Courage: Making Teamwork Work Well

The move toward flatter and more flexible team situations has prompted the need for acts of leadership outside a formally designated role. In these situations, the choice of whether or not to act as a leader in the team is a discretionary choice and often involves risk. We consider the qualities of a team member that make up the propensity to act like a leader in situations of risk where the choice to act is most problematic. We propose that what we know about the virtue of “courage” lends valuable insights into this question and offer a framework of three qualities (character, confidence, and credibility) that serve as the foundation for the construct. Finally, we offer practical implications for the selection and retention related to the virtue of courage in team composition.