Trust isn’t what it used to be. According to a year-end survey by Gallup, Americans are in a gloomy mood about elected leaders, pretty much across the board, concerned as they are about the economy, the rapid pace of technological change, and more. 

That sense of distrust has crept into the workplace: According to PwC’s recent Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey 2025, only about half of workers say they trust top leadership, and fewer say that top management cares about their well-being. 

The important takeaway for association leaders is that trust and engagement are correlated: According to the PwC survey, “workers with the highest amount of trust in top management are 63 percent more motivated than those who trust senior leaders the least.” Disengagement can spell less involvement in their professional development, lower engagement with their association—and other factors that can have a potentially negative impact on your bottom line.

So there are reasons for associations to promote trust as a value, both as a source of reliability for members in a complex world, and to show leaders in their industry how to cultivate trust. 

Management transparency can go a long way towards reducing fear and building trust.

How to do that? The PwC report points to some low-hanging fruit, such as transparency around challenges and vocal willingness to support staff through them. For instance, we know that workers are getting more comfortable with using generative AI, but do better with it when they feel leadership has clear policies and communication around it. The conversation there needs to move beyond “AI is coming for your job” and toward “here’s your role in an AI-enabled office.” As the PwC report puts it, “what executives see as reallocating skills, employees experience as a threat to their jobs and expertise. Management transparency can go a long way towards reducing fear and building trust.”

In addition to training up employees and members around these changes, leaders should also be training themselves. Writing at Harvard Business Review, a pair of Gartner researchers recommend that leaders familiarize themselves with trust-building tools. “Organizations can equip leaders to foster transparency, consistency, and accountability by investing in proactive skills-development programs,” they write. “Raising senior leaders’ awareness of trust-breaking behaviors can help them more intentionally choose transparent and empathy-driven actions that foster trust.”

Stoking that process should involve getting feedback from your people, they write: Leaders need to know where they’re falling short in terms of trust, and demonstrate that not only are they willing to listen to valid criticisms, they’re ready to act on it. “Once data is collected, leaders should communicate the findings transparently to employees and outline specific steps to address any deficits,” they write. Moreover, trust increases when leaders make themselves available for conversation—they’re looking for ”opportunities to identify shared values, ask questions, and voice concerns.” It’s your role to provide them.

There are only so many levers an association leader can pull when it comes to macro issues like the global economy and political leadership. But there’s plenty they can do in terms of promoting their association and their industry as a trusted corner of the world. Acknowledging the trust gaps where you are, and committing to address them, is worth resolving to do in 2026.

[iStock/patpitchaya]