Middle management

What the publications show

1. One large Gallup survey reports that manager engagement worldwide is falling faster than employee engagement, and identifies that decline as the main cause of the global dip in engagement.

   Gallup, 2026 (opens in a new window)

2. Publications on removing management layers describe the remaining managers getting larger teams and doing more hands-on work themselves. LeadDev sees the share of engineering managers working more hands-on rise from 20 to 35 per cent in a year.

   LeadDev, 2026 (opens in a new window) · HR Leader, 2025 (opens in a new window)

3. Research and opinion pieces point to an intention to leave within the management layer itself. The University of Chieti-Pescara finds that 61.2 per cent of 464 Italian nurse managers want to leave within a year; a good relationship with senior management reduces that likelihood.

   University of Chieti-Pescara, 2026 (opens in a new window) · HR Leader, 2025 (opens in a new window)

4. A small interview study by Concordia University finds that Gen Z repeatedly reconsiders a management role, mainly based on their own perceived competence. This conclusion rests on a single publication with 11 participants.

   Concordia University Wisconsin, 2026 (opens in a new window)

5. Gallup reports that engagement is flat while AI use accelerates, and an opinion piece in Harvard Business Review describes managers and executives thinking differently about AI, a difference that costs companies money.

   Gallup, 2026 (opens in a new window) · Harvard Business Review, 2026 (opens in a new window)

Topics within middle management

This list shows what the publications on this theme are about, with the number for each topic. Open a topic to see its publications; if a topic has a briefing, the link is underneath.

• Manager engagement2 publications

  • Employee Engagement Remains Flat as AI Adoption Accelerates · Gallup, 2026
  • Gartner HR Survey Finds 47% of Managers Say They Are Working Harder Than One Year Ago · Gartner, 2026
  Briefing: Engagement and workload of managers and their teams →
• Fewer layers, bigger teams2 publications

  • Engineering managers are back in the codebase · LeadDev, 2026
  • Unbossing and the great flattening: Lessons on the risks of ditching middle management · HR Leader, 2025
  Briefing: Span of control and how much hands-on work managers still do →
• Intention to leave3 publications

  • Factors Influencing Intention to Leave Among Nurse Managers: A Cross‐Sectional Study · University of Chieti-Pescara, 2026
  • “Can I and do I want to?”: How Generation Z employees evaluate managerial roles · Concordia University Wisconsin, 2026
  • Unbossing and the great flattening: Lessons on the risks of ditching middle management · HR Leader, 2025
  Briefing: Unbossing and why middle managers want to leave →
• AI and the manager3 publications

  • Managers and Executives Disagree on AI—and It's Costing Companies · Harvard Business Review, 2026
  • Gartner Research Finds Only 8% of HR Leaders Believe Their Managers Have the Skills to Effectively Use AI · Gartner, 2025
  • Engineering managers are back in the codebase · LeadDev, 2026
  Briefing: The manager's role in how employees use AI →

Briefings on this theme

Where several organisations publish roughly the same thing on a topic, we have used AI to compile a briefing. Click a card for the key point, the figures with their sources and what it means for the leadership team.