What Every CEO Needs to Know About Workforce ROI

Gallup estimates that disengaged employees cost U.S. companies nearly $1.9 trillion annually. Yet most CEOs measure financial performance with precision while leaving workforce performance largely to instinct. The result is one of the biggest hidden profit leaks in business.

On The Bliss Business Podcast, Mason Duchatschek, CEO of Workforce Alchemy, revealed how turnover, disengagement, and misalignment quietly drain millions from organizations each year. A bestselling author and workforce strategist, Mason shared insights that every CEO should know about reclaiming lost ROI hidden in their people systems.

The Hidden Cost of Turnover and Disengagement

According to Mason, replacing an hourly employee costs about 16 percent of their annual salary, while replacing a salaried professional costs around 21 percent. For executive roles, the cost skyrockets to over 150 percent of salary. When companies lose even a handful of people in these categories, the financial impact is staggering.

But the larger leak comes from disengagement. Gallup’s research shows that only 31 percent of employees are actively engaged. The rest are coasting or, worse, actively undermining results. Mason explained that a $10 million payroll operating at 60 percent engagement means $4 million of potential productivity is simply being left on the table.

“You can’t solve problems you don’t know exist,” he said. “These leaks don’t show up on your P&L, and your accountant can’t point them out. Yet they’re real, and they’re draining your profit every day.”

The Illusion of “Hiring and Hoping”

Many CEOs assume that training can fix a bad hire. Mason cautioned that this approach is expensive and rarely works. “You can’t out-train a hiring mistake,” he said. “Skill can be taught, but values and work ethic can’t.”

He outlined three critical dimensions that determine whether a new hire will thrive:

1. Skill – Can they do the job?

2. Attitude and values – Will they do the job, and why?

3. Behavior – How do they do the job?

Mason’s data shows that mismatched behaviors are one of the most common and costly sources of turnover. A technically skilled employee who clashes with their supervisor or role expectations can damage morale and productivity far beyond their own output. “It’s like being in the right shoe but the wrong size,” he explained. “Eventually, it hurts.”

Measuring Alignment Before It Breaks

Through Workforce Alchemy, Mason has developed a behavioral analytics platform that helps leaders assess alignment between jobs, supervisors, and teams. By mapping what success looks like in top-performing roles, companies can identify gaps in their existing workforce and make data-driven decisions about where to invest in development or realignment.

“Good to Great gave us the phrase ‘right people in the right seats,’ but it didn’t give us the tools,” he said. “That’s where the science comes in.”

He shared a case where a company discovered through behavioral analysis that its employees were operating at roughly half their discretionary effort. Once they realigned roles and addressed cultural friction, output nearly doubled without increasing payroll.

Fixing the Root Cause, Not the Symptoms

Mason compared most corporate problem-solving to rescuing people downstream without ever asking who is throwing them into the river upstream. “CEOs try to solve turnover, engagement, or productivity problems reactively,” he said. “But if they took the time to identify root causes, they could prevent them altogether.”

The key, he explained, is proactive matching and ongoing communication. When team members and leaders understand each other’s behavioral styles, annual reviews shift from judgment to dialogue. “It’s like having a psychologist in the cloud,” he said. “You can see where you click and where you clash, and address it before resentment sets in.”

Onboarding as Imprinting

Mason also highlighted the importance of “imprinting” during onboarding. From day one, new hires should understand why they were chosen, what success looks like, and how their natural strengths align with company goals. This early alignment builds a sense of belonging and purpose that drives long-term engagement.

“It creates a self-fulfilling prophecy,” he said. “When people believe they’re built to succeed, they start performing that way.”

Love as a Leadership Advantage

When asked about the role of love in business, Mason drew on the cult classic Office Space to illustrate the opposite of love at work: apathy. “It’s not that people are lazy,” he said, “they just don’t care.” In environments that lack trust, respect, and connection, employees do just enough not to get fired.

“The opposite of that is love,” he explained. “Love in business is trust, respect, and mutual care. When that exists, engagement thrives, performance rises, and resentment disappears.”

Key Takeaways

• Workforce disengagement costs far more than turnover.
• Skill can be taught, but values, work ethic, and behavior determine success.
• CEOs need data to uncover hidden profit leaks in their people systems.
• Matching people to the right roles and supervisors drives discretionary effort.
• Love, respect, and alignment are measurable drivers of workforce ROI.

Final Thoughts

The future of leadership lies not in reacting to problems, but in understanding people. As Mason Duchatschek reminds us, every organization has untapped potential hidden within its workforce. When CEOs measure engagement with the same rigor as revenue, they unlock exponential ROI. Profit doesn’t just come from productivity. It comes from alignment, trust, and love in action.

Check out our full conversation with Mason Duchatschek on The Bliss Business Podcast.