What If Your Biggest Performance Problem Isn’t What You Think?

Cathie Leimbach • May 5, 2026

What If Your Biggest Performance Problem Isn’t What You Think? 


When CEOs think about risk, they often focus on: 

  • Market shifts 
  • Operational issues 
  • Financial exposure 

But one of the biggest performance problems is far less visible: 


Low trust inside the organization. 


Nearly 30% of employees say they don’t receive clear, honest, or consistent communication from leadership. 


Over time, that creates doubt—about expectations, personal performance, and priorities.


Employees begin to feel that their job is at risk because they aren’t getting any positive feedback. 

 
They question whether they have the tools, training, and support needed to do their jobs well. 


When they only hear about changes at work through the rumor mill, they feel information is being held back. 


And when that happens: 

  • Alignment drops 
  • Speed slows 
  • Assumptions increase 
  • Execution fractures 

“Trust is the glue of life. It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It’s the foundational principle that holds all relationships.”
— Stephen R. Covey 


Trust isn’t soft. 


It’s a leading indicator of performance. 


When trust is strong: 

  • Decisions move faster
  • Teams align quicker 
  • Change sticks 


When trust is weak: 

  • Everything takes longer 
  • Everything costs more 


And here’s the reality: 

Trust-building conversations are not a common leadership strength today. 


Yet leaders like Ken Blanchard, Stephen M.R. Covey, and David Horsager all point to the same conclusion—these are not optional skills. They are required for performance in today’s environment. 


Which means trust gaps are rarely about effort.
They’re about conversation skills. 


A question to consider: 
Where might low-trust leadership behaviors—not lack of effort—be quietly slowing your organization down? 


Join Cathie Leimbach and a small group of leaders for a 45-minute Leadership Conversation – Workforce Challenges on Tuesday, May 12 at 3:00 PM ET.  


If trust is impacting speed, alignment, or execution in your organization, this conversation is for you. 


Register here 

Limited to a small group. 

Speaking Up Is Not Defiance. It's Duty.

By Cathie Leimbach • June 23, 2026
Most leaders say they want employees to speak up. They want people who spot risks, question assumptions, and help the organization make better decisions. Yet many employees hesitate to do exactly that. Why? Because leaders often respond to speaking up as if the speaker is complaining, criticizing or resisting. When people fear being viewed as difficult, they stop sharing what they see. The organization loses valuable information, ideas, and perspectives. A recent McKinsey article found that teams with high psychological safety are two to three times more likely to generate breakthrough ideas. When people feel safe speaking up, better thinking follows. The best leaders understand a simple truth: Speaking up is not defiance. It's duty. When employees question assumptions, raise concerns, or offer a different perspective, they are helping the team avoid blind spots and make stronger decisions. That's why effective leaders don't merely tolerate speaking up—they invite it. They ask: What are we not seeing? What assumptions are we making? Who might see this differently? What information are we missing? Just as importantly, they respond with curiosity instead of defensiveness. They thank people for expressing their perspective. They explain how input influenced decisions. They make speaking up safe. Because organizations don't improve when everyone agrees. They improve when people feel responsible for helping the team see what others may have missed. In healthy organizations, speaking up isn't rebellion. It's responsibility. It's duty. Leadership Reflection Think about your last leadership team meeting. Did people simply agree? Or did someone help the team see something it otherwise would have missed? Download 5 Questions That Surface Better Thinking and make speaking up a productive part of how your team thinks, decides, and performs.

Put Your Brain in Gear When Using AI

By Cathie Leimbach • June 16, 2026
Artificial Intelligence is becoming a powerful workplace tool. It can summarize information, analyze data, draft content, and generate ideas in seconds. But there is a growing risk leaders need to recognize: AI can sound convincing even when it is wrong. In an article by Erica Dhawan, she describes a legal case where attorneys used ChatGPT to help prepare a court filing. The brief looked professional, the reasoning seemed logical, and the citations appeared legitimate. There was only one problem: several of the cited cases did not exist. The AI had fabricated them. The danger wasn't carelessness. It was trust. Because the information was presented clearly, confidently, and professionally, nobody stopped to question it. Psychologists call this the "fluency heuristic"—our tendency to assume information is accurate when it is easy to process and sounds credible. As leaders, we cannot allow polished answers to replace critical thinking. When you find yourself thinking, "This is too good to be true," put your brain in gear. Dig deeper. Investigate. Verify the facts. Ask what assumptions were made, what information might be missing, and what evidence supports the conclusion. AI can be an incredible assistant. It should never become a substitute for judgment. The smooth answer is not always the wrong one—but it is often the one that deserves the most scrutiny. Before You Act, Verify. The biggest risk with AI isn't bad information. It's believable information that's wrong. That's why we created the AI Verification Checklist for Leaders —a simple 5-minute tool designed to help leaders challenge assumptions, identify missing information, verify conclusions, and make better decisions before acting on AI-generated recommendations. Download the free AI Verification Checklist for Leaders and start asking better questions before making important decisions.