Transparency in the Workplace: The Implications that Matter

Why is Transparency in the Workplace Important?
Transparency in the workplace has long been a topic of debate among leaders. Many argue it is essential for building a culture of trust, accountability, and alignment. Open communication helps employees understand organizational goals, see the rationale behind decisions, and feel empowered to contribute. Others caution that unchecked transparency can create confusion, stress, or conflict, suggesting that openness must be balanced with discretion and context.

How Transparency in the Workplace Shapes Behavior
When employees know their actions are visible and accountable, they are more likely to act responsibly and align with organizational expectations. Misconduct often occurs when people believe their behavior will go unnoticed — not just in childhood mischief, but in adult professional settings as well. Transparency creates a culture where ethical behavior, collaboration, and accountability are reinforced because everyone understands that their actions have consequences.

What Workplace Transparency Can Learn From Police Body Cameras
A recent topic in the news — the use of body cameras by law enforcement — offers lessons for workplace transparency. Initially introduced to ensure fair treatment of all citizens and provide accurate accounts of interactions, body cameras were also expected to deter misconduct by both officers and the public.

The results have been striking. In Oakland, California, where body cameras were deployed in 2010, “use of force” incidents dropped by 72% in a city historically challenged by racial unrest and economic disparities. Similar deterrent effects have been observed in other communities, including more affluent and less racially tense cities across the San Francisco Bay Area. The lesson for organizations is clear: visibility and accountability can profoundly influence behavior, reinforcing ethical conduct and trust.

People Demand Greater Workplace Transparency
In the wake of incidents like the Ferguson shooting and other high-profile cases, public demand for police body cameras has surged — aimed at protecting both officers and citizens. The transparency these cameras provide clearly influences behavior. As the Oakland police chief observed, “It’s not just the police that are behaving better when they know the camera is on; people interacting with us know we’re filming, so they behave better too.” This illustrates a broader principle: when actions are visible and accountable, behavior improves across the board — a lesson directly applicable to organizational transparency.

Why Not Apply Workplace Transparency Lessons to Companies?
If your goal is to influence behavior or drive culture change, increased accountability and transparency can be incredibly powerful levers for performance. While we don’t recommend literal body cameras, organizations can achieve similar results by tracking, highlighting, and rewarding the behaviors that align with strategic goals.

To implement this effectively:

• Identify target behaviors: Determine which actions you want to encourage — and which to discourage — within your organization.
• Assess current culture: Understand where your organization stands today in terms of engagement, accountability, and alignment.
• Communicate expectations: Ensure all employees understand the desired culture, why it matters, and what exemplary behaviors look like.
• Monitor and reinforce: Establish systems to observe, recognize, and address behaviors consistently, making transparency in performance both visible and meaningful.

When applied thoughtfully, this approach can embed the behaviors that drive organizational success while fostering a culture of trust, clarity, and accountability.

A Note on Applying Transparency in the Workplace
While transparency generally benefits organizations by fostering trust and alignment, it must be applied thoughtfully, with careful consideration of audience and potential consequences.

For instance, a study by the University of California, Berkeley found that employees became roughly 10% less productive when they discovered coworkers earned more than expected. Interestingly, when they learned that their managers earned significantly more, productivity tended to rise, as employees were motivated to advance to the next level.

More recent research from Indiana University, Harvard Business School, and the University of California suggests that knowing peer compensation can actually increase discretionary effort — provided employees perceive the pay system as fair. Fairness hinges on clear performance expectations, paired with timely, accurate, and consistent measures of individual and team contributions. Transparency works best when it is balanced with fairness and context, ensuring employees understand not just the “what,” but the “why” behind decisions.

The Bottom Line
Achieving meaningful change and successfully executing new strategies requires a culture grounded in accountability and transparency. Without these cultural drivers, misaligned behaviors can persist, undermining engagement, performance, and retention. By embedding transparency thoughtfully, organizations create the conditions for alignment, trust, and sustained high performance.

To learn more about how to build a strong culture of accountability and transparency, download The 3 Levels of a High Performance Culture to Take Your Game to the Next Level