Leading with Trust

Leading with Trust

From TrustTalk - It's all about Trust by Severin de Wit

March 26, 2026 · 24 min · Episode 132

About this episode

Dick Boer discusses the importance of trust in retail leadership and the challenges leaders face in maintaining it.

Every day, millions of people trust retailers to decide what ends up on their table. But that trust extends far beyond the products themselves. It touches supply chains, leadership decisions, sustainability, and the values that guide a company, often under pressure and out of public view. In this episode of TrustTalk, we speak with Dick Boer, former CEO of Ahold Delhaize and now a board member and advisor to several large companies, who led one of the world’s largest food retail companies through major transformations, including a global merger and the aftermath of a corporate crisis. He reflects on how trust operates at every level of retail, from food quality and sourcing to employees, customers, and society. Dick Boer shares candid insights on the dilemmas leaders face when values collide with commercial pressures, why trust must be actively rebuilt after a crisis, and how leadership culture differs across countries. He also discusses the importance of purpose-driven leadership, the role of transparency with boards and teams, and why trust in leadership ultimately begins with building the right team. Looking back on his career, he reflects on the hardest lessons he learned…

People in this episode

Host: Severin de Wit

Guest: Dick Boer

Topics covered

  • trust
  • leadership
  • retail
  • sustainability
  • corporate culture
  • transparency

Keywords

  • trust
  • leadership
  • retail
  • supply chains
  • corporate crisis
  • transparency
  • purpose-driven

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Ahold Delhaize

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