Mutual trust is the shared belief that team members will perform their roles and protect the interests of their team-mates. Where mutual trust is not fully developed, it can result in problems not being reported and a lack of self-organization. Trust enables team members to share half-baked ideas without the fear of ridicule.

One of the key principles of Agile is to “Amplify Learning”. Development is an exercise in discovery. Individuals will try various approaches to solving the problem, and mistakes will be made. This is when learning occurs, and the team can take from the experience and improve on the solution as a whole. This requires trust between team members, and between the team and the external stakeholders. The best approach to improving a software development environment is to amplify learning.

Project Managers should assist the team in developing a set of ground rules. These are not meant to reduce conflict and contention, but direct them in positive ways. As described by, these rules can include such rules as:

  • Everyone has an equal voice
  • Everyone’s contribution is valuable
  • Attack issues, not people
  • Keep privacy within the team
  • Respect each other and your differences
  • Everyone participates

These rules should be decided on by the team, and posted prominently in the team shared environment.

What other Ground Rules have worked, and what else have you done to support trust on your teams?

Related posts:

  1. Seven characteristics of High Performing Teams
  2. Supporting Teams through the 4 Stages
  3. Motivation and Reward Models on Agile Teams
  4. The new role of a Project Manager on Agile Teams
  5. What Questions Should be Answered at the Start of a Project?