In episode 222, Coffey talks with consultant and author LeAnne Lagasse about effective leadership development initiatives and what she calls “congruent leadership.” 

They discuss why most leadership training programs fail to deliver ROI; the importance of reverse engineering programs from specific organizational outcomes; the significant impact of frontline managers on employee engagement; the gap between knowledge transfer and skill execution; building programs with practice, peer learning, and self-reflection components; “soft skills” deficits across the workforce; “congruent leadership” as alignment of self-perception and team experience; and the 70-20-10 learning model’s impact on development. 

You can find LeAnne’s new book “The Congruent Leader: Build Trust, Lead with Self-Awareness, and Close the Gap Between How You See Yourself and How Others Experience You” here https://a.co/d/ehUoYLx  

Hardcover: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-congruent-leader-leanne-lagasse/1148446437?ean=9798999501912  

Book website: https://www.thecongruentleaderbook.com  

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If you are an HRCI or SHRM-certified professional, this episode of Good Morning, HR has been pre-approved for half a recertification credit. To obtain the recertification information for this episode, visit https://goodmorninghr.com.  

About our Guest: 

LeAnne Lagasse is the author of “The Congruent Leader: Build Trust, Lead with Self-Awareness, and Close the Gap Between How You See Yourself and How Others Experience You.”  

LeAnne is also an HR consultant and keynote speaker who helps leaders and organizations improve employee engagement and retention, as well as develop their people managers.  

LeAnne is a SHRM-SCP, a Gallup-Certified CliftonStrengths© Coach, and also serves as adjunct faculty at Missouri State University, where she teaches professional communication courses to MBA students.  

Before launching her consulting business, LeAnne was a faculty member and the Director of Public Speaking in the College of Media and Communication at Texas Tech University, where she served for 14 years. Alongside her husband, Ben, she is a proud mom to three children and two pet prairie dogs. 

LeAnne’s book, “The Congruent Leader: Build Trust, Lead with Self-Awareness, and Close the Gap Between How You See Yourself and How Others Experience You” is available at https://a.co/d/e2vm4d1.  

LeAnne Lagasse can be reached at: 

https://www.leannelagasse.com/  

https://www.linkedin.com/in/leannelagasse/  

https://www.facebook.com/leannelagasseconsulting  

About Mike Coffey: 

Mike Coffey is an entrepreneur, licensed private investigator, business strategist, HR consultant, and registered yoga teacher. 

In 1999, he founded Imperative, a background investigations and due diligence firm helping risk-averse clients make well-informed decisions about the people they involve in their business. 

Imperative delivers in-depth employment background investigations, know-your-customer and anti-money laundering compliance, and due diligence investigations to more than 300 risk-averse corporate clients across the US, and, through its PFC Caregiver & Household Screening brand, many more private estates, family offices, and personal service agencies. 

Imperative has been named a Best Places to Work, the Texas Association of Business’ small business of the year, and is accredited by the Professional Background Screening Association.  

Mike shares his insight from 25+ years of HR-entrepreneurship on the Good Morning, HR podcast, where each week he talks to business leaders about bringing people together to create value for customers, shareholders, and community. 

Mike has been recognized as an Entrepreneur of Excellence by FW, Inc. and has twice been recognized as the North Texas HR Professional of the Year.  

Mike serves as a board member of a number of organizations, including the Texas State Council, where he serves Texas’ 31 SHRM chapters as State Director-Elect; Workforce Solutions for Tarrant County; the Texas Association of Business; and the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, where he is chair of the Talent Committee. 

Mike is a certified Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) through the HR Certification Institute and a SHRM Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP). He is also a Yoga Alliance registered yoga teacher (RYT-200) and teaches multiple times each week. 

Mike and his very patient wife of 28 years are empty nesters in Fort Worth.  

Learning Objectives:  

1. Design leadership development programs that span extended timeframes with multiple learning modalities including peer collaboration, low-stakes practice opportunities, and structured reinforcement rather than relying on one-day events or single webinars. 

1. Incorporate self-awareness and reflection exercises into leadership training to help managers identify their natural strengths, biases, and communication tendencies that create barriers to their own success. 

1. Implement the 70-20-10 learning model by prioritizing challenging practice exercises (70%), supportive coaching and mentoring relationships (20%), and formal content delivery (10%) to maximize leadership development ROI.