5 Ways to Build Trust in a New Leadership Role

Starting a new leadership role feels like stepping onto a stage where everyone's watching, waiting to see what you'll do next. Whether you've been promoted internally or moved to a new organisation entirely, those first few weeks set the tone for everything that follows.

The challenge? Trust isn't automatic just because you've got the title. You're dealing with new stakeholders, different expectations, and probably a fair bit of internal pressure to prove you deserve to be there. Meanwhile, everyone around you is making their own judgements about whether you're going to be the leader they want to work with.

I see this challenge constantly with the senior leaders I coach. They know building trust matters, but they're not always sure how to do it strategically in those crucial early months. Some go full throttle trying to impress everyone, while others get so focused on proving themselves that they forget to actually connect with the people around them.

The good news? Building trust in a new role doesn't require you to become someone you're not or play politics you're not comfortable with. It's about being intentional with your approach and avoiding some predictable pitfalls that can set you back months.

Here are five practical ways to build trust from day one, based on what actually works for senior leaders navigating new roles.

1. Learn Communication Preferences Before You Need Them

When you're new to a role, your instinct is probably to focus on proving your credibility. You want to show you've got great ideas, that you understand the business, that hiring or promoting you was the right call.

But the fastest way to build trust is to communicate with people the way they want to be communicated with, not the way you're comfortable communicating.

Map out your key stakeholders first. Before you even start the role if possible, but definitely in your first week. You'll have your direct team, peers, your manager, possibly board members or external stakeholders. Each of these groups - and often individuals within them - will have different communication preferences.

Then observe and adapt. Senior-level stakeholders often want information quickly and concisely. They want to know you've got a handle on things without having to wade through detailed reports or sit through lengthy explanations. If someone sends you bullet-pointed emails, they probably want bullet-pointed responses. If they prefer face-to-face conversations, don't default to sending everything via email.

The magic happens when you match their style instinctively. People feel like you "get them" and that you're giving them what they need. That builds confidence in you from day one, before you've even had a chance to deliver any results.

Quick win: During your initial one-to-ones, ask directly: "What's the best way to keep you updated on progress?" or "How do you prefer to receive information when decisions need to be made quickly?" Most people haven't been asked this question and will appreciate that you're thinking about their preferences.

2. Make Your One-to-Ones Count (Beyond Your Direct Team)

You'll probably schedule one-to-ones with your team members early on, and that's important. But the leaders who build trust fastest extend this approach to all their key stakeholders.

Think beyond your team. Schedule initial meetings with peers, key colleagues, and anyone you'll be working closely with. Don't just think of these as "getting to know you" sessions - use them strategically to understand the landscape you're operating in.

Ask questions that give you insight, not just information. Instead of just learning what someone's role involves, ask about their experience: How long have they been with the organisation? What did they do before? What's changed since they started?

You'd be surprised how often you'll discover that the person you're speaking to made a similar transition to yours six months ago. Which can open the door to ask: "How did you find the transition? What do you wish you'd known at the start? What would be a shortcut for me?"

People love giving advice, especially when it's specifically requested. And when someone shares their experience with you, it creates connection. They've invested in your success, which makes them more likely to support you going forward.

Get strategic intelligence. Use these conversations to understand not just what people do, but how things really work. Who makes decisions quickly? Where do good ideas tend to get stuck? What initiatives have worked well recently, and which ones haven't gained traction?

3. Map the Real Influence Network (It's Not What the Org Chart Says)

The organisational chart will tell you who reports to whom, but it won't tell you who actually holds influence. And if you want to build trust that accelerates your impact, you need to understand how influence really flows.

Look for the informal leaders. In every organisation, there are people who are well-networked, whose opinions carry weight, and who others turn to for guidance. They might not have the biggest titles, but when they speak, people listen.

Observe the dynamics in meetings. Who do people look to when difficult questions come up? Whose ideas get picked up and developed by others? Who seems to have relationships across different departments or levels?

Understand the alliances. Are there groups of people who typically align on decisions? Are there departments that don't work well together? Are there historical relationships that affect how things get done?

This isn't about playing politics - it's being realistic about how organisations actually work. When you understand who has influence, you can make strategic decisions about where to invest time in building relationships.

I worked with a leader who was brought in by a private equity firm as part of their investment conditions. On paper, their boss should have been their route to getting things approved and implemented. In reality, that boss had limited influence within the organisation and was viewed with suspicion by many long-term employees.

Understanding this dynamic early meant they could focus on building relationships directly with other influential stakeholders, rather than expecting their boss to champion their ideas. It completely changed their approach and their success rate.

Be strategic, not manipulative. This isn't about bypassing proper channels or undermining anyone. It's about understanding the landscape so you can navigate it effectively and build the coalition of support you need to be successful.

4. Stay Curious Longer Than Feels Comfortable

This is where many new leaders trip themselves up, often with the best of intentions. You spot things that clearly need fixing or improving, and you want to contribute value quickly. The temptation is to share your observations as definitive judgements and start proposing solutions.

Resist the urge to diagnose and prescribe immediately. Even when you're right about what needs to change, leading with solutions can backfire. It can come across as culturally insensitive or condescending, even when that's not your intention.

I once worked with a client who was brought in specifically for their experience in a particular area. They were frustrated because, as they put it, "They brought me in for my expertise, but they're not listening to me." The issue wasn't their expertise - it was that they hadn't built the foundation to be heard.

Lead with curiosity instead. When you spot something that seems problematic, frame it as a question rather than a statement: "I've noticed X is happening. I'm wondering what the history of this is?" or "What ways have been tried to address this before?"

This approach opens doors instead of closing them. People see you as a listener rather than someone who's making judgements. They're more likely to share context that might change your understanding of the situation.

Example of curiosity in action: Instead of "This process is inefficient and needs to be streamlined," try "I'm trying to understand this process better. Can you help me understand why it's structured this way? Are there things it achieves that might not be immediately obvious?"

The information you gather will either confirm your initial assessment (in which case you now understand the constraints) or reveal factors you hadn't considered (in which case you've avoided an embarrassing mistake).

You need to listen first to be listened to later. Building trust requires demonstrating that you value other people's perspectives and experiences, even when you disagree with them.

5. Be Clear About Your Style and Expectations

This one might feel counterintuitive: while you're adapting to everyone else's communication preferences and staying curious about their perspectives, you also need to be clear about your own working style, preferences and expectations.

This isn't about being demanding - it's about reducing uncertainty. When people don't know what to expect from you, it creates anxiety and makes trust harder to build. When you're upfront about your preferences and approach, it gives people a foundation to build on.

Share your working preferences early. This might sound like: "I'm quite introverted, so I find it really helpful to have agendas ahead of meetings. It helps me prepare and make sure I can contribute meaningfully." Or: "I prefer to process information before making decisions on complex issues, so if we need to discuss something significant, it helps if I can have background information in advance."

Be clear about what's important to you. You don't need to lay down the law, but you can share your values and expectations: "Collaboration is really important to me, and I find it works best when people feel comfortable disagreeing with each other respectfully." Or: "I believe in being direct about challenges, and I hope people will feel comfortable bringing problems to me early rather than waiting until they're critical."

Set (and communicate) key boundaries. Maybe you don't check emails after a certain time, or you prefer certain types of conversations to happen face-to-face rather than over email. Being upfront about these preferences helps people work with you more effectively.

I had a client who was naturally very direct in their communication style. Rather than trying to soften this (which felt inauthentic and exhausting), they learned to give people context: "I tend to be quite direct in how I communicate - it's not because I'm frustrated or unhappy, it's just how I process information. Please tell me if anything comes across the wrong way, or makes you feel unsettled"

Checking back in a few months later, they had feedback that things that would have felt uncomfortable or meant team members second guessed themselves were avoided because people knew what to expect and didn't have to second-guess their interactions.

The Real Impact of Strategic Trust-Building

When you approach trust-building strategically in a new role, several things happen simultaneously:

You reduce the time it takes for people to feel comfortable with you. Instead of spending months proving yourself, you create connection and credibility in weeks.

You avoid common pitfalls that can set you back significantly. The "bull in a china shop" label is a real and present danger in the early days, and it can take months to recover from the relationship damage it creates.

You create a foundation for everything else you want to achieve. When people trust you, they're more likely to support your initiatives, give you honest feedback, and collaborate with you effectively.

Most importantly, you get to be authentically yourself while building these relationships. You're not pretending to be someone else or playing political games - you're being strategic about how you connect with people and demonstrate your value.

Making This Work in Practice

These five approaches work best when they're part of a broader plan for your first 90 days. Building trust is just one component of successfully transitioning into a senior leadership role, but it's often the foundation that everything else depends on.

If you're preparing for a new role or you're already in one and realising that the relationship-building piece is more challenging than you expected, you don't have to figure it out alone. The early months of a senior leadership role set the tone for everything that follows - getting strategic support during this critical period can accelerate your success significantly.

Want a complete roadmap for your first three months? My free 90-Day Plan framework includes the strategic approach that turns these trust-building strategies into a proper plan, plus the stakeholder mapping tools and conversation guides that make implementation straightforward. You can grab it here, along with a whole host of useful leadership resources

Because building trust in a new leadership role isn't about becoming someone different. It's about being intentional with how you show up, strategic about how you build relationships, and authentic about who you are as a leader.

The leaders who get this right don't just succeed in their new roles - they create the foundation for the career progression they really want.