Stop Throwing 7% of Your Revenue Down the Drain!

Cathie Leimbach • March 26, 2024

There is a lot of evidence that the biggest potential for growing your organization’s top line, bottom line, or mission impact this year is through leadership development!


Lack of strong leadership skills and behaviors impacts the bottom line.

  • “For every year a company delays leadership development, it costs 7% of their annual sales.” - Blanchard – “Making the Business Case” Report


Lack of strong leadership skills and behaviors impacts retention.

  • “1 in 2 people state that they’ve left a job at some point to get away from a bad manager.” - Gallup


Lack of strong leadership skills and behaviors impacts engagement and productivity.

  • “Managers control 70% of the factors that impact employee engagement.”  -  Gallup


In 2024, for the first time, managers and supervisors are more disengaged than frontline workers. - Gallup

  • “There aren’t a lot of tools that promote leadership development.” -  Bravely


The need for leadership development has never been greater. With few people applying to your job postings, you don’t want a right-fit hire to become disenchanted and leave in 3 to 6 months. Managers of remote workers have to be more intentional about communicating with their employees because they can’t touch base in the break room or drop in as they are walking past their office.


Today’s employees want a positive workplace culture but 90% of leaders aren’t focusing on building rapport, increasing engagement, and providing the various types of support team members need to become high performers.  

Yet, there is very good news in the leadership development space! Culture Impact has developed a stellar management training course which helps leaders:

  • realize the need for trusting and inspiring employees,
  • learn about effective leadership practices,
  • develop the foundational skills for engaging and empowering team members, and
  • build confidence to regularly use these effective leadership practices to support employee and organizational success.


If you have been losing sleep at night, or pulling your hair out, over low employee morale and productivity, it will be well worth your time to investigate the highly effective Conversational Management training. Click here for more information and to register for a 2-hour interactive workshop experience. Attending a remote Test Run of this highly effective leadership development program could transform your work and personal life – and the workplace reality for everyone on your team!  When you decide to offer Conversational Management to your people leaders, the training can be delivered in-person or via Zoom. 



I look forward to seeing you at one of the upcoming Test Drives! Register Now!

Please reach out with any and all questions about leadership development or Conversational Management. Contact  Cathie Leimbach of Agon Leadership at 440-320-3113 or cathie@agonleadership.com.

Three Small Shifts That Change Everything

By Cathie Leimbach • March 24, 2026
You don’t need to make big changes in your leadership practices to get better results. Often, it’s small shifts in everyday leadership conversations that quietly change how work gets done. Here are three that work: 1. Make priorities clear Start meetings by stating current priorities. That creates focus right away and helps conversations stay on topic. 2. Ask instead of solve Instead of answering an employee’s questions, ask, “What are your suggestions?” Such questions encourage employee thinking and stronger follow-through. 3. Hold short monthly one-on-one check-ins Meeting with each employee one-on-one allows the regular review of goals, progress, and obstacles. These short conversations surface issues early and keep everyone aligned. These small habits keep teams steady and focused. Your challenge this month: Pick one shift and try it. Notice what changes in clarity, buy-in, or accountability. Sometimes the difference between teams that struggle and teams that move smoothly comes down to a few simple leadership conversations happening consistently. 👉 Join our 60-minute Leadership Conversation on March 30th at 3:00 PM to see how small shifts in everyday leadership conversations can quickly improve clarity, ownership, and results.

From Performance Problems to Possibilities

By Cathie Leimbach • March 17, 2026
Most leaders can list what’s wrong fast: missed deadlines, uneven effort, or teams that seem capable of more. The bigger shift happens when leaders stop asking, “What’s broken?” and start asking, “What’s possible if we lead differently?” Limits like time, budget, and pressure are common. The resulting overwhelm is reduced when leaders get clear about what really matters. Strong leaders respond to these limits by focusing on priorities, simplifying decisions, and actively guiding their teams. Often, the shift begins with better leadership conversations. The right conversations clarify expectations, surface issues early, and help people take ownership before small problems grow into bigger ones. When leaders create space for clear, honest dialogue, teams stop guessing and start moving forward. Performance improves when leaders: Get clear instead of assuming Address issues early through direct conversations Set priorities people can follow Notice and praise progress, don’t comment only on mistakes These small, steady choices create momentum. We often hear questions like: “How do we stop reacting?” “What if our team is capable but inconsistent?” “How do we improve without burning people out?” Those questions point to opportunities for growth. Don’t think of them as failure. 👉 Where might your team be guessing instead of knowing? Identify one gap—and use your next conversation to close it.