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Episode 10: Developing Leaders Show Notes
Show Notes: Developing Leaders:
The way we build leaders isn't working, and the numbers make that hard to argue with. Only 6% of Gen Z are interested in senior leadership roles (correction). 85% of current leaders are struggling with burnout. Those two facts are not a coincidence.
In this episode, Sherri and Nicki dig into why the traditional leadership pipeline keeps producing the same result: we take the person who works the hardest, give them more responsibility, and call it development. We promote the best carpenter into management and then wonder why all the apprentices leave. Being exceptional at a skill and being equipped to lead people are two completely different things, and most organizations have never stopped to notice the difference.
The conversation gets honest about what's actually happening to middle managers right now. They are squeezed between task demands that haven't shrunk and people expectations that have grown, with no bandwidth, no model, and no one taking anything off their plate to make room for the human side of the job.
Sherri brings the neurodiversity lens to leadership development in a way that rarely gets identified: many of the most driven, high-performing leaders are neurodivergent, and they got to the top by masking, people-pleasing, and problem-solving at a rate that looked like strength and worked like a slow drain. If you want them to stay in leadership — and you want the next generation to want it at all — the role itself has to be redesigned.
The bottom line from this conversation: organizations need to stop promoting their best doers and start investing in their developers, the people who build capacity in others, who pass on skills, who help culture take root. That's the pipeline. Everything else is just adding more to someone's plate and calling it growth.
If this one hits close to home, you might also want to go back and listen to Episode 9 — Offensive Recognition — where Sherri and Nicki get into what we get wrong about recognizing and rewarding the people we're supposed to be developing.
About our Guest:
Co-Host — Nicki Straza: A certified flourishing facilitator and coach with Straza Solutions, Nicki specializes in helping different generations get along at work and building people-centered organizational environments.
Co-Host — Sherri Dockree: An ICF-certified coach, facilitator, and leadership consultant at Mind Wave Co, Sherri specializes in ADHD, neurodiversity, and well-being for leaders and executives.
Guest Note: This episode features an in-depth, co-hosted discussion between Nicki Straza and Sherri Dockree, with no external guest.
Key Takeaways:
Leadership is a Distinct Skill Capacity, Not a Technical Reward: Promoting master technicians or high-capacity "doers" into management without leadership training sets them up for failure because managing people requires an entirely different skill set than executing tasks.
Shift Promotion from "Doers" to "Developers": Organizations must stop elevating people solely because they can carry more tasks, and instead identify, promote, and empower "developers"—those with the capacity to mentor others, steer culture, and elevate overall team capacity.
Uncover the Hidden "Culture Cost": Short-term productivity gains achieved by overloading employees create massive hidden costs—including high turnover, onboarding expenses, mental health benefits claims, and reputational damage—that do not show up directly on a traditional P&L statement. Check out the Culture Cost Calculator for your own organization.
Prioritize Emotional Intelligence & Conflict Resolution: One-off, checkbox workshops do not create effective leaders; organizations should invest in continuous support around emotional intelligence and peer mentorship frameworks for conflict resolution.
Intentionally Slow Down to Build Sustainable Capacity: Senior executives must remove tasks from middle managers' plates and intentionally create containers for reflection and stability ("taking the foot off the gas"), rather than running organizations on fumes until they catch fire.
Download the Transcript
Download the PDF of the transcript here:
Links and References in Our Episode:
Visit our website at www.dissonancedisrupted.ca
Culture Cost Calculator: https://culture-calculator-straza.netlify.app/
Correction: Deloitte Report (vs Gallup/McKinsey) Only 6% of Gen Z respondents identify reaching a leadership position as their primary career goal, suggesting that traditional advancement into leadership may hold less immediate appeal than learning, wellbeing, and broader career growth. This is the correct statistic vs 92% uninterested in leadership roles incorrectly cited in podcast.
Studies that highlight the concern around manager burnout:
Global Leadership Forecast 2025:
Gallup's State of the Global Workplace Report 2024:
Email Sherri directly at connect@dissonancedisrupted.ca
Email Nicki directly at info@dissonancedisrupted.ca
About The Dissonance Disrupted Podcast:
In a world where DEI feels lost and inclusion is becoming a bad word, we are having real conversations about leadership through the lenses of diverse voices. As generational and neurodiversity advocates, we are disrupting this sense of dissonance and navigating a path toward personal empowerment, conscious leadership and organizational success. By leveraging evidence-based practices, rooted in neuroscience we can nurture a flourishing workplace culture where every diversity thrives. We are your hosts Sherri Dockree & Nicki Straza and welcome to the Dissonance Disrupted Podcast.
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