CHAPTER 11

Why Best Bosses Matter

Over the course of the past few years, we have done several Best Boss workshops and webinars where, among other things, we share our study insights. Once we have fully explained and discussed the Best Boss Leadership dimensions, we ask the audience if anything about the dimensions came as a surprise to them. Typically, there is no response. Not because they are bored (at least we hope not!) or need a bio break, but because there really is nothing groundbreaking about them. Throughout our research, we found that Best Bosses trust and respect their people. They have strong, positive values, focus on development, feedback, autonomy, and learning. They are supportive when mistakes are made and give praise on a regular basis. This all makes sense, right? So, does this kind of leadership really matter?

As Table 11.1 displays, nearly all of our study respondents suggested their performance excelled under their Best Bosses. More than three quarters felt a strong engagement with the work they performed and a positive impact on their skill development and/or careers. More than one-third of survey respondents told us that their Best Boss taught them how to lead—potentially leaving a people leadership legacy in their wake. And, nearly 25 percent of our survey respondents showed that the influence of Best Bosses can transcend organizational boundaries. These respondents felt a direct impact on who they became as people, beyond the workplace, as a result of their experience with their Best Bosses.

Table 11.1 Direct report impacts identified in the best boss study

Combining our data analysis with relevant external information and our collective professional experience, we identified four ways leaders with a Best Boss leadership profile can positively impact the organization and the individual. First, they help create a connection or bond between the organization and employee that enhances engagement and retention. Second, they lay the groundwork for exceptional performance and achievement. Third, they can develop a legacy of great leadership by teaching others how to lead, potentially “paying it forward” when Best Boss direct reports begin to lead others. Fourth, they leave a lasting impact on our life and our lives by positively influencing our values while also enriching our health and well-being.

Let’s explore these four impacts.

Creating a Connection

Take a moment to consider the following from Gallup (2017):

If it’s true that people tend to quit their jobs or are less engaged because of a bad boss, then you could argue that the inverse is worth considering. That is, people would be inclined to stay with their company because of a great boss. This was certainly true with Joel, whose story we shared in our introduction. Not only did he stay at a company with which he did not feel a strong connection, but we later discovered he subsequently followed and worked for this same person two more times throughout his career. Some of our survey participants made the same observation:

As we discussed in Chapter 5, Activates Potential, the employment “contract” for previous generations—which provided employment security, reliable compensation, and career opportunities in exchange for employee loyalty—has largely evaporated. While these concepts are still part of an individual employment retention decision, they don’t have the same gravitational pull as they did before. The net result is that many of us have become predisposed to leave our companies rather than to stay, leaving organizations more at risk than ever of losing the very talent they need in order to stay competitive.

It is our firm belief that leaders with a Best Boss profile are a hedge against this risk of unwanted employee turnover for two reasons. First, because of their focus on activating potential, Best Bosses help individuals learn, develop, and grow, which helps them maintain a contemporary set of skills and competencies that keeps them in demand amid an ever-competitive talent marketplace. This is supported by the data in Table 11.1 which shows that over 75 percent of survey respondents felt that their Best Boss had a positive impact on their development and thus their career. Second, and perhaps more important, our study shows that Best Bosses build a trusted and personal relationship with their employees, which naturally creates a positive connection with the employing organization.

Given these contemporary norms governing work and careers, employees won’t stay with an employer for the duration of their career as they typically did a generation ago. It is, however, a strong possibility that they will stay longer if they work for a person who brings the Best Boss leadership dimensions and behaviors into their leadership of others. In turn, as we noted earlier, employees will be more likely to be engaged.

Laying a Foundation for Achievement

Of all our survey questions, of particular interest is the inquiry regarding the impact of a Best Boss on individual performance. For many leaders, and organizations, this is an important aspect of our survey that should move the Best Boss findings from interesting to actionable. Why? Because of the common belief that engaged employees perform better. And in our survey analysis we saw compelling evidence that Best Bosses forged more engaged employees which, in turn, may drive superior performance. In fact, 93 percent of our respondents acknowledged that their work performance excelled while working for their Best Boss. They felt obligated to exceed expectations because the bond with their Best Boss was so important to them. Letting their Best Boss down was unthinkable.

While we rely on our respondents self-reporting as evidence of superior performance, we ask you to consider your own performance when you worked for your Best Boss. Could one of these quotes echo your own thoughts about personal performance while working for this special person?

External data support the notion that engaged employees produce results. Gallup (2017) found that highly engaged business units realize a 41 percent reduction in absenteeism and a 17 percent increase in productivity. Salesforce surveyed over 1,500 business professionals on values-driven leadership and workplace equality. They discovered that when an employee feels heard, that person is 4.6 times more likely to feel empowered to perform to the best of their abilities. The National Bureau for Economic Research (2012) found that the work teams of good bosses outperformed those teams led by bad bosses by 10 percent.

It was particularly interesting to read how individuals described their performance while working for their Best Boss. People were inspired to go above and beyond expectations. They brimmed with confidence, which allowed for greater effort and risk-taking—and they consistently wanted to do more. Perhaps most importantly, they focused on how their Best Boss helped them aspire to and realize their fullest potential, which in turn, allowed them to play an integral role in both team and company performance.

Leaving A Legacy

A couple years ago, Rick, a Vice President for a global retail organization was reflecting on his Best Boss experience. He described his manager, George, with familiar Best Boss leadership themes. As a result, Rick observed, “You know, not a week goes by that I don’t ask myself, what would George do?” Imagine that! Here was Rick, a seasoned senior executive who had not worked for his Best Boss in over fifteen years, and he was still using him as his measuring stick for great leadership. Rick felt an obligation to be the best possible leader because of George’s exceptional tutelage. He never wanted to fall short of George’s expectations. Often, people will carry the lessons from their Best Boss deep into their own careers as leaders.

In Chapter 4, we shared the story of Peggy Troy, and how she carried on the leadership legacy established by her Best Boss, Gary Schorr. This legacy has been passed along to Peggy’s direct reports. We had the opportunity to interview Rob Sanders, Chief Administrative Officer, Bob Duncan, Executive Vice President, and Laura Miller, Vice President Planning (Rob and Laura have since left their positions) and it was clear their leadership philosophy and approach was directly connected to the relationship with Peggy, just as Peggy’s was connected to Gary’s. In fact, this philosophy has become ingrained in the culture of the hospital overall, which emphasizes the critical influence the top executive’s leadership style and approach has on organizational culture.

Another finding we noticed in our study is that, in addition to learning about great leadership from their Best Boss, some people had a powerful sense of obligation to carry forward those leadership lessons as a personal testament to the individual who had been such an inspirational mentor to them. As was noted in our earlier story from Rick, in discussing leadership legacy, people do not want to disappoint their Best Boss when they are working for them, and they don’t want to fall short of their teachings later on when they are leaders themselves. As one survey respondent eloquently told us,

Such quotes reinforce the potentially long-lasting and positive repercussions a Best Boss can have on other leaders. This topic was also explored by authors Brooks, Stark, and Caverhill in 2004. They spent five years speaking to a cross section of men and women from all walks of life, asking them who had left an indelible impression in their lives, and more importantly, why. Often, they found, it was organizational leaders who had positively made a difference. Here is an excerpt from their book’s introduction:

Impacting a Life

Many people touch our lives. A select few of those people have a profound influence on who we are and who we become as individuals. Some of us are lucky enough to have a Best Boss who helps us become not just a better employee, but a better person. Do you recall how Courtney described the impact Bob had on her life in Chapter 1? It’s worth repeating this quote from her:

In some cases, Best Bosses can impact lives far beyond the workplace, which is exemplified by the following story taken from Duncan’s work experience.

Amanda and Joe

It’s not always easy to summon the courage to take a stance that you know could run the risk of damaging your standing in an organization. But, if you are a leader, courage must be part of the job description. And, when exercised, courage in leadership can have ripple effects that expand farther than you could have imagined, even reactivating the potential of a mid-career employee who seemed to be a lost cause.

It was the first sales meeting for Amanda as the newly-appointed Midwest Regional Sales Vice President. She knew all eyes would be on her to see if this up-and-coming young woman would have what it takes to lead a large group of male, veteran, and somewhat crusty sales managers. The group gathered the night before for a premeeting dinner. Alcohol flowed freely. About midway through the dinner, Amanda noticed that one of the sales managers, Joe, was visibly intoxicated. As the evening wore on, he became loud and belligerent, yet no one seemed bothered. As Amanda later found out, this drunken behavior had become accepted by the group. While the evening ended without incident, Amanda was concerned.

The following morning, before the sales meeting began, Amanda reached out to her Human Resources representative to discuss the issue. From the conversation, Amanda learned that Joe used to be a top performer and had been considered a rising star in the sales department. However, his performance had been deteriorating for a while and there had been little attempt to intervene by her predecessor. Amanda knew she needed to act, not just because of the obvious mandatory behavior change required from Joe, but perhaps to re-engage an individual who was wasting his potential.

A week after the sales meeting, Amanda met with Joe. She put him on notice that the behavior he exhibited at the sales meeting would no longer be tolerated and strongly suggested he seek assistance from the EAP (Employee Assistance Program). She also told him she hoped to eventually see the Joe from earlier in his career—the person who had not only shown so much ability but was a positive force both professionally and personally.

Fast forward several months after Joe’s episode at the sales meeting. He had become sober, his team collaboration skills strengthened, his performance soared, and everyone in Joe’s life benefited, including, and most importantly, his family. A short while following Amanda’s intervention with Joe, his wife connected with her to say thank you for making such a positive impact within their family. Apparently, Joe’s alcoholism had not only been negatively impacting his work, but it had also been a growing negative force in the lives of his wife and children, too. Several years later, Joe successfully retired from the company, thanks in large part to Amanda’s role in changing his life. She didn’t intervene solely for the organization—from her own personal experience, she knew that the tentacles of alcoholism also stretch into an individual’s personal life, adding a second and perhaps more important reason for the intervention. Joe’s wife told her as much when she thanked Amanda at Joe’s retirement party for everything she did for not only Joe’s work life, but their family as well.

This aspect of a Best Boss’s impact, how they affect the whole person rather than just the working person, was a pleasantly unforeseen insight from our study as evidenced by the following survey quotes:

Impacting Lives

Stress causes health issues. And nothing was more stressful than the year 2020. From contentious politics and societal protests, to economic and mental challenges associated with a worldwide pandemic, stress infiltrated all of our lives. But this kind of stress ebbs and flows with moments in time. However, there are some causes of stress that are ever-present in our lives: Rush hour traffic. Going to the dentist. Raising children. Work. A study by Everest College has shown that 80 percent of Americans are stressed about their job, and, for 75 percent of employees, the most stressful part of their job is their immediate boss. This particular stress is leaving its negative mark on our collective health. In 2009, The Karolinska Institute and Stockholm University found that individuals ran a 25 percent greater risk of suffering a cardiac problem if they worked for a bad manager. Similarly, in 2011, the Baylor University Department of Management discovered that individuals who are treated poorly by their supervisors often take their frustrations out at home on their family, or on less powerful people at work. The 2019 International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health Journal found that employees who did not trust their boss had a higher risk of having four or more heart attack risk factors.

On the positive side, in 2015 the University of Michigan found six qualities of a healthy workplace culture that directly align with the Best Boss Leadership dimensions, characteristics, and behaviors. They include:

In this chapter, we have argued that organizational leadership wedded to Best Boss principles make a positive difference to organizations and individuals alike. This argument leads us ask two intriguing questions:

We will attempt to answer these two seemingly simple questions in the upcoming chapter.