Don't Chase KPIs, Create Momentum: The People Power Surge

This is the second in a three-part opinion series on leadership, culture, and creating momentum. If you haven’t read Part 1, that’s where I shared an often overlooked truth in business: momentum, and not KPIs—is what really moves organisations forward.

We talked about why momentum matters, how it begins with vision, and what leaders must do in the early stages to get the boulder rolling.

In Part 2 below, we shift the focus to people—how great leaders earn trust, build alignment, and fuel belief in ways that create unstoppable energy inside their teams.

In Part 3 next week, we close the loop by talking about sustainability: what it takes to maintain momentum, protect the culture, and keep the flywheel spinning long after the leader steps out of the spotlight.

3. Be Respected and Liked

Is it important for a leader to be liked? Yes – more than we often admit. But only when it’s built on respect.

People move for people.

They follow leaders they respect. They rally behind leaders they trust. And they’re more likely to go the distance with leaders they like but let me clarify, being liked doesn’t mean trying to be popular. It’s not about soft-pedaling decisions or avoiding hard conversations. It’s about being real and relatable. It’s about being human.

Research backs this up.

A Harvard Business Review article, Why Likable Leaders Seem More Effective, highlights how leaders perceived as likable tend to be rated more effective by their teams — not just for what they do, but for how they make people feel. Likability increases trust, opens up communication, and creates a foundation where people are more motivated to contribute. It builds a connection that motivates people intrinsically towards movement.

Likewise, another study published by HBR, 7 Ways to Make Employees Feel Respected, shows that feeling respected by a leader is one of the strongest drivers of employee engagement, performance, and retention. It turns out that respect isn’t just nice to have — it’s a core leadership lever. When people feel respected, they lean in. They care more. They contribute more.

Daniel Goleman, in his work on Emotional Intelligence, reinforces this — arguing that leaders who demonstrate empathy, social awareness, and relational skills create stronger connections, which in turn fuel team performance, loyalty, and long-term results.

This isn’t just theory. We’ve seen this in action.

A recent and powerful example is Piyush Gupta, the outgoing CEO of DBS Bank, who took the reins in 2009 when the bank was seen as a conservative, bureaucratic institution — reliable, but not particularly innovative. Over the next 15 years, he led a sweeping digital and cultural transformation, repositioning DBS from a traditional bank to one of the most respected digital-first institutions in the world. Technology wasn’t just introduced, it was embedded as a core strategic advantage.

Under his leadership, DBS was named the “World’s Best Bank” multiple times by Euromoney, The Banker, and Global Finance, as well as “Best Digital Bank” and “Safest Bank in Asia.” And the performance reflected it: total shareholder returns grew by over 600% during his tenure.

But beyond the numbers and accolades, what truly stood out was how he brought people along the journey. At his farewell, the spontaneous outpouring of appreciation from employees across all levels of the bank was a testament not just to what he achieved but to how he led. He built a bench of strong, values-aligned leaders prepared to take the helm, ensuring that the momentum he created would be sustained beyond his time.

Piyush combined strategic clarity with a deep sense of empathy, trust, and connection. He cultivated a culture of purpose and innovation while keeping humanity at the center. He wasn’t just respected, he was genuinely liked. And that likability wasn’t about charm or charisma. It was about the way he made people feel seen, valued, and proud to be part of something bigger. That’s the mark of a leader who doesn’t just drive performance but builds enduring momentum.

As I am writing this, I can imagine the many different views on the importance of being liked. Can movement still be created if the leader is not liked? Yes, I think so. But let’s be clear: movement is not momentum.

Movement can be forced. It can be driven by pressure, compliance, or fear. People will still act. They’ll attend the meetings, hit the deadlines, submit the reports. But momentum — real, lasting momentum requires more than activity. It’s the compounded effect of consistent, meaningful movement in the same direction over time, fuelled by belief, trust, and the shared effort of a team aligned not just in action, but in heart and mind. That’s what transforms direction into culture. That’s what gives power to the push.

A disliked leader (in my definition, someone whom others quietly wish the organisation would be rid of) can still “motivate” movement and keep people focused on the vision. Professionalism compels their inner circle to perform. Processes, checklists, performance reviews, and bonus schemes continue to drive behaviour. People still do their jobs. But something vital is missing.

Work becomes functional. Mechanical. Transactional. The meaning behind the work begins to flatten. People stay because it’s safe, or because they haven’t found something better. They do what’s required and little more. Mentally, they’re checked in. But emotionally and psychologically, they’ve already started to check out. It’s this slow erosion of spirit that so many organisations try to diagnose through employee engagement surveys. That one elusive metric, the “engagement score,” meant to capture a feeling that can’t quite be graphed.

And when a values-driven culture begins to slip, when belief gives way to apathy — any transformation, no matter how well-planned, begins to feel ordinary. Just another initiative in just another company.

But we’re here to think differently, aren’t we?

We’re here to talk about great leadership. The kind that builds not just plans and projects, but the kind of momentum that draws people in — mind, body, and heart. The kind of leadership that activates the mental, physical, emotional, social, even spiritual parts of a person. That rare spark that makes someone feel like their work matters, that they matter, and that the future they’re building is worth showing up for.

And that’s why I return to someone like Piyush Gupta, not just because of the numbers or accolades, but because of the feeling he left behind. The impact wasn’t only on DBS’s ROE or market cap. It was in the culture. The belief. The pride. The strength of the leaders he groomed to carry the flame forward. And most of all, the way people spoke about him when he left. That’s the part that stays with me.

Which brings us to a delicate but essential truth.

While you don’t need to be liked by everyone, how you lead in pressure moments especially when hard decisions are required, determines whether you lose people or keep their belief intact.

And this is where likability, often dismissed in leadership conversations, takes on real significance.

So yes, it is important to be liked. But not in the way most people think.

Be respected first and be liked because you show up as a leader who listens, cares, and stands for something greater than yourself. People will walk through fire for a leader they respect even when they don’t agree with every call. Even when the decisions are tough.

But here’s the nuance:

People can accept hard decisions. They can’t accept harsh ones.

Hard decisions come from clarity, necessity, and conviction. Harsh decisions come from ego, detachment, or unchecked pressure. Your team knows the difference. Always.

That’s why the real work of leadership — the kind that sustains momentum, isn’t just about setting direction. It’s about setting tone. It’s creating an environment where people feel safe, seen, and part of something that matters.

All the vision in the world won’t carry weight if the leader doesn’t carry trust. Trust is earned in the trenches, through how you treat people when the spotlight’s off, the pressure’s on, and the next move isn’t obvious.

People don’t follow a KPI. They follow a leader they believe in.

So, ask yourself: Are you someone your team would choose to follow, even if they didn’t have to?

That’s the mark of a great leader.

4. Build The Flywheel

Once you’ve set the vision, once trust and respect begin to take root, and once you notice a few key champions becoming emotionally connected to where you’re headed — that’s when the flywheel kicks in. The flywheel of momentum.

This is the shift: from effortful pushing to compounding motion. The energy no longer comes just from you. It now flows from the team, from the culture, and from a belief that has taken root and begun to spread. But that kind of momentum doesn’t happen by accident.

It begins with consistent communication. The vision can’t just be shared a couple of times in a boardroom or at a town hall. It needs to be repeated, in different ways and through different voices, until it becomes part of the organisation’s language.

You may need to simplify it for the everyday person not because people aren’t capable of understanding complexity, but because the vision needs to land clearly and emotionally at every level, from the most senior leader to the frontlines.

Bring people together. Know them. Invest time in hearing their stories and showing them that they matter. Identify the champions, the internal influencers and opinion leaders who already carry informal authority. Bring them in early. Let them speak the vision in their own way, through their own experience. That’s how the message spreads organically.

In the book CEO Excellence by McKinsey & Company Senior Partners Carolyn Dewar, Scott Keller, and Vikram Malhotra, this phase is described as a critical part of one of the six key CEO mindsets: aligning the organisation. And in my experience, that alignment doesn’t happen in days or even weeks. It takes months.

I recently spent a holiday at the Ta’aktana Resort & Spa on the island of Labuan Bajo, and the experience left a lasting impression. It wasn’t just the curated activities or the exceptional cuisine served in beautifully designed themed restaurants. What made it truly memorable was how personal everything felt.

From the General Manager to the reception team, from the waiters to the poolside crew and buggy drivers—everyone knew us by name. Even when we appeared unexpectedly, they greeted us with familiarity. It was clear they had taken the time to memorise our names and faces before we arrived.

What stood out even more was the warmth shown by every staff member, including gardeners and maintenance personnel. They smiled genuinely, made eye contact, and took the effort to say something kind each time we passed by. English may not have been their first language, but their simple greetings—like “Good afternoon” or “Please enjoy the rest of your morning”, were delivered with sincerity and heart.

It wasn’t about saying the right lines. It was about making each interaction feel real. Their body language, tone, and presence all conveyed something deeper than hospitality. They communicated care.

This level of consistency doesn’t happen by chance. It’s incredibly difficult to translate a company’s values or vision from the boardroom to the frontlines and have it show up so naturally, so consistently, and with impact. But they did it.

What I saw in that resort was a team that had internalised the vision. It wasn’t just an organisational goal, it had become personal to them. And because of that, they articulated it with authenticity. As a guest, I felt it. I felt seen, welcomed, and genuinely cared for. And that made all the difference.

I can only imagine that whatever they’ve articulated in the boardroom as their brand aspiration — what they hope every guest will feel and experience, would sound something like “Thoughtful experiences, personally felt.” It’s not a statement I saw printed anywhere, but it’s something I truly experienced. And I doubt I’m the only one. Judging by the consistent praise they’ve received on Google, it’s clear that many other guests felt the same.

What I experienced at Ta’aktana wasn’t just the result of great frontline service, it was the reflection of something deeper. A culture that had clearly been nurtured from the top, with leadership that aligned teams not just around tasks, but around a shared feeling and standard of excellence. And that kind of alignment doesn’t happen by chance. It starts with how leaders engage their teams especially their inner circle.

In parallel, you need to draw your leadership team close. Keep them engaged. Consult them. Hear their perspectives. Invite disagreement within the leadership team meetings and in private. Let real conversations happen but hold your convictions firmly. Especially in an Asian context, not everyone will speak their mind openly so it’s on you to create the space, the trust, and the invitation for truth to surface.

And if you’ve inherited a leadership team, this becomes even more critical. Get to know them not just in meetings, but over meals, in casual moments, through their stories. Recognise their strengths and past accomplishments. Remember their families’ names. Ask how they’re doing. These things seem small, but they compound too, and they matter more than many leaders realise.

Eventually, you’ll start to see who’s truly on board and who’s not. Some will be fully aligned. Some will smile in meetings but remain passive outside of them. And that’s when you must decide, who gets to stay on the bus?

Because the vision you’re building is only as strong as the people driving it forward.

And when it comes to leadership alignment, disagreement is fine but misalignment in front of their teams is not.

When you’ve mobilised your vision through the right leaders, and the teams are aligned in both heart and head — that’s when the boulder starts rolling. And that’s when you move from momentum into a self-sustaining flywheel.

This is where structure finally matters. The systems. The checklists. The KPIs. The dashboards.

Because now, your team isn’t doing it because they have to — they’re doing it because they believe in it.

And belief is the difference.

Once the team has made the vision their own, they’re more open to the project plans and systems that support execution. They’re not resisting structure; they’re welcoming it as a way to win.

As a leader, this is where your language should shift too. It’s no longer about you pushing them. It’s about recognising them. Celebrate small wins often. Publicly. By name. People remember when they’re seen. That recognition creates pride and reinforces belief in the vision. It doesn’t just feel good, it drives momentum.

This is how you quietly build a culture of momentum:

• Through merit

• Through inclusivity

• Through visible, shared wins

You’ll start to notice something powerful — teams wanting to win, not just for themselves, but for each other. That’s when culture takes over. That’s when you’re no longer fighting for momentum. You’re riding it.

That’s the flywheel of momentum in motion.

This article was firstly published on Ben Foo's LinkedIn.

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