by Clark Lowe, President and CEO of O’Connor Company
Relentless demand for workplace performance can give rise to a culture of crackdown. Leaders who rely on micromanagement and control-based tactics to compel employees into delivering results often achieve impressive short-term outcomes. Their employees hit KPIs and meet deadlines. But beneath the polished exterior, a quiet fallout builds.
These leaders are eventually left with disenchanted teams devoid of innovation.
Why pressuring employees creates long-term disengagement and turnover
By keeping employees under constant pressure, organizations assume they can drive higher levels of productivity. They use consequences like reprimands or even job loss to keep staff in line.
However, chronic pressure breeds anxiety rather than focus. Employees who feel controlled lose their intrinsic motivation and begin to disengage emotionally from their work. The joy of collaboration and creativity gets suffocated under the weight of stress. Instead of producing their best work, employees resort to checking boxes.
According to Gallup, engagement among US employees recently hit a ten-year low. This disengagement leads to costly turnover. High turnover perpetuates instability, exacerbating a vicious cycle of control measures that erodes employee morale even further.
Crackdown culture essentially transforms what could be a thriving workplace into a revolving door. Employees leave feeling burned out and undervalued. Every company operating in this manner is quietly bleeding talent, unaware that its leadership style is the root cause.
The real reason leaders double down on control
Evidence suggests that this workplace culture ultimately fails, yet leaders persist in clinging to it. Why? Believe it or not, the answer is rooted in fear, the very emotion they weaponize against their teams.
Control-based leadership often stems from insecurity or a scarcity mindset in management. Leaders adopt strict oversight because they fear that failure will lead to them losing their position or reputation. When they double down on rigid processes and punishment for mistakes, they convince themselves they’re minimizing risk. But this safety net is an illusion. In reality, these fear-driven decisions exacerbate employee disengagement. This is the problem that will ultimately cost leaders the most.
Leaders turn to control because the idea of trusting their team feels vulnerable. Trust forces them to relinquish the illusion of control and level with their people, rather than towering over them. It challenges them to build stronger relationships and redistribute responsibility. All of this can feel terrifying for a leader who perceives vulnerability as weakness.
Retain performance without resorting to fear-based leadership
The antidote to crackdown culture lies in balance. Leaders must learn to create accountability without sacrificing humanity and build trust without lowering standards. When they strike this harmony, they unlock the full potential of their teams, retaining high performance and engagement without fear-based tactics.
These leaders trust their employees. They give them autonomy over their tasks and let them problem-solve without constant oversight.
When mistakes occur, these leaders resist the urge to admonish and take control. They trust their employees to see the project through while learning and improving along the way. This trust breeds loyalty, and loyal employees give their best work.
The key to high-performing teams is trust. Employees go above and beyond when they feel safe taking risks and asking questions. They do the bare minimum when they fear repercussions. The contrast couldn’t be more stark. Insecurity builds a culture of perfectionism, where safety encourages growth and innovation.
Effective leaders remind employees why their work matters. These leaders connect tasks to overarching goals, celebrate wins, and help staff feel they are contributing to something meaningful. The focus is on purpose over punishment. A focus on avoiding failure saps workplace energy. Leaders must fuel their teams with vision instead.
A culture of control may produce numbers in the short term, but it’s no match for the level of performance possible in workplaces built on trust and empowerment. Leaders who rise to the challenge will inspire that performance, but they’ll also get happier teams and lasting retention in the bargain.
Clark Lowe, President and CEO of O’Connor Company, is a seasoned leader with a background in the U.S. Marine Corps, where he developed his leadership philosophy based on integrity, adaptability, and problem-solving. His experience spans construction, business management, and leading teams to success by fostering innovation, optimizing processes, and encouraging continuous learning across all levels.