Americans can rest a little easier today reassured that people with genuine differences of opinion can find it in their hearts to compromise rather than allow their constituents to suffer from a dangerous game of brinksmanship. I’m referring, of course, to the resolution of the NFL lock-out. Our government may default on our financial obligations, but at least we’ll be able to watch athletes pass a football while our politicians pass a devalued buck. The new, dreaded “C” word of the day is “compromise.”

To understand something fundamental about innovation, you could start by helping me get my teenage daughter to clean her room. Her room is a serious mess, and I’m out of ideas. Her mother and I avoid eye contact with her doorway when we walk the hallway towards our bedroom.

Our 2011 Building Trust in Business research survey measures critical indicators for trust, leadership, and collaboration — pointing to how high-performing companies achieve key business results by emphasizing all three.

The 2011 survey of nearly 200 business leaders represents the third year that Interaction Associates has explored the formula for success at high performing companies.

I spoke with Carol Sanford, author of the recent book, The Responsible Business, about her experience working with Fortune 500 companies all over the world. Carol's own passion has led her to help businesses integrate responsibility into all aspects of a business as an engine for innovation, profitability and purpose. Carol explored a framework for a holistic approach to business, and reflected on what guides her and other leaders in an integrated approach to leadership.  

At Interaction Associates, we work with clients to achieve greater and more sustainable levels of business return on investment, by delivering a different ROI — Return on Involvement™. The primary way that we do this is by helping our clients to create cultures of involvement by developing a type of leader that we call the Facilitative Leader. They are best defined as leaders who demonstrate:

1) strategic thinking,

2) excellent collaborative skills, and

3) self awareness.

"Can you develop and lead a global expedition for our high potential leaders to study water scarcity and develop leadership capacity?" the head of corporate social responsibility of a large hotel asked me this week. And then she added, "We want to invite hotel guests, too."

As the U.S. economy strengthens, however unevenly, business leaders are facing a central challenge with important implications: How are you bridging the trust gap with employees — the answer to this has broad implications for your business results.

What trust gap, you might ask?

Becoming and Belonging: the Underpinnings of Sustainable Change

In June, Ashley Welch spoke with Danny Martin: thought leader, environmentalist, facilitator, and inspirational speaker. Ashley and Danny discussed how to deepen and widen understanding within a group or organization so that change can take place.

Two conversations this week with leaders from large companies reminded me again about the value of context in meeting business challenges, and how social entrepreneurs address challenges with context front and center.

Ashley Welch had a rich conversation with Wilford Welch in May's LeaderLens. Wilford is an international business consultant, author of The Tactics of Hope, and an expert in the leadership excellence of social entrepreneurs. Learn about unique characteristics - like boundary riding -  that make social entrepreneurs successful. Discover how these qualities are pertinent for today’s corporate leaders, given the ambitions of the millennials, shortened waves of innovation, and global trends.