Organizations are a lot like Olympics; they succeed when people work towards a vision we can rally behind.

The 2010 Olympic Winter Games were a roller-coaster ride for months, culminating in two weeks of intense emotion. From the moment the Olympic torch landed, it began to unite the country and the Games started to become “the Olympics of the people.”

When CTV unveiled its Olympic theme song “I believe,” it was met with mixed reaction. Some viewed it as merely slick PR.

When the Canadian men’s hockey team lost its round-robin game against Team USA, many Canadians felt they had been punched in the stomach. I remember saying to my wife sarcastically: “Now, we really need to believe.”

The climax was at the men’s hockey final game, when, just seconds before the end of the third period, the U.S. team scored to tie the game at 2-2. I am sure all Canadians held their breath for the next few minutes. Again, I found myself exclaiming: “I believe!” but this time with passion. And then, ten minutes into overtime, Canada Sydney Crosby scored and the entire country went wild in celebration.

This was about much more than a hockey game, and the stellar performance of so many of our great Canadian athletes. It was about millions of Canadians standing together to celebrate and cheer for a common vision and goal. By the end of the Olympics, “I believe” had accumulated deep, emotional meaning to most Canadians.

So it is in organizations. The most powerful organizational visions and strategies are those “of the people.” The most compelling slogans come to life when they truly resonate with individuals who then make them their own. When people really believe in a cause, they rise to the occasion with great courage, passion, and resolve. I have seen this time and again:

1. A sales division of a global telecom company faced a highly competitive market. They wanted to grow their $250 million in revenues exponentially. The leaders rallied everyone around the commitment to be “unstoppable,” and this became their mantra. They worked together with genuine passion to innovate and to overcome obstacles. Within three years, the division’s revenues grew to $1.5 billion, an outcome no one believed was possible at the outset.

2. A fast-growing technology company was experiencing growing pains. It did well in strong markets, but when there was a downturn, it became apparent that the business organization had become a set of rigid silos. This would clearly stall the next stage of growth. Their chief, exhausted from babysitting his team, while bickering and gossip drained energy, brought them together and confronted this reality. The team aligned around a vision of “Being a courageous and united team.” To this day, the organization operates with strong, collaborative leadership, achieving remarkable success.

3. A cynical senior executive of a large global service company was told to cut and enhance productivity in a 3,500-person division with a largely unionized and hostile labour force. He realized that this climate guaranteed failure. Seeing the need for a breakthrough, he convened his management and union leaders off-site for a frank, watershed conversation. After he acknowledged his own harsh behaviour and role in the bitter labour relations history, everyone – both managers and union leaders – did the same. Both sides committed to a “unified” banner, and everyone stepped up to the plate. In the following year, they were able to cut $200 million in expenses, as well as elevate customer satisfaction to an all-time high of 90 per cent.

Having the courage and faith to carve out a bold, game-changing vision and the credibility and passion to rally the people around it – that’s what wins the Olympic gold medal of organizational leadership.