The Profit Leak Blog

In volleyball, when a player shanks a shot or serve, their teammates don’t roll their eyes or walk away. Instead, they walk over, slap hands, and move on. In the NBA, when someone clangs a free throw, their teammates still line up to give them a high-five. Why is this important? Because recognition isn’t just about celebrating the wins . It’s about reinforcing belonging, effort, and resilience—especially when someone misses. Now let’s flip to the workplace. How often do lead

In the NFL, Dan Campbell has become synonymous with grit, resilience, and culture in Detroit. His “culture guy” identity is...

Data always tells a story. The challenge for leaders is whether we’re listening. One of our recent SKOR assessments revealed two...

As I listened to David Senra's podcast on Steve Jobs , I couldn't help it but connect with this statement. "Great can come from anywhere"...

Gallup says it best: “Less than half your employees feel safe speaking up.” Let that sink in. If half of your workforce is biting their tongue, that’s half your ideas, half your innovation, and half your blind spots going unchallenged. And here’s the kicker: silence is expensive. When people avoid the tough conversations, problems don’t go away—they grow. One unaddressed issue can spread through a team like a slow leak in a tire. It doesn’t cause a blowout immediately, but it

Transparency isn’t just about open-door policies or sharing financials. It’s about creating a culture where context is shared, feedback flows freely, and everyone understands what’s happening, why it matters, and how they fit in.

In elite sports, accountability isn't optional—it's everything. Every player knows their position, their responsibilities, and their performance metrics. The quarterback knows the play. The receiver knows the route. The defense knows the scheme. Everyone is aligned because the cost of confusion is visible and immediate: a blown play, a missed tackle, a lost game.

In American football, offense and defense play very different roles. But no one questions they’re on the same team. They wear the same jersey. They’re accountable to the same scoreboard. And they only win when both sides execute — together. Now look at most companies. Sales is chasing revenue. Product is managing scope. Ops is watching risk. HR is trying to drive engagement. They’re all working — but rarely together. Different goals, different incentives, different definition

Leadership isn’t just about big decisions and bold strategies. It ’s about the small actions — the daily clarity, accountability, and...

You’ve seen the number. A 68. Or maybe a 72. Your team’s “engagement” score is in. Now what? Here’s the uncomfortable truth: engagement scores are great at measuring how people feel, but terrible at showing how teams are actually performing.

Most companies assume their managers are doing fine — until the best people quietly leave, burnout spreads, and teams stall out. It’s not always obvious. Teams might look productive. Meetings happen. KPIs get reviewed. But dig deeper, and you’ll find the real signal: most employees aren’t experiencing great leadership. Source: Lenny's Newsletter In a survey of over 8,000 tech workers (completed by Lenny's Newsletter), only 26% said their manager was highly effective. Nearly h

Imagine every person on your team was wearing an Apple Watch — not to track their steps or heart rate, but to measure things that...