Hi! managers

Extraordinary things happen when people are inspired. We have all seen this. I have always believed that if you give people a bold vision, and inspire them, they will go on to achieve that vision.

When I was asked to work in Indonesia in 2001 the revenues of the company were three times less than the Philippines. It had been like that for many years. When I presented the three-year vision for the company I told them our goal was to be bigger than the Philippines. Everyone laughed. Years of the same situation, lack of attention and leadership had ensured that the team had become used to that and in so doing negatively reinforcing the inevitable outcome year after year.

Three years later their revenues went past the Philippines. Then, with new leadership I have to add, it continued to sail past the revenues of Thailand and then Malaysia and then finally, Singapore!

"Treat people as if they were what they ought to be, and you help them to become what they are capable of being," in the words of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

How many inspirational employees do you have in your organisation? My experience is that there are typically many more employees with this

energy than is usually understood, and that often these employees are not managers and are to be found at every level of the organisation. They have a powerful internal energy force and a strong passionate belief in their task and/or their teams. However it is often "locked up" or at least not maximised.

Successful managers and leaders can create an inspirational workplace for everyone, which will help "unlock" this naturally occurring "super

energy":

l Create an inspiring vision and set stretch goals. Typically inspiring visions are ones which talk to the heart and not to the brain. Disney's vision is "Dream, Believe, Dare, Do". I like that.

l Allow mistakes and experimentation. An atmosphere where people are not afraid to fail seems like an oxymoron next to a culture of stretch-goals, but allowing people not to feel fear will allow them to tentatively step beyond their normal well-trodden path.

l Promote diversity and seek to take away bureaucracy. Clearly quick decision making and empowerment within a diverse team is more likely to produce innovation than a group of people who all think and act in the same way within rigid structures.

l Allow challenges to the status quo. Let people feel that there is a change and that all points of view are taken in to account no matter what the established structure.

l Keep people and teams energised. Promote and reward good work that is done and continuously build the employees self-esteem and belief in their work.

We are coming in to a global environment that means we need to get more out of less. Creating an inspirational workplace requires no extra resources, but will result in higher results through the release of this naturally occurring super-energy.

Andrew McBean is senior vice president of DTAC. Follow his articles on the third Monday of every month.