How to Define a Shared Purpose to Improve Your Team's Results in 2025

We reviewed the data and insights from our work with managers in 2024, and here is something interesting.?

It's beyond clear that the leaders of teams with a shared purpose had lower voluntary turnover, higher employee engagement, and better performance.?

Why?

A team, by definition, is three or more people working together to achieve a common goal.? A shared purpose is something people with different experience levels, expertise, and passions can rally around to achieve together.?

Want proof?

Five people get on a high-rise elevator at the same time, all going to different floors.?Are they a team??No, they are just a group of people on an elevator together.? However, the elevator gets stuck between floors 4 and 5. Are they now a team??Yes, because they have a shared purpose: to get the elevator unstuck.??

The best leaders understand that a significant part of their job is establishing a shared purpose that individuals can buy into and rally around each year.? And the start of a new year is a great time for it.

Do most managers do this? Absolutely not, if anything, they do the opposite.?They think it's elementary.?

However, the best leaders spend time, energy, and effort establishing and communicating a shared purpose. They wrestle their shared purpose to the ground, and they are relentless about measuring progress and adjusting throughout the year.?

The Role of Leadership in Establishing a Shared Purpose

Hugh McColL is a world-class leader in the banking industry, best known for his transformative leadership at Bank of America and NationsBank.? He helped transform the city of Charlotte and his company by believing in the power of a shared purpose and a strong vision.? During an interview on the 3 Things Podcast with Ric Elias , CEO of Red Ventures , McColl talked about what he did to bring people together to accomplish meaningful things in the face of significant challenges, "The key is to understand that a common enemy is galvanizing, but a common purpose is inspiring."

The best leaders understand that a common enemy is galvanizing, but a common purpose is inspiring.

McColl was saying that what brought people together in his past was a common enemy. It didn't matter if the common enemy was countries that didn't believe in democracy, global warming, or a national bank; a common enemy can galvanize people to movement. While a common enemy is motivating, a common purpose will inspire action that a leader doesn't even think is possible.??

One of the significant differences between a common enemy and a common purpose is that a shared purpose requires a leader to have a vision for a brighter future and the communication skills to get others to believe in it.?

A shared purpose requires a leader to have a vision for a brighter future and the communication skills to get others to believe in it.?

While this might seem a shared purpose is only meant for confident leaders, it's not.? In fact, every manager in any organization needs to define a shared purpose for their team.

Benefits of Having a Shared Purpose for Teams

Leaders who establish a shared purpose have seen evidence that it aligns team members around a common goal and fosters a sense of connection required to achieve meaningful outcomes.?

The inverse is that each team member is confused?and uncommitted.? When this happens, it increases unhealthy conflicts and the likelihood that individuals prioritize their personal success over the team's success.?

If you need more reasons, look no further than these:?

• Teams with a shared purpose are 50% more likely to achieve their goals.
• Employees who feel connected to their team's purpose are 3 times more likely to stay with their company.
• Employees who understand their team's purpose are 2.5 times more engaged at work.

Now, I will make an assumption: you don't want this on your team.? You would prefer having a motivated and engaged team catalyzed by a shared purpose.?

How to Define a Shared Purpose

Creating a shared purpose for a team is more art than science.? I have seen some common techniques coaching leaders, but there isn't only one perfect way.?However, you can learn some best practices and stories from other leaders to establish your team's shared purpose in 2025.?

1. Define the "Purpose" with Clarity

Action: Clearly articulate the "Why" behind your team's work.

You can take inspiration from a leader in the Accelerate Leadership Program. Her team handled mundane and repetitive tasks like preparing closing documents for homebuyers. To make this work meaningful, she asked loan officers to send pictures of customers signing the documents. One day, she received a picture of a single mom with her daughter on her lap and the caption: "You made dreams become a reality."

Outcome: The leader transformed mundane work into meaningful contributions. Team members understood the deeper impact of their roles, fostering motivation and engagement.

The best leaders know a part of their job is to make the mundane work meaningful.

2. Establish an Impact Metric

Action: Create a specific metric to measure the team’s purpose. For example, determine how many lives your team wants to shape or how many people you aim to help. If this feels too abstract, use a revenue metric, but ensure the team sees tangible benefits from achieving it.

Outcome: A clear impact metric provides focus and accountability, giving the team a way to measure success and celebrate progress.

3. Link Team Member Contributions to Outcomes

Action: Regularly acknowledge individual contributions that align with the team’s purpose. Highlight these efforts in one-on-one meetings or team discussions. Recognize both public and private efforts, and emphasize how proactive work leads to meaningful outcomes.

Outcome: Team members feel valued and connected to the shared purpose. Recognizing their efforts boosts morale, ownership, and performance.

The best leaders emphasize how team members proactive effort produces performance.?

Closing

The best leaders don't let the new year start without gaining clarity about their shared purpose. It has the ability to be integral to your team's success, acting as a north star guiding all members toward common goals.

You have the unique opportunity to inspire and cultivate this purpose within your team, setting the stage for a more cohesive and motivated group as you step into the new year.

Just remember you are the leader of a group on an elevator.? You get to choose if they are a team with a shared purpose or just a group of people working together.?

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About the Author: John Eades is the CEO of LearnLoft. He was named one of LinkedIn’s Top Voices. John is also the author of Building the Best: 8 Proven Leadership Principles to Elevate Others to Success. You can follow him on Instagram @johngeades.