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.

Making a Great First Impression: Avoid These 3 Common Mistakes

By Cathie Leimbach • July 15, 2025
According to research by Vanessa Van Edwards, who analyzed thousands of first encounters, your first impression happens before you even speak. People decide if they like, trust, or want to work with you the moment they first see you. Unfortunately, many of us unknowingly sabotage ourselves with what she calls the "triple threat" of first impression mistakes. The 3 Problems That Kill Your First Impression Problem 1: Making Yourself Small - When you tuck your arms close to your body and hunch your shoulders, you signal low confidence. Looking down at your phone while waiting creates the "universal defeat posture" – chin tucked, shoulders hunched, taking up minimal space. In simple terms, you look like a loser. Problem 2: Hiding Your Hands - Keeping your hands in pockets or out of sight creates subconscious distrust. People need to see your hands to feel safe around you. Problem 3: Avoiding Eye Contact - Direct eye contact triggers oxytocin, which builds trust and connection. Skip this in the first few seconds, and you miss a crucial bonding opportunity. How to Fix These Mistakes The solution is straightforward: keep your hands visible and expressive, stand tall with good posture to take up appropriate space, and make deliberate eye contact within the first few seconds of meeting someone. Master these three elements, and you'll create positive first impressions that open doors instead of closing them. For more detailed research findings and background on Van Edwards' extensive studies, check out Why Vanessa Van Edwards' First Impression Studies Matter .

Why Great Leaders Are Worth Every Penny

By Cathie Leimbach • July 8, 2025
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