Leading with Trust: The Blueprint for Transparency and Authenticity
Debbie Morrison • April 19, 2023

As consumers become increasingly informed about the products and services they purchase, they demand more transparency from the companies they do business with. This is particularly true for FMCG and Food/Beverage businesses, who face mounting pressure to be transparent about their operations. The days of keeping information under wraps and relying on traditional marketing tactics are over.


The rise of social media and online reviews has given consumers a voice and the power to impact a company's reputation with just a few clicks. In this new age of consumer empowerment, transparency and authenticity have become non-negotiables for executive leaders who want to build trust with their customers.



So, what exactly do transparency and trust mean for FMCG and Food/Beverage businesses?

For starters, it means openly and honestly sharing information about product ingredients, sourcing, manufacturing processes, and supply chain operations. Consumers are more interested in knowing where their food comes from, how it's grown, and what ingredients are used. They are also more interested in knowing about the ethical and sustainable practices that businesses use in their operations. According to a survey conducted by Label Insight, 94% of consumers are more likely to be loyal to a brand that offers complete transparency.


Transparency isn’t just about clear labelling and ingredient lists, it also extends to a company's values, mission, and culture. Stakeholders want to support companies that align with their personal beliefs and values.


Trust, on the other hand, is the foundation of any successful business and is achieved through a company's ability to deliver on its promises and to act with integrity. Trust is earned over time through consistent and transparent actions. Once trust is established, it can lead to customer loyalty, positive word-of-mouth, and increased profits. Yet this vital aspect of a business is fragile and once broken can have significant consequences and result in lasting reputational damage for organisations. 


For instance, the 2015 E. Coli outbreak associated with Chipotle Mexican Grill led to a significant drop in sales and stock price, highlighting the importance of trust and transparency in the food industry. 


Whilst food safety remains an ongoing focus for the food and beverage industry, the recent explosion of cyber attacks has, more than any other type of scandal, called into question the concept of trust and transparency among organisations. In February 2021, Coles Group and Latitude Financial were hit by a cyber attack that exposed the personal information of thousands of customers. The breach was a wake-up call for these companies and the industry as a whole, highlighting the need for robust cybersecurity measures and increased transparency.


The fallout from a cyber attack can be severe, causing irreparable reputational damage to a business. Customers expect their personal information to be kept secure, and when that trust is broken, it can be challenging to win it back. In this context, transparency is vital for executive leaders who want to maintain trust with their stakeholders. By being open and honest about a breach and taking swift action to remedy it, companies can demonstrate their commitment to customer safety and security. Ignoring or downplaying the issue will only exacerbate the damage and erode trust further.



Transparency: The Path to Maintaining and Restoring Trust

Transparency starts at the top. Executive leaders must be transparent in their communication with employees, customers, and stakeholders. This means being open and honest about company performance, challenges, and goals. 


For example, embracing transparency and authenticity in the aftermath of a cyber attack can be a challenging but necessary step for executive leaders. Customers want to know what happened, what steps are being taken to prevent future breaches, and how their information will be protected moving forward. In some cases, a cyber attack may even present an opportunity for companies to showcase their commitment to security and transparency, providing a competitive advantage over rivals who may be less forthcoming with information.


Executive leaders should also be accessible to employees and customers, responding to questions and concerns in a timely and respectful manner. By creating an environment of open communication, executive leaders can build trust and establish a positive company culture.


Another way executive leaders can maintain trust is by taking responsibility for mistakes and working to correct them. No company is perfect, and mistakes will inevitably happen. However, how a company responds to those mistakes is what matters. Executive leaders must be willing to admit fault, apologise, and take steps to prevent similar mistakes from happening in the future. This shows consumers and stakeholders that the company is committed to transparency and accountability.



Transparent Communication: The Essential Ingredient in Creating Consumer Appeal and a Positive Company Culture

Transparent communication means being open and honest in all aspects of business. This includes providing clear and accurate information about products and services, as well as the company's values, mission, and culture. Transparent communication also means listening to feedback from customers and stakeholders and taking action to address their concerns.

Transparent communication is essential in creating consumer appeal because it builds trust and establishes a positive reputation. Consumers want to support companies that are transparent about their products and services. They also want to know that the company is committed to ethical and sustainable practices. By communicating transparently, companies can attract and retain loyal customers.


Transparent communication is also crucial in creating a positive company culture. Companies can create a more engaged and motivated workforce by fostering open communication and feedback. Employees who feel heard and valued are more likely to be productive and committed to the company's success.



The Role Technology and Data are Playing in Helping Organisations to Become More Transparent

Technology and data are increasingly important in helping organisations become more transparent. For example, blockchain technology can be used to track products from farm to table, providing consumers with information about where their food comes from and how it's produced. Data analytics can also track and measure company performance, allowing for more transparent reporting and accountability.


Social media and online reviews have also made it easier for consumers to share their experiences and opinions about companies. While this can be a double-edged sword for businesses, it also provides an opportunity for companies to respond to feedback and demonstrate their commitment to transparency and customer satisfaction.


Companies can also use technology to improve communication with customers and stakeholders. Chatbots, for example, can be used to provide quick and accurate responses to customer inquiries. In contrast, social media platforms can be used to engage with customers and share information about the company's products and values.



Why Reputation Matters

Reputation is everything in the FMCG and Food & Beverage industries. A company's reputation can take years to build, but can be destroyed in a matter of days by a scandal or negative publicity. That's why it's essential for companies to hire executive leaders who are committed to transparency and authenticity.


At ELR Executive, we specialise in helping FMCG and Food & Beverage companies identify and hire executives who lead with authenticity and can build trust during times of uncertainty. We believe that executive leadership is key to establishing and maintaining trust with consumers and stakeholders. We leverage highly customised search, selection, and assessment techniques, informed by more than 20 years of experience in our field. This is our SELECT methodology, a proven approach to identifying candidates who have the skills and qualities needed to lead in today's fast-paced and complex business environment.


We also recognise that authenticity is essential in building trust. That's why we look for candidates who are committed to transparency and who have a track record of acting with integrity. We believe that by hiring executives who are authentic and transparent, companies can establish a positive reputation and build trust with customers and stakeholders.

If you'd like to learn more about how we can help you hire the right leadership talent, who can navigate your business forward, securing its competitive advantage to thrive in today’s challenging business environment, speak to us today.

Your Culture Report Won’t Show You This

By John Elliott • June 6, 2025
On paper, they were fully resourced. No complaints logged. No formal red flags. Delivery metrics holding steady. But behind closed doors, the signs were there. Delays. Fatigue. Silence in meetings where pushback used to live. And a growing sense that key people were leaning out, emotionally, if not yet physically. When the cracks finally showed, the conclusion was predictable: “We need more people.” But that wasn’t the real problem. The problem was trust. And most organisations never see it until it’s too late. The Hidden Cost of Disengagement In Gallup’s 2023 global workplace report , only 23% of employees worldwide reported being actively engaged at work. A staggering 59% identified as “quiet quitting”, psychologically detached, going through the motions, doing only what their job description demands. Source: Gallup Global Workplace Report 2023 Disengagement is expensive. But it’s also quiet. It doesn’t show up on a balance sheet. It doesn’t send a Slack message. Disengagement isn’t new, just silenced. And in executive teams, it looks different. It looks like polite agreement in strategy meetings. It looks like leaders shielding their teams from unrealistic demands, instead of confronting the system causing them. It looks like performance metrics still being met… while people emotionally check out. The issue isn’t always capability. It’s safety. Psychological, political, and professional. Many senior leaders don’t raise concerns, not because the problem isn’t real, but because they don’t believe they’ll be heard, supported, or protected if they do. And this is where the failure begins. The Leadership Lie No One Talks About We talk a lot about leadership capability. About experience, commercial acumen, execution strength. But we don’t talk enough about context. Every leadership hire walks into a culture they didn’t create. They inherit unwritten rules, quiet alliances, and legacy power structures. If those dynamics are broken, or if trust is fractured at the top, no amount of capability will compensate. According to a 2022 Deloitte mid-market survey, 64% of executives said culture was their top strategic priority. But only 27% said they actually measured it in a meaningful way. We say culture matters. But we rarely structure around it. And so new leaders walk in with pressure to perform, but little real insight into what the role will cost them emotionally, politically, or personally. We Don’t Hire for Trust. And It Shows. In executive search, the conversation is often dominated by pedigree and “fit.” But fit is often a euphemism for sameness. And sameness doesn't build trust, it maintains comfort. We rarely ask: Does this leader know how to build trust vertically and horizontally? Can they operate in a low-trust environment without becoming complicit? Will they challenge inherited silence, or unconsciously uphold it? Instead, we hire for confidence and clarity, traits that often mask what’s broken, rather than reveal it. And when those hires fail? We call it a mismatch. Or we cite the usual: “lack of alignment,” “wasn’t the right time,” “they didn’t land well with the team.” But the truth is often uglier: They were never set up to succeed. And no one told them until it was too late. The Cultural Infrastructure Is Missing One of the most damaging myths in leadership hiring is that great leaders will “make it work.” That if they’re tough enough, experienced enough, skilled enough, they’ll overcome any organisational dysfunction. But high-performance isn’t just personal. It’s systemic. It requires psychological safety. A clear mandate. The backing to make hard decisions. The freedom to speak the truth before it becomes a PR problem. When that infrastructure isn’t there, when the real power dynamics are unspoken, good leaders stop speaking too. And the silence spreads. What Trust Breakdown Really Looks Like Often, the signs of a trust breakdown don’t show up in dramatic ways. They surface subtly in patterns of underperformance that are easy to misread or excuse. You start to notice project delays, but no one flags the root cause. Teams keep things moving, quietly compensating for the bottlenecks rather than surfacing them. Not because they’re careless, but because they’ve learned that early honesty doesn’t always earn support. New leaders hesitate to make bold calls. Not because they lack conviction, but because the last time they did, they were left exposed. Board reports look flawless. Metrics track nicely. But spend five minutes on the floor, and the energy tells a different story. These are not resource issues. They’re relationship issues. And the data backs it. According to Gallup’s 2023 State of the Global Workplace report , just 23% of employees worldwide are actively engaged. Worse, around 60% are “quiet quitting.” That’s not just disengagement. It’s people doing only what’s safe, only what’s required, because trust has quietly eroded. Gallup also found that managers account for 70% of the variance in team engagement, a staggering figure that reinforces just how pivotal leadership trust is. When people don’t feel psychologically safe, they shut down. Not dramatically. Quietly. Invisibly. What’s breaking isn’t the org chart. It’s the ability to speak plainly and be heard. And by the time it’s visible? The damage is already done, and someone calls for a restructure. “Low engagement is estimated to cost the global economy $8.8 trillion, 9% of global GDP.” Gallup, State of the Global Workplace 2023 So What’s the Real Takeaway? If you’re seeing performance issues, before you jump to headcount, ask a different question: Do the leaders in this business feel safe enough to tell the truth? Because if they don’t, the data you’re reading isn’t real. And if they do, but you’re not acting on it, then they’ll stop telling you. Leadership doesn’t fail in obvious ways anymore. It fails in the gap between what people know and what they’re allowed to say. And the price of that silence? Missed opportunity. Reputational damage. Cultural decay. Sometimes, the problem isn’t who you hired. It’s what you’ve made it unsafe to say.

The Energy’s Gone, But Everything Still Looks Fine

By John Elliott • May 27, 2025
Why Culture Decay in FMCG Is a Silent Threat to Performance It doesn’t start with resignations. It starts with something much quieter. A head of operations stops raising small problems in weekly meetings. A sales lead no longer defends a risky new SKU. A team member who used to push ideas now just delivers what they’re asked. Nothing breaks. Nothing explodes. It just... slows. And from the outside, everything still looks fine. The illusion of stability In food and beverage manufacturing, where teams run lean and pressure is constant, performance often becomes the proxy for culture. If products are shipping, if margins are intact, if reviews are clean, the assumption is: we're good. But that assumption is dangerous. According to Gallup's 2023 global workplace report, only 23% of employees worldwide are actively engaged, while a staggering 59% are "quiet quitting ", doing just enough to get by, with no emotional investment. And in Australia? Engagement has declined three years in a row. In a mid-market FMCG business, those numbers rarely show up on dashboards. But they show up in other ways: New ideas stall at the concept phase Team members stop challenging assumptions Execution becomes rigid instead of agile Everyone is "aligned" but no one is energised And by the time the board sees a drop in revenue, the belief that once drove the business is already gone. The emotional cost of cultural silence One thing we don’t talk about enough is what this does to leadership. When energy drains, leaders often become isolated. Not because they want to be, but because the organisation has lost the instinct to challenge, question, or stretch. I’ve seen CEOs second-guessing themselves in rooms full of agreement. Seen GMs miss red flags because nobody wanted to be "the problem". Seen founders mistake quiet delivery for deep buy-in. The emotional toll of unspoken disengagement is real. You’re surrounded by people doing their jobs. But no one’s really in it with you. And eventually, leaders stop stretching too. We train people to disengage without realising it Here’s the contradiction that most organisations won’t admit: We say we want initiative, but we reward obedience. The safest people get promoted The optimists get extra work The truth-tellers get labelled difficult So people learn to conserve energy. They learn not to challenge ideas that won’t land. They learn not to flag risks that won’t be heard. And over time, they stop showing up with their full selves. This isn't resistance. It's protection. And it becomes the default when innovation is punished, risk isn't buffered, and "alignment" becomes code for silence. Boards rarely see it in time Boards don’t ask about belief. They ask about performance. But belief is what drives performance. When culture begins to fade, it doesn't look like chaos. It looks like calm. It looks like compliance. But underneath, the organisation is hollowing out. By the time a board notices the energy is gone, it’s often because the financials have turned, and by then, the people who could've helped reverse the trend have already left. In a 2022 Deloitte study on mid-market leadership, 64% of executives said culture was their top priority, yet only 27% said they measured it with any rigour . If you don’t track it, you won’t protect it. And if you don’t protect it, don’t be surprised when it disappears. The real risk: you might not get it back Here’s what no one likes to admit: Not all cultures recover. You can try rebrands. You can run engagement campaigns. You can roll out leadership frameworks and off-sites and feedback platforms. But if belief has been neglected for too long, the quiet ones you depended on, the culture carriers, the stretchers, the informal leaders, they’re already checked out. Some have left. Some are still there physically but not emotionally. And some have started coaching others to play it safe. Once that happens, you're not rebuilding. You're replacing. So what do you do? Don’t listen for noise. Listen for absence. Absence of challenge. Absence of stretch. Absence of belief. Ask yourself: When was the last time someone in the business pushed back? Not rudely, but bravely? When did someone offer an idea that made others uncomfortable? When did a leader admit they were unsure and ask for help? Those are your indicators. Because healthy culture isn’t silent. It’s alive. It vibrates with tension, disagreement, contribution and care. If everything looks fine, but no one’s really leaning in? That’s your problem. And by the time it shows up in the numbers,t might already be too late.