The Secret to High Performance: Stop Managing the 5% and Start Trusting the 95%

Do you know the real secret to high performance? It’s not just systems; or strategies. It’s people. And few people understand this better than Sue Bingham, founder and principal at HPWP Group. With over 35 years of experience transforming workplaces, Sue is a ferocious disruptor though you might not guess that at first glance. But make no mistake: her work, her impact, and her mission are all about radical, people-first disruption.

 

I had the absolute pleasure of sitting down with Sue for this episode of C-Suite Success, and I was blown away by her clarity, courage, and compassion. Her insights don’t just change companies, they change lives. And the ripple effect of that impact is immeasurable.

 

Let’s begin with how Sue defines success. She shared something profound: sometimes, the best way to define success is by understanding what failure looks like.

 

Early in her career, Sue worked at an aerospace company in Southern California. As a young HR professional, she was tasked with the kind of work that makes your stomach churn — laying off engineers, enforcing senseless policies, and watching employees be treated with shocking disrespect. She described seeing long-term employees banned from the executive lobby so they wouldn’t “track in dirt,” and 200 people being laid off on a Friday while scaffolding was up to renovate the executive offices.

 

It was in those gut-wrenching moments that Sue made a decision: she would not be part of that system. She would be the force that changed it.

 

What she created through HPWP Group is a consulting approach that redefines leadership. It’s not about command and control, it’s about trust, empowerment, and accountability. Her approach is custom to each client, and the results speak for themselves: $1.2 million in reduced operating costs for a milling company. A 50 percent drop in absenteeism for a furniture manufacturer. Nearly half a million saved by building a leaner, more empowered warehouse team.

 

Sue co-authored Creating the High-Performance Workplace: It’s Not Complicated, and that title couldn’t be truer to her message. What she teaches isn’t complicated; it’s courageous. And it’s about making a conscious decision to see people differently.

 

As Sue shared, “Most people are good people.” That one simple belief — if practiced consistently — can transform everything. When leaders begin with positive assumptions, everything shifts. Instead of asking, “Why would they do that?” you ask, “What happened? How can I help?” That creates cultures of trust, not toxicity. Collaboration, not silos.

 

She told me, “Too many companies create all their rules for the 5% of employees who might take advantage and end up punishing the 95% who are there to do good work.” That’s not leadership, that’s fear-based management. And it’s the antithesis of high performance.

 

We also discussed the hardest lessons learned along the way. Sue shared a powerful story of working closely with a CEO over many years, someone who believed in the work and helped implement lasting changes. But over time, the relationship shifted. The CEO became the “smartest person in the room,” and Sue found herself no longer part of the conversation.

That’s a painful lesson so many of us learn: you can’t force transformation. You can only guide it. “I had to learn that I can’t control the outcome,” she said. “I need to know their version of success, not try to impose my own.”

 

That kind of wisdom only comes from experience—and heartbreak. But Sue carries it with such grace and humility. She never stopped caring about that leader, or the organization. In fact, she and her team still support the company today. It’s just a different kind of relationship—and sometimes, that’s okay. Sometimes people are in your life for a season, and the impact you made is enough.

 

As we continued our conversation, I asked her how she defines her brand of disruption and impact today. She didn’t hesitate: it’s about showing leaders that people are not problems to be managed. They are assets to be unleashed.

 

“If you create a place where people feel valued,” she said, “they will work so hard for you. You just have to believe in them.”

 

And that’s what makes Sue Bingham such an extraordinary force in the business world. She doesn’t just believe in people, she fights for them. She’s not afraid to challenge leaders, challenge norms, and challenge entire cultures to evolve. Not for the sake of change, but for the sake of people.

 

Because at the end of the day, that’s what success really looks like: people going home at the end of the day proud of what they’ve accomplished. Sharing that pride with their children. Raising a new generation that wants to contribute, not just clock in.

 

That’s the world Sue is building. And that’s the kind of disruption we need more of.

So, if you’re ready to create a high-performance workplace—one where people actually look forward to Mondays—then take a page from Sue’s book: start with trust. Lead with positive assumptions. And stop building systems for the 5 percent.

 

Have you ever experienced a workplace where leaders truly led with trust?

 

Watch the FULL interview on C-Suite TV. Or listen to the podcast on C-Suite Radio.