered. Years later, the client still viewed every provider update with suspicion. Every monthly report got scrutinised. Every assurance got questioned. Corporate memory is long, and it's unforgiving. Here's what I learned: customers expect problems at the start. They're prepared for teething issues, staffing challenges, and process hiccups. What they can't tolerate is being lied to about it. If your cleaning standards are patchy in week three, say so. If your new staff need more training, admit it. If your systems aren't talking to each other properly, flag it early. Then explain what you're doing to fix it and by when. Transparency during mobilisation builds trust. Denial destroys it. The irony is that most providers think they're protecting the relationship by downplaying problems. In reality, they're poisoning it. Corporate systems resist change once they're established. If your client forms the view that you're unreliable or untrustworthy early on, that perception becomes embedded. And changing that perception later? Nearly impossible. Get mobilisation right. Your reputation for the entire contract depends on those first few months. What's your experience? Have you seen relationships recover from a poor start, or does first impression really matter that much?

Trust collapsed after one missed deadline They delivered millions in savings together. Then one critical project failed. I watched my client Sarah's (have seeked their permission and changed their name for confidentiality) team transform from celebrating quarterly wins to exchanging terse emails within weeks. During our first coaching session, they sat at opposite ends of the table, avoiding eye contact. "We used to finish each other's sentences," Sarah confided. "Now we can barely finish a meeting without tension." Sound familiar? This frustration isn't about skills—it's about broken trust. In The Thin Book of Trust, Charles Feltman provides the framework that helped us diagnose what was happening. Trust, he explains, isn't mysterious—it breaks down into four measurable elements: ✅ Care – Sarah's team stopped checking in on each other's wellbeing ✅ Sincerity – Their communications became guarded and political ✅ Reliability – Missed deadlines created a cycle of lowered expectations ✅ Competence – They began questioning each other's abilities after setbacks The breakthrough came when I had them map which specific element had broken for each relationship. The pattern was clear: reliability had cracked first, then everything else followed. Three months later, this same team presented their recovery strategy to leadership. Their transformation wasn't magic—it came from deliberately rebuilding trust behaviors, starting with keeping small promises consistently. My video walks you through this exact framework. Because when teams fracture, the question isn't "Why is everyone so difficult?" but rather: "Which trust element needs rebuilding first—and what's my next concrete step?" Which trust element (care, sincerity, reliability, competence) do you find breaks down most often in struggling teams? #humanresources #workplace #team #performance #cassandracoach

Watching Pete Hegseth try to lead the Pentagon is like watching someone show up to a war zone with a podcast mic. And this is the lesson nobody wants to talk about: Bad onboarding doesn’t just slow you down. It exposes you. Fast. No alignment. No credibility. No real grip on the mission. Just headlines, confusion, and a team wondering “who hired this guy?” Here’s the truth: Companies do this all the time. They hire someone shiny. Drop them into chaos. Give them a Slack login, a Notion doc, and a good luck handshake. Then they act surprised when the team revolts. When trust collapses. When performance tanks. And the data backs it up: • 88% of employees say their company doesn’t onboard well (Gallup). • 69% of employees are more likely to stay for 3+ years if onboarding is done right (SHRM). • Poor onboarding increases the risk of a failed executive hire by 2x (HBR). • The average failed executive hire costs $1.5M+ in lost productivity, rework, and cultural damage (CEB). This isn’t about politics. It’s about pattern recognition. Onboarding isn’t a welcome tour. It’s your defense against disaster. It’s where leadership either gains power — or bleeds it out loud. At Hatchproof we don’t play guessing games with leadership transitions. We wire people into the mission. We help managers actually manage. We make sure the person walking in has the context, support, and clarity to earn the room — not just show up in it. Because here’s the real question nobody wants to answer: What if the person you just hired fails — Not because they weren’t capable — But because you didn’t set them up to win?

I just lived through a masterclass in what NOT to do with patient experience technology. Left knee issue. Called orthopedics. Made appointment. Simple, right? Portal says: Hip problem. Me: "I never mentioned my hip." Fills out portal anyway. Reminder text: Fill out paperwork Me: "I did that already" Reminder text: Fill out paperwork Me: "I DID THAT ALREADY!" Second visit, both knees affected. Portal says: Ankle problem. Reminder text: Fill out paperwork Me: "This is madness." Third appointment: Front desk schedules me. Day of? No appointment exists. "Financial issue" they say. Transfer me around. Finally rescheduled. Get another portal link. Why? Here's what this experience reveals about healthcare technology: 🔴 Systems don't talk to each other The phone conversation, the portal, and the front desk are operating in parallel universes. Data isn't flowing—it's fragmenting. 🔴 Volume over experience The moment I walked in, I knew: this place is built for throughput, not trust. And patients feel it immediately. 🔴 Technology without strategy Having a patient portal doesn't improve experience if it creates more confusion than clarity. Technology should reduce friction, not add it. 🔴 No one owns the patient journey From scheduling to billing to reminders, every touchpoint felt disconnected. When systems fail, patients bear the burden. The real cost? I almost didn't come back. And I'm someone who studies this for a living. If you need help seeing the entire picture end-to-end, give me a call. Healthcare leaders: Your patient portal isn't a checkbox. It's a promise. If the data is wrong, the trust is broken. What patient experience failures have you witnessed that could have been prevented with better systems integration? #PatientExperience #HealthcareIT #DigitalHealth #HealthTech

Having worked with over 100 customers, I've noticed a recurring problem. Two main issues often derail customer success: 📍Miscommunication When communication breaks down, trust is the first casualty. Communication isn't only about responding promptly but, ensuring clarity, transparency, and consistency. Customers want to feel heard and understood, and they rely on us to provide timely, actionable updates. In every interaction, clarity is kindness, and trust is the reward. 📍Failure to set clear expectations upfront Every relationship benefits from clarity. When customers don't know what to expect, they often fill in the gaps with their own assumptions. Taking the time to define outcomes, timelines, and responsibilities upfront sets the stage for success, How do you build trust and avoid misunderstandings in your work? #customersuccess #Customerexperience #Customerrelationships