On my joining as Vice-Chancellor Starex University Gurugram, I was welcomed by Chancellor Shri Mohinder Singh Ji in the Starex family. In the one-to-one maiden meeting, I was given to understand ‘believing is good but control is better’ as the first sermon with a strong conviction of the Chancellor who is a self-made Indian trained at Frankfurt Germany where he worked since he was 15 years young. My notions of believing in self and others stand knocked time and again to think over. It is pertinent to mention that I believed people around me more than myself as a teacher and team leader in educational governance.

All of us want job satisfaction with trust in self but control over greed is a necessary and sufficient condition in present times of covid crisis. We have to make honest efforts to control (self) to make the dictum ‘work works’ a reality. We have to understand, analyze, interpret and control on self-more than others.

A quick way to tell the difference between trust and control is to simply observe whether there is desperation or deep concern in our own being. Self-trust means that one is mindful of the impact of words and actions on others, controlling our own behavior, and striving for self-mastery. Is control the opposite of trust? We are afraid it means we are giving up on our health, happiness, identity, etc. But the opposite of control is not giving up—it is trust. One may have a low propensity to trust which is based on many factors including personality, early childhood role models and experiences, beliefs and values, culture, self-awareness, and emotional maturity.

It is worth quoting a known Russian Lenin who once said, “Trust is good, but control is better” and many of us seem to agree. One sees precious time and resources ploughed into paper-pushing, form-filling, and the drafting of voluminous, hyper-detailed contracts, all to the end of tightening control. Control over employees, control over clients and customers, control over business processes and outcomes. But with what results? Does Lenin’s little management maxim work out well in practice? Or have managements overestimated and overemphasized control’s virtues, to the detriment of productivity, profits, and efficiency?

With those questions in mind, let us draw our attention to another potent tool available which many of us have forgotten. Used intelligently, it could save us substantial time and money, dramatically increase motivation and job satisfaction, and secure us greater productivity and efficiency. That tool is trust and trust-based management.

Trust-based management seeks to delegate to individuals as much responsibility for and control over tasks as possible. It focuses on performance-based on informal agreements and a high level of trust. Among other advantages, this approach does away with an enormous number of complexities and their expenses. Lenin’s famous words might be rephrased, “Control is good, but trust is cheaper.” This is what we would do well to bear in mind when tempted to solve challenging situations by tightening control. Of course, risks must be confronted and dealt with, but control must not be allowed to degrade or replace trust. Total control would mean zero trusts.

To my mind, teachers are experts in their fields and have special knowledge of all aspects of their working situations and processes, and a vested interest in optimizing them. By seeking their input and advice, and rewarding good ideas, we harvest this invaluable resource pool. When it is in for teachers to offer input and suggestions and to speak their minds and even make mistakes, a distrustful, heavy-control, “zero-defect” culture is to be avoided.

An individual’s response to trust-based management can be encouragingly positive. The employee understands and appreciates that trust is in play, and, determined to be worthy of that trust, completes the work as expected with the satisfaction of a job well completed, and trust validated.

Apparently, the knowledge that one is trusted and respected carries a much higher value than token material rewards, enhances self-respect and self-trust, and inspires a determination to perform at higher and higher levels. Where trust has been built to a high degree, we need not feel compelled to keep a close watch on tasks in progress.  And, knowing that they are trusted, the individuals and teams involved tend to feel more self-motivated to perform, to continue to be worthy of trust, and to earn even greater trust, respect, and freedom.

Few institutions are aware of these concrete economic and social benefits of trust-based management. Trust is a natural foundation of our society and social behavior. Trust is an invaluable, invisible raw material that deserves considerable and active attention.

It has to be noted that recent research in neurology has shown that pleasurable activity results in the release of the hormone oxytocin. Thus when we work together in cooperation with a group; when we’re negotiating a deal and all is going smoothly; when we make music or dance together, we feel great – and oxytocin is released, reinforcing our feeling of well-being.

It is important to note that we may not all prove ourselves worthy of continuing trust. There may be one out of twenty who does not reliably fulfill duties and carry out tasks assigned in educational institutions. The other nineteen are doing their work well and are quite comfortable in the knowledge that they are trusted and their performance appreciated. In such a situation, the one “bad apple” should be dealt with as an individual, through constructive consultation, resolution of disagreements or misunderstandings, etc. By no means should the group as a whole be subjected to discipline, increased control, or reduced trust, as the result of poor performance of one or two of its members. In a high-trust institution, we can well afford to hit the “trust button” and leave the “control button” alone. Trust matters. Trust, trust, and more trust are the way forward to greater productivity and efficiency and a happier institution.

If we are aware of trust as a valuable resource and use it actively in daily life then this invisible raw material may prove to be the most important competitive parameter in the present times with motivation and ultimately develops healthy work culture in educational institutions. Being Needonomist, I believe “Control is good, but trust is cheaper,” which has to be built with the honesty of purpose.

( Professor M.M. Goel is the Vice Chancellor, Starex University, Gurugram and Founder Needonomics School of Thought www.starexuniversity.com,    www.needonomics.com )