Constant disloyalty and the keys to community : Bigger is not always better when it comes to co‐operation

Purpose – This paper aims to argue that trust and a sense of community are important in any organization, but increasingly complex structures and different cultures in large companies make it difficult to achieve a community. This, in turn, can harm trust, which is potentially damaging to business success. Design/methodology/approach – The paper demonstrates that different groups in an organization – the global group, matrixed middle and locally loyal – have different community needs. The costs and benefits of community for the three groups are also different. Each group faces its own challenges, but those in the middle group often have the greatest challenges as they constantly find themselves torn between central directives and local realities. Findings – The paper contends that, while community and trust correlate with lower costs, faster change, profitability and retention, in more extensive, distributed complex organizations the cost of building community is much higher and organizations therefore need to be more selective about where the deeper forms of co‐operation add value. Prefers the simplest form of co‐operation and the smallest number of people involved. Practical implications – The paper highlights the need to be much more selective about teams. Originality/value – The paper shows that, by focusing on critical communities, organizations can get the key benefits of community while avoiding some of the costs.