Employee engagement scores have been stuck for decades—but belonging and wellbeing might be the missing pieces. We talk with Mark Crowley about why emotions drive behavior, how rituals create culture, and why leading with heart is actually the smartest path to performance.
Topics[0:00] Intro and speed round with Mark Crowley
[9:05] Why leaders dismiss engagement scores
[11:28] The power of asking “How do you feel?”
[16:50] Reciprocity and authentic care
[20:08] Belonging as the greatest driver of wellbeing
[24:55] Why old leadership myths persist
[28:20] Positive emotions as “emotional currency”
[31:51] Balancing care with accountability
[35:05] Rituals that build culture (and candy stories)
[42:11] Advice for new managers
[46:24] Mark’s desert island music picks
[48:39] Grooving session takeaways
©2025 Behavioral Grooves
LinksBehavioral Grooves LIVE in Minneapolis!
The Power of Employee Well-Being by Mark Crowley
Join the Behavioral Grooves community
Subscribe to Behavioral Grooves on YouTube
Music Links
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Cardiac Cowboys
The heart was always off-limits to surgeons. Cutting into it spelled instant death for the patient. That is, until a ragtag group of doctors scattered across the Midwest and Texas decided to throw out the rule book. Working in makeshift laboratories and home garages, using medical devices made from scavenged machine parts and beer tubes, these men and women invented the field of open heart surgery. Odds are, someone you know is alive because of them. So why has history left them behind? Presented by Chris Pine, CARDIAC COWBOYS tells the gripping true story behind the birth of heart surgery, and the young, Greatest Generation doctors who made it happen. For years, they competed and feuded, racing to be the first, the best, and the most prolific. Some appeared on the cover of Time Magazine, operated on kings and advised presidents. Others ended up disgraced, penniless, and convicted of felonies. Together, they ignited a revolution in medicine, and changed the world.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.