Maria Giudice on how to build trust

There is a lot we can learn from industry legends and their journey to becoming the icons they are today.
We held a live interview with Maria Giudice, Founder of Hot Studio and design legend in Silicon Valley. Maria shared with us how to build trust with senior leadership in your organisation.

What are the most effective methods in building trust and relations with senior cross-functional leadership?


Learn what they need to be successful: 

Ask for 90 days of listening - interview as many people as you can, and let people see you. Ask questions, and genuinely care about what will make people successful.


Understand what scares people: 

Whether it's taking away their power, putting uncertainty into the mix or removing autonomy in decision-making, identify the key fears and employ a strategy to remove that threat.

Create celebration rituals: 

Celebrate your wins while creating methods to recognise failure as a way of learning.

Find your people: 

Find people who want the same things as you, share your beliefs, who welcome your way of thinking. Support them and they’ll support you.


How to gain support among C-Level leadership?

Make a stakeholder map to identify:

The Leapers - highly enthusiastic supporters of your vision.

The Bridge Builders - might support your mission, but you need to provide data for them to back you. They need to feel that you’re doing the right things for the right reasons.

The Tradition Holders - the most resistant, they want to preserve the old way of doing things. With tradition holders, the best way to gain their support is to understand their needs and wants to make them successful. Even if you did something, let them take credit. 

Watch the full video to hear more insights: 👆

Want to take your career to the next level?

Learn Business Strategy, Finance and Leadership hands-on from industry legends at Pentagram, WPP, Zaha Hadid Architects, Saatchi & Saatchi, Google, Amazon, and many more on our Design Leaders programme.

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