A community can be seen, felt, and heard. It can even be measured. And it is incredibly important for working teams. Research shows that when team members experience a sense of community at work, they are 58% more likely to thrive  in their job, 55% more likely to feel engaged, and 66% more likely to stay in their role into the future.

Why? Community is a basic human need. From our evolutionary beginnings, humans needed communities  to obtain food, to care for children, and to stay safe. Human potential can only truly, fully be achieved in the company of others.

In today’s working world, community is just as critical and just as craved. In professional teams, community creates a shared sense of purpose, belonging, and camaraderie. A strong sense of community can help build trust, reduce turnover, and attract and retain top talent. Tighter communities create better ideas and cultivate a more collaborative environment where feedback and diversity of opinion can flourish.

For business leaders looking to overcome the obstacles of today’s market, creating community is essential. A strong community can immunize a business against the harsh realities of today’s economy by fostering loyalty, generating word-of-mouth, and boosting credibility and connectedness.

It’s easier said than done, though.

Why some organizations struggle to create a sense of community
There are many reasons why leaders may come across roadblocks as they attempt to foster community, especially for those trying to bring their teams together in the wake of a pandemic.

For one, the need to transition into a remote or hybrid work format post-pandemic has meant fewer occasions where community is built and nurtured, at least in a face-to-face way. Lack of in-person interaction can have a negative impact on how connected people feel and how well they’re able to build workplace relationships. Relationships are at the heart of any community, so leaders looking to turn their organizations into communities need to be able to find ways to enable relationship-building, whether that’s by making virtual meetings more communal or by increasing the amount of in-person interaction.

The lack of in-person interaction of recent years has also had knock-on impacts. Teams that previously would have enjoyed shared language and experiences now find themselves without this common ground. Without shared activities, team members can find it difficult to experience a shared sense of purpose and camaraderie.

Businesses have suffered a lot with burnout in recent years. Even before the pandemic sent us online, people were already feeling the effects of long hours, economic uncertainty, and unsociable technology. An overemphasis on productivity instead of the personal well-being of employees has long been a problem of workplaces. That’s not a solid foundation for a community. Building a successful company has, in many cases, come at the obvious expense of building a community.

Community is even more critical for diverse organizations
Working across different cultures and time zones is easier than ever, but without the ingredients necessary for community, global working is likely to lead to isolated individuals and disparate teams. Dealing with cultural sensitivity also requires a lot of discernment, personal understanding, and empathy. People who are coming to work together but who share different backgrounds, racial identities, and religious beliefs need ways of connecting that are inclusive and appreciative of these differences.

A community that can be shaped by the diverse minds and bodies of an organization is one that will help its members feel a sense of belonging and validity. Communities can act as support systems, delivering emotional and practical care. These support systems can also act as safe spaces where diverse people can learn to see and hear one another and break down the barriers between them.

For these reasons, practicing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in a community context can make team members engage more deeply and happily with their work. This, in turn, shines through when others — like clients, customers, and stakeholders — engage with your company.

Steps leaders can take to engage employees through community-building
If community can make or break our teams, how can we start to build it? Here are a few ways leaders can keep promoting the development of their communities:

1. Practice role modeling
What do you, personally, need to feel connected to your team? Leaders can show up and take charge by building the community you need and expect. Host an event, create a new message board, or start a volunteer group that employees can join. Role model what community-building looks like.

2. Amplify the value of community
Sometimes actions and words speak equal volumes. Show and tell team members how important community is to you and the organization. Talk about it, sing its praises, and educate others about the value of the community until they’re as engaged in the idea as you are. Walk the walk and talk the talk.

3. Summon a sense of purpose and belonging around community
To boost people’s awareness of community and their ability to build relationships with each other, a shared sense of purpose can be helpful. Purpose gives team members a reason to get together, a shared language, and a set of common goals. Leaders can encourage this by empowering individuals to lend their own voices to a discussion of what the team’s purpose should be.

4. Carve out time
As previously mentioned, burnout is rife in today’s business world, so any solution for building community needs to avoid simply dumping a new list of tasks onto people’s plates. It is vital for leaders to carve out company time in order to enable people to think deeply about community and take action. Active endorsement and sponsorship of community go a long way.

5. Recognize people for community efforts
Appreciation can lead to stronger community because it makes people feel seen and heard. Recognizing team members’ achievements, appreciating effort and contribution, and celebrating important milestones can help build a sense of community and reinforce the company’s shared sense of purpose.

6. Invite people to a conversation
The most important task of a leader when it comes to building communities that flourish is to listen. Invite people to talk about their personal and professional visions and big dreams. Listen to their needs, uncover the unspoken words, and bring to surface the tensions that have the power to unleash potential in the community. By letting team members take the floor, leaders can empower them to start playing more important roles within the community they are creating.

We are all attempting to build communities in the places we live and work despite the threat of burnout, clashes over remote and hybrid working, and not having had a team lunch in years. Community is a primal human need; our businesses and our selves will be much better off if we can start making an effort to build them.