.jpg)
A new global study confirms what many employees have long suspected: the leadership qualities that drive promotions are rarely the ones that make leaders truly effective in their roles.
Hogan Assessments analyzed personality data from more than 21,000 executives alongside survey responses from nearly 10,000 full-time employees worldwide. The finding? **Zero overlap** between the top five competencies organizations reward in leaders and the top five traits employees say they want most.
> "Organizations have long tended to reward visibility, confidence, and ambition in leaders," said Allison Howell, CEO of Hogan Assessments. "But employees are telling us they want something more fundamental: leaders they can trust, leaders who communicate clearly, and leaders who create the conditions for teams to succeed."
For U.S. employees specifically, this gap is especially pronounced. The very skills that impress decision-makers often matter very little to the teams those leaders are meant to support.
What Organizations Reward: The "Emergent Leader" Profile
Companies tend to promote individuals who display what Hogan calls *emergent leadership* behaviors—traits that create visibility, command attention in meetings, and stand out in performance reviews:
- Inspiring and motivating teams toward shared goals
- Competing aggressively to outperform peers
- Taking initiative without waiting for direction
- Driving innovation and creative thinking
- Presenting ideas with confidence and command
On paper, these candidates look like ideal leaders. The problem? These visibility-driven traits don't necessarily build trust, develop teams, or sustain long-term performance. In fact, when overused, they can actively undermine leadership effectiveness.
What Employees Actually Want: The Five Pillars of Effective Leadership
When asked to describe their ideal leader, employees worldwide prioritized fundamentals over flash. For U.S. respondents, the most valued leadership traits centered on trust, communication, and sound judgment—not charisma or competitive drive.
1. Communication
**75% of U.S. employees** (and nearly **98% globally**) want leaders who communicate diplomatically, tactfully, and with sensitivity. Clear, respectful communication isn't just preferred—it's the most universally demanded leadership skill in the study.
2. Sound Decision-Making
**70% of U.S. respondents** (and **97% globally**) prioritize leaders who use data and sound judgment to make timely decisions—rather than relying solely on gut instinct or past experience.
3. Accountability
U.S. employees want leaders who own outcomes regardless of results. A leader who steps up when things go wrong earns far more trust than one who only claims credit when things go right. This expectation is nearly universal: **97% of global respondents** rate accountability as important or extremely important.
4. Integrity
Acting honestly and in accordance with ethical principles ranked among the top qualities worldwide, with nearly **97% endorsement**. For American employees, integrity isn't optional—it's the foundation of effective leadership.
5. Emotional Control
Here, U.S. data diverges most sharply from global trends: **89% of American respondents** want leaders who remain emotionally controlled and tolerant under pressure. What employees seek is steadiness—a leader whose composure builds the trust that sustains team performance through uncertainty.
**The common thread?** Self-awareness. Leaders who understand how their behavior affects their teams are better equipped to build trust and drive sustainable results.
When Strengths Become Liabilities: The "Dark Side" of Leadership
The same traits that help leaders rise can undermine them once they're in the role. Hogan's research identifies a "dark side" of personality: counterproductive behaviors that emerge when leaders stop self-monitoring under stress, fatigue, or complacency.
Strengths, when overapplied, become weaknesses:
- Confidence can read as arrogance
- Driving can become an inability to listen
- Ambition can overshadow collaboration
U.S. employees were unequivocal about the leadership behaviors they find most damaging:
| Behavior | % of U.S. Employees Citing as Damaging |
|----------|----------------------------------------|
| Emotional volatility and unpredictability | 89% |
| Arrogance and entitlement | 82% |
| Passive-aggressive behavior and stubborn resistance | 78% |
| Extreme caution and fear of failure | 68% |
The disconnect between how leaders perceive themselves and how their teams experience them is where leadership quality breaks down—and most organizations lack formal mechanisms to surface that gap.
Why Companies Keep Promoting the Wrong Leaders
The leadership qualities that get people promoted reflect how organizations define and reward *potential*. Decision-makers tend to favor candidates who are confident, visible, and persuasive—traits that shine in interviews and presentations.
Hogan frames this as selecting for *emergent leadership* over *effective leadership*:
- **Emergent leaders** excel at getting promoted.
- **Effective leaders** excel at building high-performing teams.
These two profiles overlap far less than most organizations assume.
The result is a self-reinforcing cycle: when ineffective leadership becomes the norm, it perpetuates itself. Leaders who rose by being visible tend to reward the next generation of visible candidates—while the qualities that actually drive team performance (trust, accountability, emotional control) get filtered out before reaching the top.
The cost is measurable. According to Gallup's *2026 State of the Global Workplace* report, global employee engagement has fallen to just **20%**, with declining confidence in people managers cited as a primary driver.
Building a Leadership Pipeline Around What Actually Works
Closing the gap between who gets promoted and who employees need starts with changing what gets measured and rewarded. Hogan's research points to three concrete shifts:
1. Look Past Emergent Leadership Characteristics
Visibility, charisma, and presentation skills are easy to spot in a room. Trust, accountability, and emotional control require more deliberate assessment. Organizations that combine structured behavioral interviewing and validated personality assessments with traditional performance metrics are better positioned to identify leaders who will *perform*—not just impress.
2. Build Feedback Loops That Capture Team Experience
Most performance systems measure *what* leaders produce. Few measure *how* they make people feel in the process. Adding trust and communication metrics to engagement surveys and leadership evaluations gives organizations an early warning system for behaviors that drive disengagement.
3. Rethink What "High Potential" Really Means
A candidate who dazzles in a presentation may be ideal for leading a sales team—but less suited to guiding a team through uncertainty or change. Context matters. Leadership potential should be evaluated against the specific challenges a role demands.
> "Leadership pipelines are strongest when organizations align how they identify and develop leaders with what employees value," said Howell. "Trust, accountability, and sound judgment are not secondary qualities. They are central to team effectiveness and long-term performance."
The leadership traits employees want aren't mysterious or unattainable. They're well-documented, widely desired, and deeply human. The harder shift is organizational: moving from selecting managers who *impress* to developing leaders who *perform*.
In an era of declining engagement and rising workplace skepticism, that shift isn't just strategic—it's essential. Companies that bridge the gap between emergent and effective leadership won't just retain talent; they'll build the resilient, trust-based cultures where teams—and businesses—truly thrive.