The Assessment I Almost Didn't Do

After reviewing thousands of global assessments and conducting a five-year study for an upcoming white paper, we have revealed what my AI Clone has named the “Infrastructure-Performance Gap” destroying workplace wellness. I had my suspicions we have the same issues, so, I knew it was time. My team of brilliant humans deserved the same diagnostic rigor we give our clients. So we ran our own Wellness Wave®, BurnoutIQ™, and FlowIQ™ assessments and a feedback survey on Wins, Learns and Changes to share at our birthday party. ​ High participation. LOTS of data points. Brutally honest comments. I felt a little queasy opening the results, but also grateful at the same time.

The Numbers That Made Me Proud and Lose Sleep Last Night

Here's what the data revealed about Five to Flow:

The Good:

1. Burnout protection: 4.23/5.0 (top 5% globally)
2. Leadership trust: 4.88/5.0 (my highest score - and most humbling)
3. Values alignment: 4.50/5.0 ("Part of the Burnout Rebellion," one teammate wrote)

The Painful:

1. Technology training: 2.00/5.0 (our lowest score - completely my fault)
2. Communication guidelines: 2.25/5.0 ("Too much gets lost in Slack")
3. Process consistency: 3.23/5.0 (below global average of 3.44)

The Truth Bomb:"Kate needs a true integrator so goals and tactics are tracked and we stay on the same goal/focus for more than a couple weeks."​ That one hurt. Because it's true.

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The Comments I Needed to Hear:

"I just want to feel like I'm on a team of people trying to kick ass."

"Not moving quickly enough as a small boutique brand."

"Virtual environment is tricky to stay connected without a clear role and specific goals."

My team wasn't burned out. They were frustrated. Protected from exhaustion but blocked from excellence. High engagement meeting low efficiency. The exact Infrastructure-Performance Pattern we diagnose in clients. The irony isn't lost on me.

Eating My Own Dog Food (It Tastes Like Humble Pie)

For five years, I've told leaders: "Culture doesn't create performance. Infrastructure does." Yet here I was - exceptional culture (4.38/5.0), terrible processes (3.23/5.0). My team had everything needed for greatness except the systems to achieve it. I've been that founder who believed passion could overcome process. That smart people would figure it out. That startup scrappiness was a feature, not a bug. I was wrong.

The 5 Immediate Actions I'm Taking

Fear of these results won't stop me from acting. Here's what happens in the next 30 days:

1. Creating Communication Architecture (Week 1): No more Slack chaos. Clear rules: What goes where, when, and why. If information gets lost again, it's on me.
2. Defining Anchor Roles (Week 2): Every team member gets a primary domain where they own outcomes and build expertise. No more "everyone does everything."
3. Hiring an Integrator/Fractional COO (Month 1): I'm 80% in the weeds, 20% in vision. Must flip that ratio. The team needs someone who owns execution, while I own strategy. And I already called him.
4. Building Tool Training Library (Month 1): 2.00/5.0 on technology training is unacceptable. Every tool gets documentation, videos, and peer training sessions.
5. Implementing Weekly Accountability (Starting Now): Metrics and meetings that matter. Same priorities for more than "a couple weeks." Clear rocks, measurable outcomes, public scorecard.

Being the Leader I Needed

I spent 19 years in corporate America searching for leaders who would:

• Admit when systems were broken
• Take responsibility for infrastructure gaps
• Value truth over comfort
• Fix root causes, not symptoms
• Share vulnerabilities publicly

I found a leader in a few places who allowed me to make real change, and it was life changing. So, I'm trying to become her for my team. And customers. This assessment revealed I'm better at diagnosing problems in other organizations than my own. Classic case of the cobbler's children having no shoes. But that changes now.

What This Means for You

If you're a leader reading this, here's what our data - both mine and the global responses - screams:

Your culture might be strong, but if your infrastructure is weak, your people are suffering. ​ They're not lazy. They're not disengaged. They're trapped in broken systems, losing hours to tool friction, process chaos, and unclear priorities.

Our Reality-Adjusted Scoring reveals workplace conditions are 15-40% worse than traditional metrics show. The comments your team won't say to your face reveal the truth your dashboards hide.

The Courage to Look

I'm sharing these results not because I'm proud of them, but because transparency is the first step to transformation. My team trusted me with their truth. The least I can do is act on it.

To my team: Thank you for your honesty. Your comments stung because they were accurate. You deserve infrastructure as strong as your commitment. That's my promise to you.

To my peers: Stop avoiding the mirror. Your team's frustration isn't about them - it's about the systems you've built (or failed to build). Culture without infrastructure is just good intentions.

To everyone who believes work doesn't have to be toxic to be productive: Join us. We're not perfect - these results prove that. But we're committed to practicing what we preach, even when it's uncomfortable. Especially when it's uncomfortable. Because that's where transformation happens. As we transform Five to Flow from the inside out, using the same Reality-Adjusted methodology that's revealed workplace dysfunction across our global assessments, we invite you not only to follow the journey, but join it.