Give your people a cause and inspiration will follow: The secrets of successful team‐building

Abstract

Purpose

This paper seeks to describe how to lead an effective team and inspire, rather than simply motivate, its members.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper explores what makes people act selflessly in a tragedy. It reveals that this kind of behavior results from people feeling that they have a cause. It also describes how having a cause at work, and being led by an inspirational leader, can lead to a truly inspired workforce.

Findings

The paper details the effects that devotion to a cause has, not only on individuals, but also on a team. It explains how team members come closer to each other, act regardless of rank, and find that adversity strengthens rather than weakens their bonds.

Practical implications

The paper reveals that once this kind of spirit is established in a team, team members will be less likely to defect to other employers.

Social implications

The paper highlights the importance of making a business into a cause. The people the business serves must be a cause. Most important of all, employees must feel that, for their leader, they are a cause.

Originality/value

The paper reveals the differences between inspiration and motivation, being a leader and merely being a boss.

Citation

Jackson, B. (2012), "Give your people a cause and inspiration will follow: The secrets of successful team‐building", Human Resource Management International Digest, Vol. 20 No. 2, pp. 32-34. https://doi.org/10.1108/09670731211208184