“There’s not a CEO alive that doesn’t know that there’s nothing harder than building trust on teams.”
Context
Brené Brown, the US researcher and leadership expert known for her work on vulnerability, courage and organisational culture, has criticised the behaviour of some senior leaders during a period of heightened pressure on businesses. Her comments come at a time when many organisations are tightening control, increasing expectations and navigating uncertainty around performance and direction.
Speaking to news site Business Insider, Brown reflected on how executives are managing their teams and the wider cultural consequences of those decisions. She suggested that, despite the complexity of the current environment, many leaders are overlooking fundamentals that have long been understood.
She said, “There’s not a CEO alive that doesn’t know that there’s nothing harder than building trust on teams.”
Meaning
The quote centres on a tension between knowledge and action. Brown’s argument is that leaders are not unaware of the importance of trust. Instead, they recognise how difficult it is to create and sustain, particularly across teams facing pressure, change or uncertainty.
Trust, in this sense, is not a soft or secondary concern. It is a core condition for how teams function, shaping communication, decision-making and willingness to engage. When it is present, it enables collaboration and resilience. When it is absent, even well-designed strategies can falter.
Her wider comments point to the risk of leaders defaulting to control or urgency at the expense of trust. In doing so, they may undermine the very outcomes they are trying to achieve, particularly if employees feel excluded, monitored or undervalued.
Implications
The remark reinforces that trust must be treated as a deliberate leadership priority rather than an assumed outcome. Organisations that focus solely on performance metrics or structural change without addressing culture may find that progress is limited by disengagement or resistance.
It also suggests that leaders need to examine how their behaviour aligns with what they already know. If trust is widely acknowledged to be difficult and essential, then failing to invest in it is less a gap in understanding and more a question of priorities.
The quote reflects a broader challenge for organisations navigating change. Building trust takes time, consistency and clarity, yet many businesses are operating at speed. Those that manage to balance both are more likely to maintain cohesion and effectiveness in the long term.
William Furney is a Managing Editor at Black and White Trading Ltd based in Kingston upon Hull, UK. He is a prolific author and contributor at Workplace Wellbeing Professional, with over 127 published posts covering HR, employee engagement, and workplace wellbeing topics. His writing focuses on contemporary employment issues including pension schemes, employee health, financial struggles affecting workers, and broader workplace trends.
- William Furney
- William Furney
- William Furney
- William Furney
