In this article four experienced leaders examine what businesses can apply from this year’s winter Olympics to drive growth in their teams and organisations.
Another Winter Olympic Games recently came to a close, with Milano Cortina providing viewers with non-stop action. Amongst the countless edge-of-your-seat moments were examples of expert coaching, resilience, and performance. Not only do these elements drive Olympic success, but they are essential areas of business too.
In this article, experienced leaders have weighed in on what businesses can apply from this year’s games to drive growth in their teams and organisations. From strategy and persistence to talent strategy and meaning at work, it’s clear that sport continues to bring impactful corporate takeaways.
Innovation and Success are Coached and Structured
“No Olympian is told to ‘just win’ – so why do we tell teams to ‘just innovate’?” challenges Tom Pullen, author of INNOVATOR and director of Innovinco®.
For Pullen, one powerful reflection from this year’s Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina involved the invisible systems and support behind every visible result.
He says for every 90-second downhill run or flawless ice routine, there were thousands of hours of structured training, expert coaching, and disciplined preparation. “No athlete is told to ‘just be more talented.’ They are stretched, reviewed, challenged, and supported – every single day.”
“Yet in business, we routinely expect people and teams to ‘just innovate.’ We ask them to deliver breakthrough products and services with ad hoc bits of methodology, little structured training, and minimal coaching – even when the commercial stakes are high,” Pullen argues.
He equates this to asking an Olympic skier to turn up on race day and simply figure it out.
“Success in Milano Cortina was never accidental – it was engineered. World-class performance was built long before the medal ceremony. For business leaders, the lesson is clear: if you want successful innovation at scale, you must build innovation systems and capability at scale. Talent matters. But structured methods, deliberate training, and expert coaching are what turn potential into podium finishes.”
“Innovation excellence, like Olympic success, is never improvised,” he concludes.
Persistence Pays Off
“Whether it’s Alysa Liu’s gold medal in competitive figure skating, ending a 24-year battle for the US, or freestyle skier Eileen Gu’s confident response with a reporter going viral, it’s non-stop action,” says Tim Castle, bestselling author and negotiation expert.
Castle argues that, just like in the Winter Olympics, endurance matters in business negotiation, whether that’s being willing to advocate for yourself, promote your business, and handle objections. “You can be on top of the world and still be criticised or fight your way back into the spotlight. The resilience needed is just the same,” he says.
According to Castle, business negotiation requires an elite athlete’s mindset to deal with the uncertainty and put in the reps and practice so that when it comes to game day, you can perform at your best. He adds, “Whether it is pitching, building relationships, or having the courage to go in a new direction, it takes confidence. In the same way, when you win, you can really own the result because you have put in the work, commitment, and discipline to secure the victory.”
Give People the Freedom to Follow Their Dreams
“Work hard, accumulate skills and expertise, pursue our chosen professional path. This familiar route can earn us a well-deserved reputation and profile. But ambitions evolve over time, and we may end up frustrated by being pigeonholed or seeing career options narrow,” notes Helen Beedham, organisational expert and author of People Glue. “When an enticing side-step materialises at work, our manager may hold on too tightly, or the hiring manager may favour a ‘safer bet’ candidate.”
She also notes that constraining career freedom can disadvantage your business too, with reduced workforce flexibility, talent exiting for entrepreneurial freedom, or being poached by more open-minded competitors. Plus, with 1.1 billion jobs likely to be recast by technology (OECD), re-skilling employees to meet future resourcing needs is critical for businesses everywhere, Beedham says.
Erin Jackson (USA) was an international champion in inline skating (not an Olympic discipline) with unfulfilled dreams of an Olympic medal. So 10 years ago, she transitioned into speed skating on ice, won gold in the Women’s 500m distance in Beijing in 2022, and finished just outside the medals in the 2026 Winter Olympics.
“Harnessing skills and expertise in new ways is a win-win for your people and your business, so say yes to switching tracks as often as you can,” Beedham points out.
Purpose Talks. Meaning Performs
For Angela Rixon, CEO of The Centre for Meaningful Work and author of Meaning Over Purpose, Milano Cortina framed the Winter Olympic Games around unity and shared experience through its motto, “IT’s Your Vibe.” Yet the real performance story was not branding. It was the translation.
“The opening ceremony was delivered across multiple locations under logistical strain, yet remained emotionally coherent and energising. That does not happen because of a slogan. It happens because people understand why their contribution matters,” she says.
For Rixon, the leadership lesson here is that commitment cannot be instructed. It must be earned through meaning.
“In business, leaders often assume a strong purpose statement will drive engagement. It will not. Purpose sets direction. Meaning determines whether people give discretionary effort when conditions become difficult,” she notes.
When individuals can see how their daily work connects to tangible impact, persistence rises, and collaboration strengthens under pressure. Ultimately, for Rixon, pressure exposes hollow rhetoric. It amplifies lived meaning.
