The number of people who report directly to one manager. The wider the span, the less time there is for each employee. In 2025 Gallup measured an average of over twelve and found that what decides where things go wrong is not team size but the share of hands-on work the manager still does.
The removal of management layers continues, and AI has become the argument: redesign the work around technology and you need less coordination. Korn Ferry finds that 42 per cent of organisations cut management roles last year; 55 per cent of the managers who remain are exhausted.
Publications per month for Management layers, AI and the strain on the managers who remain
In May 2026, 56 per cent of US managers were looking for another job, and worldwide 40 per cent of managers under increased stress had considered giving up leadership altogether. The layer that organisations thinned out themselves is now thinning out of its own accord.
Publications per month for Unbossing and why middle managers want to leave
Organisations have cut management layers on a large scale. The managers who remain now have twelve direct reports on average and still do hands-on work themselves. Gallup found the limit: above forty per cent own work, team engagement falls as the team grows.
Publications per month for Span of control and how much hands-on work managers still do
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