New Research Finds 54% of U.S. Employees Rate Their Leader as "Good" and Warns It's a Company's Biggest Leadership Blind Spot

New book, The Heart Work of Modern Leadership, exposes how long-standing leadership traits undermine employee engagement and performance amid AI disruption and constant organizational change

CHICAGO, March 24, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- A new book released today, written by sought-after leadership and change communication expert David Grossman, spotlights a study that finds 54% of U.S. employees rate their senior leader as "good." Yet these same employees report they don't feel valued as individuals, heard, or able to reach their full potential at work.

Only 30% of employees describe their senior leaders as "exceptional," keeping up with what today's workforce truly needs—while 16% say their leaders are "outdated," leaving them exhausted, overwhelmed, and burned out. This new research from The Grossman Group with The Harris Poll, surveyed 2,206 U.S. employees about what they truly need from senior leaders and what their experience is like working with them.

"C-suite leaders, listen up: Solid, dependable leaders are your organization's biggest vulnerability. And no one sees them as a problem," says David Grossman, founder and CEO of The Grossman Group and book author. "Good leaders are built for stable times. But we don't live in stable times. Today's uncertainties—AI disruption, economic volatility, geopolitical conflicts, and constant organizational change—create relentless instability. 'Good' leaders put the company at risk. We need more exceptional leaders."

Employees working for "exceptional" versus "good" leaders are:

• +10 points more likely to feel their values, priority, and identity are valued (26% vs. 16%)
• +7 points more likely to feel heard (26% vs. 19%)
• +8 points more likely to feel they are reaching their full potential (22% vs. 14%)

The Heart Work of Modern Leadership: 6 Differentiators of Exceptional Leaders (Amplify Publishing Group; March 24, 2026) offers C-suite and senior business leaders a clear roadmap for moving from good to exceptional leadership. Leaders learn how to integrate emotional intelligence with analytical thinking to drive human employee engagement and strong business results. Six-time author David Grossman calls this "leading with your heart in your head."

As research from Axios shows, organizations that prioritize effective communication achieve 45% better employee engagement, 32% growing revenue or profits, and 32% longer employee retention. 

More research-backed key insights from the new book include:

• 6 differentiators of exceptional leadership most admired by employees:

1. 1. Lead with gratitude (heart trait)—The #1 trait of exceptional leaders, who are 2.30 times stronger than good leaders at expressing appreciation and making it a daily practice.
   2. Listen and empathize (heart trait)—Exceptional leaders are 2.16x stronger than good leaders at listening to understand, genuinely empathizing, and creating psychologically safe spaces for feedback and vulnerability.
   3. Foster an inclusive culture (heart trait)—Exceptional leaders are 2.24x stronger than good leaders at creating an environment where employees want to come to work and be their best.
   4. Communicate with context (head trait)—Exceptional leaders are 2.20x more effective than good leaders at adjusting communication to employee needs and consistently communicating strategy with transparency.
   5. Connect strategy to employee growth (head trait)—Exceptional leaders excel at helping employees understand how they fit into the company's long-term vision, performing 2.22x stronger than good leaders.
   6. Enable employees to meet the moment (head trait)—Exceptional leaders are 2.28x more likely to actively support employee development and provide resources for growth compared to good leaders.

• Leading with the Heart matters slightly more than leading with the Head in today's workplace. While both "heart" and "head" leadership traits matter, 9 of the top 10 traits of exceptional leaders are heart-focused. The top three: Showing gratitude to employees (54%), listening to understand (51%), and creating a positive work culture (50%).
  
  
• Costs of outdated leadership. The largest gaps between "exceptional" and "outdated" leaders are in:
  • Investing in employee development—11.3x difference
  • Showing gratitude and acknowledging hard work—10.8x difference
  • Building trust with employees—9.6x difference
    
• Top leadership mistake: Asking for employee feedback and then not acting on it, leaving employees feeling unheard and disengaged. Exceptional leaders clearly communicate how ideas will be used, or not, and why.

The book is filled with rare stories from 29 exceptional executives of leading organizations—Hilton, Southwest Airlines Company, CareRX, Cone Health, Conagra Brands, Nokia, Omnicom Communications Consultancy Network, and many others—who have applied the six differentiators to balance compassion with calculation, empathy with analysis, and values with tough decisions.

"The next era of leadership will be defined by how human, honest, and useful leaders are to employees, not by being polished, perfect, or having a commanding approach," says Grossman. "The Heart Work of Modern Leadership means leading with your heart in your head, and integrating emotional intelligence with strategic thinking."

Grossman adds, "Employees can tell when leaders are performing versus genuinely connecting. Leaders who fail to evolve from merely good to exceptional will steadily lose trust, talent, and relevance, as employees disengage and organizations fall behind more adaptive competitors."

The book is an Amazon Best Seller in Communication, Leadership & Motivation, Workplace & Culture, and Business Culture.

About David Grossman, the Author of The Heart Work of Modern Leadership 
David Grossman is one of America's foremost authorities on leadership and change communication inside organizations. An award-winning author, keynote speaker, and trusted executive coach to the C-suite, he also advises academic institutions offering guidance on curriculum and programs. David is the founder and CEO of The Grossman Group.

A media source for his expert commentary and analysis on leadership and workplace issues, David has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, the Chicago Sun Times, Fast Company, Forbes, Fortune, Newsweek, the World Economic Forum, Directors & Boards, and CBS MoneyWatch, among many others.

David is a six-time author known for his popular award-winning Heart First series. Heart First: What Exceptional Leaders Do In Extraordinary Times is in its second edition and continues to be applauded by leaders at all levels for the practical approaches and rich stories of heart first leadership, told by senior leaders around the globe.

About The Grossman Group
The Grossman Group is an award-winning internal communications consultancy based in Chicago that works with Fortune 500 companies to drive strategic leadership and organizational change initiatives, particularly during periods of uncertainty. The firm helps align business and communication strategy, strengthen workplace culture, improve employee engagement and performance, and deliver stronger business results. A certified diversity supplier, it partners with C-suite leaders and internal communications teams at companies including Abbott, Amsted, DHL, General Mills, Grubhub, Kimberly-Clark, Lockheed Martin, Novartis, and Stanley Black & Decker, among others.

About The Harris Poll
The Harris Poll is a global public opinion, analytics, and market research consultancy that strives to reveal society's authentic values to inspire leaders to create a better tomorrow. With a global research reach of more than ninety countries, Harris offers advisory services across sectors to world leaders, CEOs, and business decision-makers with state-of-the-art analytics, real-time software services, and practitioners in marketing, reputation, customer experience, trends, futures, and thought leadership/research-for-public release. The Harris Poll translates shifting social sentiment into a competitive marketplace advantage. Harris is a Stagwell company. www.theharrispoll.com.

SOURCE The Grossman Group