25 | "The Nick Saban Effect"

In this episode, hosts Richard Fagerlin and Dr. Keri Jacobs explore why top talent leaves and how boards can know whether turnover is a healthy sign of growth, or a warning signal. They introduce the “coaching tree” concept that highlights the power of developing leaders who, in turn, grow more leaders. Learn how to reframe turnover as launching leaders as part of building a thriving leadership pipeline.

• Distinguish the cause of departures: culture misfit, team toxicity (a CEO issue), or genuine readiness for bigger roles.
• Use structured oversight: periodic CEO 360s, robust board-led CEO evaluations, and talent development and employee satisfaction metrics.
• Provide senior leaders appropriate exposure to the board for learning and transparency; discuss when executive sessions without staff make sense.
• Reframe “we lost them” to “we launched them,” adopting a stewardship mindset that builds a leadership pipeline and maintains relationships with past employees.

Follow Build Better Boards on LinkedIn for updates. Find show notes and more at buildbetterboards.com/podcast.