ORGANIZATIONAL HEROES: COMMUNICATING WHAT MATTERS MOST

EXECUTIVE OVERVIEW
Who are our organizational heroes? What makes an organizational hero? And why do we need heroes in the organization? We attempted to find the answers from a group of middle-level executives in Hong Kong. They were asked to identify critical incidents showing behaviors of their bosses, peers, or ordinary employees who have acted in ways perceived as being "heroic." The respondents represent a broad sample of companies in Hong Kong. They were asked to explain why they had considered these people as organizational heroes and describe the situations or conditions when these individuals had behaved heroically. Critical incidents were gathered using a
She also maintained that it is more important for the hero to be human and act from the heart than to "win the battle." Such heroes exhibited leadership that fostered positive change and preserved morale. Organizational heroes exhibit desired values and behaviors, and play an important role in organizational socialization.

Who are our organizational heroes? What makes an organizational hero? And why do we need heroes in the organization? We attempted to find the answers from a group of middle-level executives in Hong Kong. In this study, they were asked to identify critical incidents showing behaviors of colleagues, bosses or even ordinary employees who have acted in ways perceived as being "heroic". They were asked to explain why they had considered these people as organizational heroes, and describe the situations or conditions when these individuals had behaved heroically.

Critical Incident: A Tool for Communicating What Matters Most
As the old saying goes, "a person is a hero in the eyes of the beholder." If so, the respondents when asked to select their workplace heroes would provide their own meaning of what a hero is. We asked the respondents to use a storytelling method to recall and record the critical incident during which heroic behaviors occurred. We defined heroes broadly as individuals who had made a positive and significant difference in the work environment, and helped to raise the level of organizational