When Leaders Keep Their Word (And When They Don’t)

Why honoring commitments is a make-or-break factor for leadership success

We’re living in a time when people are tired of empty promises. Employees, partners, and stakeholders alike are scanning for signs of who they can trust—and who they can’t. In that environment, one leadership quality stands out: keeping your word.

You’ve seen it happen. A leader makes a bold promise in a meeting, sends out a vision-filled email, or nods in agreement to take on a task. But then, nothing. Deadlines slip, priorities shift, and trust quietly starts to unravel.

On the flip side, when a leader consistently delivers—especially when it’s hard—they gain more than just a good reputation. They build moral authority. They earn real influence. People begin to believe: If they say it, it will happen.

At Zenger Folkman, we set out to measure how much this matters—not just anecdotally, but statistically. Our research, based on 1.8 million assessments of over 162,000 leaders, confirms what many already suspect: leaders who break commitments do real damage, not just to their reputation, but to their effectiveness.

The Data Behind the Promises

Each of these leaders was evaluated by an average of 13 people—bosses, peers, direct reports—on 60 leadership behaviors. One of those behaviors: “honors commitments and keeps promises.”

Here’s what we found:

• Leaders rated as needing improvement in keeping commitments ranked in the 13th percentile on overall leadership effectiveness.
• A rating of “competent” bumped them to the 23rd percentile.
• “Strength” doubled that to the 46th percentile.
• But only leaders rated as having a “profound strength” in keeping commitments reached the 74th percentile.

Translation: The difference between being trusted and being tolerated as a leader can come down to whether people believe you’ll do what you say.

Why It Matters More Than Ever

This isn’t just about your personal brand as a leader—it’s about business outcomes. Our data also includes engagement scores from 572,977 direct reports, who answered questions about:

• Their satisfaction with their job and the organization
• Willingness to recommend the organization
• Likelihood of staying
• Discretionary effort

The results were striking: When leaders were rated highly for keeping commitments, employee engagement soared. When they weren’t? Engagement dropped off a cliff.

In a time when organizations are fighting to retain talent, drive accountability, and navigate constant change, the ability to follow through may be the most overlooked superpower a leader can have.

The Path Forward: Commit Less. Deliver More.

Keeping commitments doesn’t mean saying yes to everything. It means saying yes with intention—and following through like your credibility depends on it (because it does).

Here are five ways leaders can build a stronger commitment-keeping muscle:

1. Pause Before You Promise

Instead of reflexively saying “sure,” take a beat. Ask yourself: Do I have the bandwidth, resources, and authority to follow through? If not, say no—or set clearer boundaries upfront.

2. Track What You Say You’ll Do

Use tools, reminders, or even a simple notebook to log every commitment—big or small. This isn’t micromanagement; it’s leadership hygiene. What gets tracked gets done.

3. Communicate Early When Things Shift

Life happens. Priorities change. But silence kills trust. If a commitment is at risk, notify people promptly. Reset expectations, offer an alternative, and stay accountable to the outcome.

4. Don’t Overpromise to Please

Many leaders struggle to say no because they want to be seen as helpful, supportive, or capable. But consistently overpromising—and underdelivering—erodes exactly that perception.

5. Close the Loop

Too many leaders forget to circle back. Once a commitment is fulfilled, confirm it’s complete. Say it out loud. Own it. This reinforces your reliability and trust.

The choice every leader faces is simple but profound: Be someone whose word means everything. Or risk being someone whose promises mean nothing.

Because in leadership, there’s no gray area when it comes to commitment. People notice. And they remember.

-Joe Folkman