August 12, 2025

Creating Work Teams That Employees Love to Join Featuring Dr. Tim Currie

29 minutes

Transforming Transactional Employees to Loyal Teams

Shep interviews Dr. Tim Currie, leadership expert and author of Swift Trust. He shares research-backed strategies on how organizations, whether remote or in-person, can build trust, a strong culture, and genuine employee engagement.

This episode of Amazing Business Radio with Shep Hyken answers the following questions and more:  

What is swift trust?

How does internal company culture influence customer experience?

How can leaders build a followership?

Why is trust important for employee engagement and customer satisfaction in virtual teams?

How can organizations recreate the benefits of in-office culture for remote teams?

Top Takeaways:  

Creating a strong culture of trust in a remote work environment takes much more than just assigning tasks and checking the results. Since people aren't together in the same place, leaders and team members need to go out of their way to engage, communicate, and build connections, just like they would in person.

Swift trust is a concept that involves assuming your teammate is competent, reliable, and of good character. This is common in remote settings or short-term projects where you don't have time to build deeper relationships. This form of trust often remains transactional and surface-level unless further effort is made to deepen those relationships.

Happy employees usually lead to happy customers, no matter where work is happening. The way employees feel inside an organization directly affects how they treat customers, whether employees are working in an office or from home. If workers feel connected and cared for, they're more likely to treat customers well.

In an office, great leaders can "work the room" and connect with employees face-to-face. When everyone works remotely, leaders have to become visible in new ways.

The number one indicator of trust in leadership is online availability. Seeing a manager's green light online or receiving an answer to a question builds confidence that leadership is engaged and supportive. This digital presence is similar to an office's "open door" policy, as it allows employees to reach out and get help even when they are not in the same location.

"Followership" is the idea that employees want to be led by someone they trust and respect. This is possible in remote work when companies are willing to invest in teams mastering skills like communicating through video calls, chat platforms, and social media-style updates.

When employees are scattered around the world, they still need to feel like they're part of the team. Regular video calls to celebrate successes, check in on well-being, or just have fun keep morale high.

Plus, Shep and Tim talk about what is causing the "attention battle" in teams and how to win it effectively. Tune in!

Quote: 

"The more leaders can authentically engage in digital channels and share more of themselves on a personal level, the more employees will feel they are sincere and genuinely reaching out. It's the closest thing to human touch we can find in a remote setting."

About:  

Dr. Tim Currie is a leadership expert who has personally generated over $100 million in revenue and guided teams to more than $1 billion. He is the author of Swift Trust: Mastering Relationships in the Remote Work Revolution.

Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio.  

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By Shep Hyken & C-Suite Radio

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