Transparency Is a Behavior, Not a Buzzword
The Third Entry in My Retrospective Series
This is the third entry in my retrospective series, looking back on the lessons I wrote about in Enlightened Entrepreneurship a decade ago. At the time, I saw transparency as an essential leadership virtue—something that built trust, strengthened teams, and created alignment. My belief was simple: if leaders communicated openly and honestly, they would foster a culture where people felt informed, engaged, and empowered.
That was the theory.
A decade later, I see transparency differently. It’s not just a virtue—it’s a discipline. And it’s not about what leaders say—it’s about what they do. Real transparency isn’t about making bold statements or sharing updates when it’s convenient. It’s about creating systems that ensure people always know where they stand. It’s about clarity in decisions, consistency in communication, and accountability when things don’t go as planned.
The world has changed since I first wrote about transparency. AI is reshaping decision-making, corporate accountability is under a microscope, and employee expectations around openness and trust have evolved. Transparency today is more complex—and more essential—than ever.
Transparency Is a System, Not a Talking Point
One of the biggest misconceptions I had when I first wrote about transparency was that it was primarily about intent. I believed that as long as leaders genuinely wanted to be open, they would naturally foster transparency. But intent isn’t enough.
Transparency only works when it’s built into the fabric of an organization. Saying “we value transparency” doesn’t mean much if employees still feel like they’re constantly trying to read between the lines. It doesn’t count if people have to rely on office gossip to stay informed. And it certainly doesn’t count if leadership only shares information when it’s convenient, spinning a polished version of reality instead of the truth.
Over the years, I’ve seen firsthand that real transparency isn’t a passive practice—it’s an active, deliberate system. It requires leaders to make clarity a habit, not an afterthought. It means communicating openly in both good times and bad, explaining why decisions are made, not just what those decisions are, and ensuring that accountability isn’t just something expected of employees—it applies to leadership as well.
Organizations that treat transparency as a system—not just a value—build stronger teams, reduce uncertainty, and create cultures where trust isn’t something leaders ask for, but something they earn.
The Danger of “Unfiltered” Transparency
Of course, transparency has a fine line. I’ve seen leaders who overcorrect, mistaking transparency for an open-mic policy, where every debate, uncertainty, or internal conflict is laid bare. That doesn’t build trust—it breeds instability.
True transparency isn’t about sharing everything—it’s about sharing the right things in a way that provides clarity, not chaos. Leadership isn’t about dumping raw, unfiltered information onto employees and expecting them to sort through the mess. It’s about ensuring that people understand what matters most, without drowning in noise.
This is where great leaders stand out. They don’t just share information—they translate it. They help people understand the bigger picture. They provide context so that transparency isn’t just about exposure, but about comprehension.
Transparency in Financial Leadership
In my role at B:Side, I’ve come to appreciate how critical transparency is in financial leadership. Managing capital, making lending decisions, and guiding businesses through complex financial landscapes require more than just trust—they require earned trust. And that means being upfront, clear, and direct.
Financial transparency isn’t just about making reports available. It’s about ensuring that stakeholders—employees, partners, and clients—fully understand what’s happening, why it’s happening, and how it affects them. That means being honest about risks, not just rewards. It means explaining financial decisions in plain language, rather than burying them in technical jargon. And it means taking responsibility when things don’t go as planned, instead of spinning a narrative to make leadership look good.
The second trust is broken in financial leadership, it’s nearly impossible to rebuild. True transparency ensures that never happens.
The AI Problem: When Transparency Isn’t Just a Leadership Issue
A decade ago, transparency was mostly about leadership communication. Today, it’s also about technology.
AI is making more business decisions than ever—everything from hiring and lending to forecasting and investment strategy. And yet, AI itself is often a black box. People affected by AI-driven decisions rarely know how those decisions were made, who is responsible, or what data was used.
That’s a problem.
If organizations start outsourcing major decisions to AI while keeping their processes opaque, transparency disappears. And when transparency disappears, so does trust. Leaders now face a new challenge: not just explaining what decisions were made, but how those decisions were reached—especially when algorithms, rather than human judgment, are involved.
The companies that win in this new era will be the ones that don’t just use AI effectively, but also explain it effectively. Transparency now extends beyond leadership behavior—it includes how organizations communicate the role of technology in decision-making.
Transparency Is a Two-Way Street
For years, I thought transparency was something that leaders gave to their teams. But I’ve learned that real transparency is a two-way street.
Leaders need to be open, but they also need to create an environment where their teams feel safe being open in return. A culture of transparency isn’t just about sharing—it’s about making sure employees aren’t afraid to speak up, ask questions, or voice concerns. That only happens if leadership actively encourages—and rewards—honest communication.
I’ve seen companies where leadership claims to value transparency, but employees still whisper concerns in hallways instead of raising them in meetings. That’s not transparency. That’s fear. And that means transparency is just a buzzword in that organization, not a reality.
Real transparency is built on dialogue. Leaders set the tone, but teams have to feel safe engaging in the conversation. Otherwise, it’s just a one-way broadcast, not a culture.
Final Thoughts: Transparency as a Leadership Standard
A decade ago, I saw transparency as a leadership virtue. Today, I see it as a non-negotiable leadership standard.
It’s not an option. It’s not something to practice when it’s convenient. It’s the foundation of trust, accountability, and strong leadership. And if leaders get it wrong—if employees, partners, or customers feel like they don’t have the full picture—then no amount of PR spin or leadership messaging can fix it.
The best way to test transparency is simple:
Do the people who depend on your leadership always know where they stand? Do they understand why decisions are being made, or are they left guessing? Do they trust the process, or do they feel like they’re being managed with half-truths?
If the answers aren’t clear, then neither is your transparency. And in leadership, clarity is everything.
A decade ago, I believed in transparency. Today, I strive to build systems that make it unavoidable. That’s the difference experience makes.