That’s how surprisingly many people answer the question why they quit. Not the job. Not the product. Not the salary. The boss.
nnnnPeople don’t leave companies, they leave managers. This isn’t a new insight. Yet many founders and executives act as if employee retention is an HR issue. Fruit bowls, table football, workations in Mallorca. All nice. All missing the point.
nnnnA-players stay even in a mediocre organization if their direct manager is strong. And they leave successful companies if they don’t feel seen. That costs you money, momentum, and knowledge. In a scaleup, simultaneously three things you don’t have.
nnnnWhat do strong leaders do differently?
nnnnThey ensure their people work on meaningful things. Not on endless side battles. Not on reports nobody reads. Not on issues the boss forgot about two weeks later.
nnnnThey show genuine interest. Not tactically. Not in the annual performance review. But in everyday life. They know the child’s name. They notice when someone is at their limit. They ask without immediately wanting a solution.
nnnnThey foster growth. Professionally and personally. They delegate responsibility before anyone has to demand it. They trust their people with more than they would trust themselves with.
nnnnThis creates trust. Trust creates space. And space makes direct feedback possible.
nnnnCriticism is then not understood as an attack, but as an investment. Because it’s clear: this is about development, not about power.
nnnnThe typical scaleup mistake
nnnnFounders who have shaped their company from day one often believe leadership is a nice side task alongside operational business. It’s not. Leadership is full-time and most people do it wrong.
nnnnWith the first ten, twenty employees, everything still works through personality, shared history, and short distances. At fifty it gets tight. At a hundred it gets brutal. Suddenly you don’t know everyone anymore. Suddenly there are team leads who have never led before. Suddenly your culture depends on people you don’t see daily.
nnnnIf you don’t invest in leadership during this phase, you lose exactly those who carried your growth. They leave quietly, they write polite resignation letters, and six weeks later on LinkedIn they post their new job at your competitor.
nnnnI’ve had a few of these conversations in coaching. CEO sits across from me, at a loss. “That was my right hand. I never thought they’d leave.” When I then ask when they last had an honest conversation with that right hand, it goes quiet. Six months ago. A year ago. At the last offsite. But “not really.”
nnnnThat’s exactly the point. A-players want to be challenged. They want to grow. They want to know where they stand and where they’re going. If that doesn’t happen, the next call from a headhunter comes, and right now they’re very well paid in Munich.
nnnnWhat does an A-player really cost you?
nnnnRecruiting, onboarding, lost knowledge, a gap in the team that others have to cover. Quickly six figures. For key roles, more.
nnnnIn comparison: a workshop for your leadership level. Clear expectations. Clear values. Honest conversations. Not nearly as expensive.
nnnnAnd yet that’s exactly where costs are cut. “We don’t have time for that right now.” “Our people are old enough.” “It will sort itself out.” It won’t. It sorts itself out by your best people leaving.
nnnnnNico Reis is an entrepreneur, investor, and senior coach at Scale Up. As part of our Munich Startup Experts, he regularly distills practice-oriented know-how from the Munich startup ecosystem, shares his knowledge in exclusive expert contributions, and derives concrete learnings and actionable tips for founders.
nnnnnLeadership is not a matter of charisma
nnnnI have rarely experienced bad leaders being malicious. Most mean well. They’re just overwhelmed, poorly trained, and alone. They were promoted because they were technically strong. Nobody showed them how leadership works. Nobody reflected back to them what they’re unknowingly breaking.
nnnnThis is exactly where good leadership work starts. It’s not about personality tests. It’s about craftsmanship. Formulating expectations clearly. Giving feedback that lands. Addressing conflicts before they escalate. Making decisions without endless negotiation.
nnnnLeadership doesn’t mean controlling. Leadership means seeing, listening, and enabling. Tough on the issue, caring in your approach. These don’t contradict each other, they belong together.
nnnnThose who build trust gain loyalty. Those who squander it lose even the best.
nnnnAnd then the best eventually answer at a party why they left you. “Because my boss was an idiot.” Rarely meant directly in malice, but unmistakable.
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