Moving Forward Leadership: Inspire | Mentor | Lead

It’s no secret that unmotivated employees can ravage a business. Even before the COVID-19 outbreak, nearly 70 percent of employees were less than enthusiastic about (and less than committed to) their work, costing U.S. businesses between $450 and $550 billion each year. Add in one worldwide pandemic, newly remote and anxious employees, and news of daily layoffs, and leaders are left to plead, “Now what?” as employees mentally check out. Though it’s tempting to blame homebound workers and current events for cratering employee engagement, the most significant cause of demotivation—despite everything above—are the managers and leaders themselves. CATHY BUSH, Ph.D., has spent decades investing in the development of leaders as an organizational psychologist, consultant, professor, coach, and author. She has worked with leaders around the globe to create the organizational cultures people love to work for—and clients love to work with—in a wide array of industries, including manufacturing, transportation, publis