By Gary Dawson
November 25, 2025 Beacon Article, Blog Post
We’re drowning in leadership paradoxes. Companies are throwing money at the problem—56% of organizations have increased their budgets for leadership development in the past year—yet somehow, 77% of organizations still lack sufficient leadership depth across all levels. Even more troubling? Trust in managers has absolutely cratered, falling from 46% in 2022 to just 29% in 2024.
The gap isn’t about money or programs. It’s about intention.
Beyond Accidental Excellence
An intentional leader doesn’t stumble into success or react their way through challenges. They operate with deliberate purpose, making conscious decisions aligned with clear values and vision. But here’s the thing—true intentional leadership happens in the smaller, seemingly mundane actions. An intentional silence here, a question to deepen understanding there. It’s the difference between just managing tasks and actually transforming cultures.
And this isn’t some feel-good theory. The numbers back it up: Leaders who genuinely support their teams have 3.4 times more engaged workers. When employees trust their managers, those who lead with real intention—they’re 53% more likely to be engaged at work. That’s not a marginal improvement; that’s a game-changer.
The Skills Gap Reality
Here’s what keeps me up at night: 26% of managers have never received any management training. Think about that. We’re promoting our best technical experts into leadership roles and crossing our fingers that their expertise somehow translates into people’s skills. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t.
This is why programs like EANE’s new Foundational Leadership Certificate and Principles of Leadership Certificate, both launching in January 2026, matter more than ever. These aren’t your typical leadership workshops that end up collecting dust in three-ring binders. EANE’s Foundational program starts where real leadership actually begins—with self-awareness through tools like DiSC assessments, then builds toward the hard stuff: managing conflict and leading through change. Meanwhile, our Principles program tackles the messy, everyday reality of diverse workstyles, those awkward performance conversations we all avoid, and the workplace conflicts that keep us up at night.
The Emotional Intelligence Imperative
Nearly half of all employees—48% to be exact—say leaders must be socially and emotionally intelligent. They rank it as the second most critical leadership quality, right after connecting teams to organizational purpose. Yet somehow, 75% of employees lose commitment to their jobs because their leaders have the emotional intelligence of a spreadsheet.
Look, intentional leadership isn’t about having all the answers. Nobody has all the answers. It’s about asking better questions, creating space for others to contribute, and building environments where purpose actually drives performance. When leaders prioritize intentionality, they set the tone for entire teams, creating that shared commitment to purpose and direction that everyone talks about, but few achieve.
As we barrel into 2026, the choice is clear: We can keep producing accidental leaders who spend their days reacting to whatever fire burns brightest, or we can develop intentional leaders who actually shape their circumstances. The data shows which path leads to engaged teams, innovative cultures, and sustainable success.
The question isn’t whether you’ll lead. You will. The question is whether you’ll lead with intention or just hope for the best.
Ready to learn more about our new leadership programs? Contact Gary Dawson: gdawson@eane.org