When a leader says “we value people,” there’s a simple way to test if it’s true:

What happens when someone sets a boundary?

In my latest Leading With Respect podcast conversation, Brenda Herrera DeLeon (a former VP in the agency world) said respect at work is fundamentally this:

Dignity. Being seen. Being heard. Being valued. Being included.

And she offered the clearest cultural signal I’ve heard in a while:

If boundaries aren’t honored, respect isn’t present—no matter what’s on the wall.

One more line that stayed with me:

Burnout is often a systems signal, not an individual weakness.

As AI speeds up the pace of work, this matters even more.

The faster the work gets, the more leaders have to design for dignity.

Question for leaders/CHROs:

If I asked your people, “When you set a boundary here, what happens next?,

what would they say?