Former Secret Service agent challenges workplace authenticity push
Evy Poumpouras says employees should bring a professional mindset to work, while other researchers say authenticity can strengthen commitment.
By Sofia Marchetti · World Affairs Correspondent
3 min read
Former U.S. Secret Service agent Evy Poumpouras has argued that workers should prioritize professionalism over unfiltered personal expression on the job. Her comments land in a continuing debate over whether workplace authenticity helps teams or distracts from performance.
Speaking on the Diary of a CEO podcast in an episode published in September 2025, Poumpouras said employers need people to be respectful, competent and empathetic at work, rather than bringing every private feeling or reaction into the workplace. She said people can reserve their fullest personal selves for family settings.
Poumpouras, a Queens, New York, native, worked as a Secret Service special agent, polygraph examiner and interrogator from 2000 to 2012, according to Fortune. During that period, she helped protect Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama and George H.W. Bush.
She is now a law enforcement and national security analyst, the author of Becoming Bulletproof and an adjunct professor at the City University of New York, Fortune reported.
Why she says restraint matters
Poumpouras pointed to her interrogation work to explain her view. She described interviewing a 16-year-old boy who had allegedly assaulted a 3-year-old girl and said her personal reaction would have been anger and judgment.
Instead, Poumpouras said she needed to remain controlled and nonjudgmental so she could obtain a confession and establish what had happened. In her telling, the mission was to protect the child from further harm, making her own feelings irrelevant to the job in front of her.
She also argued that the popular idea of bringing an “authentic self” to work can shift attention away from the group. Poumpouras said employees should ask what value they add to the team, rather than bringing every problem, opinion or judgment into the workplace.
In her view, too much emphasis on personal expression can weaken performance by encouraging people to act independently instead of focusing on a shared mission. She said team-oriented workers should bring a genuine commitment to the work and the group.
Other experts split on the idea
Ryne Sherman, chief science officer at Hogan Assessment Systems, made a similar argument on a 2025 episode of the Science of Personality podcast. Sherman said workplace authenticity can create problems with professionalism, workplace relationships and career growth.
As an example, Sherman described an employee who feels angry and responds by yelling, stomping or sending a harsh email. He said holding back those immediate reactions may be inauthentic in the strict sense, but can still be the more professional choice.
Research cited by Fortune points in another direction. Cynthia S. Wang and co-researchers at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management published findings in March saying workplace authenticity can improve employee well-being, relationships with colleagues and commitment to an organization.
Wang also said authenticity can be harder for marginalized and minority employees. She distinguished being included in a meeting from feeling able to speak openly and express oneself at work.
This story draws on original reporting from Fortune.