Why You Must Fire Bad Managers to Keep Great Employees

Why the Key to Retention Isn’t Coaching the Uncoachable, But Building a System That Refuses to Tolerate Them

As leadership advisors with more than two decades of experience working with Fortune 500s, startups, and government institutions, we’ve learned a hard truth: bad managers are the #1 silent killer of engagement, performance, and retention—and they’re almost impossible to fix.

Gallup says it bluntly: “Nothing can fix a bad manager.” They’re right.

Yet most organizations continue to invest precious resources in trying to rehabilitate managers who should never have been in those positions in the first place. Whether it’s through endless coaching, feedback, or training programs, the truth remains: you can’t fix a bad manager—you can only replace them with a leader who has the right qualities from the start.

This is more than a theoretical problem. It’s a retention crisis. Your best employees are walking out the door because of bad managers, and the worst part? Most organizations don’t even realize it until it’s too late.

The Myth of the Redeemable Manager

For decades, leadership literature has been steeped in optimism: anyone can lead, everyone is coachable, and transformation is always possible.

But decades of data—from Gallup, McKinsey, and our own fieldwork—tell a sharper story. Managerial quality is the single biggest driver of employee engagement. It accounts for 70% of the variance in team performance. And yet, most organizations persist in tolerating underperforming leaders far longer than they should.

“We don’t lose people to competitors. We lose them to managers we’ve been too slow to replace.”

The idea that a single toxic or ineffective manager can quietly undo years of talent strategy, cultural investment, and brand equity should keep every executive team up at night. And yet, the prevailing instinct is to invest in ‘development’—a noble impulse, but one often divorced from operational reality.

Why Traditional Fixes Fail

Let’s be honest about what’s actually happening inside organizations.

Training fails when the root issue isn’t skills, but character.

Coaching fails when the subject lacks self-awareness or accountability.

Performance management fails when toxic behaviors are overlooked because the manager "delivers results."

Culture fails when leaders are allowed to stay simply because they’ve been around the longest.

We’ve built complex systems around the belief that everyone deserves a second (or third) chance. But poor managers don’t need second chances—they need clarity. And when they can’t meet the standard, they need a professional exit.

“We’ve tried workshops. We’ve tried 360s. What we haven’t tried is professional courage.”

The Real Fix: Managerial Selection and Standards

The best companies don’t waste time trying to fix bad managers. They design their systems so those individuals never rise to power in the first place.

That begins with managerial selection—treating leadership roles not as rewards for technical excellence, but as positions requiring a distinct and measurable skill set. The ability to inspire, coach, hold accountable, and drive clarity is rare. It should be hired for with as much rigor as any C-suite position.

Second, organizations need non-negotiable leadership standards. When managers deviate from those standards—no matter how technically strong—they must be corrected swiftly or removed.

“Great managers aren’t trained into existence. They’re selected with precision and developed with intent.”

Elevate or Eliminate: A Strategic Fork in the Road

When we work with clients on leadership transformation and retention strategy, we present a simple binary:

Elevate those managers who are aligned with your values, coachable, and capable.

Eliminate those who are not.

No ambiguity. No paralysis. No politics.

This isn’t cruelty—it’s clarity. And in today’s retention climate, clarity is kindness. Holding onto a poor manager in the hope they’ll evolve is not a developmental act. It’s a decision to make every member of their team suffer longer than necessary.

Retention Begins with Leadership

Most organizations look at retention as an HR problem. It’s not. Retention is a leadership accountability problem.

Your people don’t leave because of salary, remote work policies, or lack of office snacks. They leave because they feel unseen, unsupported, or disrespected by the person directly above them.

The fastest way to improve retention isn’t with new perks or engagement tools. It’s by ensuring that the people in charge of your people are actually worthy of that responsibility.

“Retention doesn’t begin with HR. It begins with who you trust to lead.”

Final Thought: What’s More Dangerous?

Every executive team eventually confronts this question: What’s more dangerous—letting go of a bad manager, or letting them stay?

If you hesitate, you already know the answer.

At Seattle Consulting Group, we help organizations make that choice with speed, evidence, and integrity. Our Retention Blueprint™ and Resilient Disruption Model™ give leaders the tools to upgrade their managerial bench—and the courage to act when it’s time to move someone out.

Ready to upgrade your leadership team and stop the talent bleed?
Enroll in The Retention Blueprint™, or book a 30-minute strategy call with our executive advisory team.